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Hundreds of Pacemaker high-bay luminaires from Cooper Lighting and Security have helped Airbus UK to achieve an 80% increase in lighting levels in the main wing production area at its Broughton site in North Wales, while at the same time making energy savings.
Airbus UK is responsible for the design and manufacture of wings for the company's entire family of aircraft. In order to maintain the highest production standards, attention to detail is essential - and this demands lighting of the highest quality.
Since the existing SON luminaires in the massive wing production building were nearing the end of their design life - with illumination levels typically down to about 300 lux - Airbus began the process of upgrading the lighting. The company decided to use products from Cooper's Crompton Lighting range because of their outstanding quality and competitive pricing.
Crompton Pacemaker high-bay luminaires, fitted with 400W metal halide lamps for good colour rendition, were chosen for the open wing production areas. The luminaires were modified to include an 11-minute timed ignitor, which provides additional protection for the control gear in the event of lamp failure.
After installation of the Pacemaker luminaires had been completed, measurements revealed that the average light level on the production floor had increased by 80% to 540 lux - well in excess of the specified minimum of 500 lux. Everyone was delighted with this result, and all the more so as it had been achieved using two fewer luminaires in each row, thereby reducing energy costs.
The wing assembly work takes place in huge, specially designed jigs, and for these areas Cooper supplied Crompton Tufflite - a robustly constructed fluorescent luminaire. Sometimes installed quite close to working areas on the jigs, the Tufflites were chosen primarily for their high impact resistance and their ability to withstand the general rigours of the production environment.
Over 2500 Tufflites have now been installed on different jigs in different buildings at Broughton and, with very few technical problems reported, they have proved to be extremely reliable.
In line with Airbus policy, all the Crompton Lighting luminaires were supplied with high-frequency control gear to minimise flicker and maximise both energy efficiency and lamp life.
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