IT SEEMS almost unnatural that outdoor lighting should be so passive, fixed and unvarying, says Philips Lighting, given the dynamics of streets, roads and highways that are changing constantly due to traffic, accidents, weather, crime, and special requirements.

Therefore, to meet the changing needs, the challenges and possibilities that can be opened in outdoor lighting, the lighting specialist has come out with a comprehensive and integrated solution that offers ultimate control in lighting outdoor traffic areas of all kinds.

Philips’ IntelligentCity solution incorporates the company’s latest state-of-the-art road and street lighting products such as Amplight, StarSense and CityTouch to provide clear, high-quality illumination that is also highly energy saving and sustainable. It integrates different technologies ranging from the lighting fixtures to intelligent controls to create a complete system that turns the static lighting into a dynamic solution that can respond to the changing situations and happenings on the streets and highways.

“Today’s municipalities are faced with low budgets, high maintenance outlays, growing pressure to increase sustainability, and quickly changing trends – such as the move towards smart grids. In response, we’ve developed Philips IntelligentCity – a dynamic, intelligent lighting solution that makes it possible to easily optimise road and street lighting in terms of liveability, energy efficiency and operational cost reduction,” says Paolo Cervini, general manager of Philips Lighting Middle East and Turkey.

Amplight and StarSense are unique tele-management systems that make it possible to automatically – or proactively – adjust the lighting on specific corners, streets or stretches of a highway to maximise safety, atmosphere or energy efficiency as needed. CityTouch, on the other hand, is the first truly integrated management platform for outdoor lighting and brings it all together in one easy-to-use interface, says a spokesman for Philips Lighting.

Meydan VIP Bridge ... Philips identified eW Graze Power Core (below) to be a perfect fit.

“The total solution gives you a complete insight into what is taking place within the lighting system, and assists you in monitoring and managing it as effectively as possible,” he says.

This delivers valuable benefits in a variety of ways including:

• Increased energy efficiency: It replaces old technology with future-proof, retro-compatible technology (Ledgine); offers active lighting control during low traffic hours to save further energy; and provides maximum LED energy efficiency and less light pollution;

• Effective use of light: It enables active lighting control in problematic areas to increase safety; automatically responds to weather changes; and offers active lighting control in connection with city events, such as street, and live events;

• Intelligent asset management and easier, more efficient maintenance: The digital system smartly plans and routes maintenance works to minimise blockages and helps plan future upgrades; and it generates time and cost-saving automatic failure reports;

• Smart energy metering and billing: A smart meter accurately measures energy consumption, taking into account the varying rates, and automatically bills all entities; and

• Future-ready for other services: Other services such as surveillance and traffic management can easily be integrated.
“Philips Lighting has been illuminating streets for almost a century, so we’re well aware of the changing needs, challenges and possibilities in outdoor lighting,” Cervini comments.

The company presented its IntelligentCity solution at the recent Arab Future Cities summit held in Doha, Qatar, in April (23 to 24), where it participated as the Gold sponsor and a keynote speaker. The summit gathered leaders, mayors, government officials, major construction companies, and city development experts to share insights and best practices on how to implement a sustainable future for the cities of tomorrow.

Cervini points out that Philips’ sustainable outdoor innovations can save up to 70 per cent of the energy consumed by current street lighting without compromising on performance, while ensuring they remain fully compliant with current norms and regulations in place for street lighting.

Lighting at Dubai International Airport tunnel ... another Philips installation.

Philips Lighting is part of Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands, which has seen its sales of green products increase to 39 per cent of total sales and has set a target of 50 per cent by 2015. In lighting alone, it introduced over 4,000 new green products last year. In 2011, lighting accounted for more than 60 per cent of the total spend on green innovation with the investment of a record amount of €291 million ($374 million).

Philips has supplied its innovative and environment-friendly lighting solutions to a number of projects in the region. One such recent project was the Meydan VIP Bridge and its extension, the Royal Bridge at the Meydan City in Dubai, UAE, where the solution Philips offered is described as being 100 per cent energy-efficient and sustainable.

Meydan City is home to the Meydan Race Course and the Meydan hotel. The bridge provides access to VIPs and members of the Royal family that attend the spectacular Dubai World Cup held annually in March at the race course.
Philips was called upon to illuminate the undulating bridge structure to serve as a royal welcome to these dignitaries and transform the bridge into an architectural landmark.

The requirement identified by Philips was a maintenance-free linear continuous projector running along the undulating structure emitting blue light. The project had a tight delivery schedule and handover was just before the Dubai World Cup in March 2011, says the spokesman.

Philips’ eW Graze Power Core was a perfect fit but it had to be customised to blue LEDs, he says. This requirement gave birth to a new product – Philips eColor Graze Power Core with various colour options. “A complete study of the drawings and site was done and it was concluded that the two-foot product will perfectly match the undulations of the bridge. The customisation was done to the satisfaction of the decision makers and the solution was delivered at the right time meeting all the deadlines,” says the spokesman.

Philips came up with a maintenance-free outdoor solution using a long-life light source with optimal power consumption. Continuous interconnection of products enabled quick installation of the entire system.

The company’s other key outdoor installations in the UAE include the Dubai International Airport tunnel project.

Royal Philips Electronics is a world leader in the healthcare, lifestyle and lighting sectors providing cardiac care, acute care and home healthcare, energy-efficient lighting solutions and new lighting applications, as well as lifestyle products for personal well-being and pleasure.