Outdoor Lighting: Philips supplies LED street lights to Boston and Weston (Updated)

Boston, Massachusetts is in the process of replacing more than 14,000 mercury-vapor street lights with LED-based Philips Hadco luminaires. In Weston, Florida, Philips Roadway is supplying 1200 solid-state-lighting (SSL) Roadstar luminaires. Moreover, Philips SpeedStar luminaires are lighting a Bristol, UK-area traffic circle.

Boston projects that its SSL street-light project will deliver $1.1 million in annual electrical savings, reducing power consumption by 8.9 million kW/h, and greenhouse gas emissions by 5000 tons. Boston Mayor Thomas Menino said, “Not only do these lights help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, they also save the City money in tough economic times. We’re excited to add these aesthetic and durable lighting fixtures to our streets.”

The Mayor noted durability as an advantage, and Philips Hadco says that the RX1 and RX2 luminaires being used in the project are rated for 18 years of life. The luminaires utilize the Philips Hadco LEDGINE modular LED array technology that comes in a choice of 300K, 400K, and 5700K color temperatures.

“This investment in LED lighting is aesthetically, environmentally and economically beneficial, a combination that all taxpayers can appreciate,” said Glenn Cooper, Associate Electrical Engineer, Street Lighting Division, City of Boston. “Philips Hadco delivered on everything we were looking for – from energy savings and outage reductions to enhanced visibility and improved light uniformity.”

Boston plans to complete the retrofit project by December. Philips is partnering with lighting-specialist Hurry Associates on the project.

Weston SSL project

Philips’ Roadway division is behind the Weston SSL project that is being funded in part by a US Department of Energy (DOE) Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG). Weston hopes to save $160,000 annually in energy costs and another $100,000 annually in maintenance costs.

The Roadstar luminaires are replacing existing metal-halide lamps, and the city noted lighting quality benefits along with savings as motivation for the project.

“Street lighting accounts for a large part of our energy consumption and the solution from Philips Roadway provided us with energy savings, improved light levels and reduced maintenance, making it the right choice for our city,“ said Jeffrey Skidmore, Assistant City Manager and Chief Operating Officer, City of Weston. “Feedback from our residents is that they appreciate the uniform, white light that virtually eliminates the dark spots between poles, as well as spill and glare. It also provides a clean look that fits the overall aesthetic of our community.”

Philips worked with Municipal Lighting Systems on the Weston project. Moreover, engineering firm Calvin Giordano & Associates assisted the city in evaluating LED lighting technology and Horsepower Electric is handling the installation.

LEDs in Bristol, UK

Philips is also the supplier to an LED street-light project in the Bristol, UK area. According to the Daily Mail newspaper, the local Bath and North East Somerset council have replaced 250W high-pressure-sodium lights with 169W SSL luminaires at a busy roundabout between Bath and Bristol.

The council expects the LED lights to nominally deliver a 40% energy saving. But the pilot project also includes adaptive-control and dimming capabilities that can reduce light levels late at night. The council hopes that dimming will increase the energy reduction to 60%.

The website Small World News Service said that the council utilized 71 Philips SpeedStar luminaires to light the traffic circle.

The SpeedStar luminaires are based on the same LEDGINE modules utilized in the Boston installation discussed above. Moreover, Philips recently announced that the Carbon Neutral Group had awarded a certificate of carbon neutrality to the SpeedStar design.