London Metropolitan lights up carbon reduction rankings with new LED project

The lighting upgrade at the Holloway Road campus was the largest element of a wider sustainability scheme which included the installation of solar photovoltaics, energy efficient fans and air conditioning controls. This holistic approach has put the university on track to achieve a 2020 carbon reduction target of 50%.

The lighting programme, undertaken by sustainability product suppliers Minimise Energy, saw outdated T8 lamps and panels replaced with LED upgrades throughout the Victorian blocks which make up the Holloway Road Campus. Through the LEDs alone, the campus has reduced energy bills by £55,000 a year and cut annual carbon emissions by 225 tonnes.

London Metropolitan University sustainability manager Rachel Ward said: “The programme was developed to help the university meet the targets set out in its carbon management plan, enhance the student experience, and reduce energy costs.

“The lighting alone is saving us around £55,000 per annum on electricity costs and has reduced our carbon footprint by 225 tonnes of carbon. The lighting has also made an improvement to the feel of the university, making it a bright and welcoming space for students.”

With the campus compromising of classrooms, offices and lecture theatres more than 100 years old, the ongoing refurbishment programme will see the University instigate further upgrades in 2017 as part of a wider plan to consolidate its three campuses into one.

Bright future

edie has reported on a number of LED installations in recent months, with companies and organisations utilising the technology to make major energy savings in both a commercial and domestic context.

The number of Scotland’s LED streetlights will double to 250,000 and more than 65,000 tonnes of CO2 will be saved thanks to the new public-sector funding announced earlier this year.

Engineering group Rolls-Royce’s director of energy Tim Sullivan last month told edie that 10% of Rolls-Royce’s 50% reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions will come from LEDs, with the company gearing up for an energy-efficient lighting retrofit programme across its entire global estate.

Marks & Spencer (M&S) recently announced plans to build on “the most comprehensive, wide-ranging sustainability plan in retail” by fitting out its entire UK estate with LED lighting by 2025.

George Ogleby