We’re always talking about ‘solutions’ when it comes to installing lighting. In fact, it’s even in our full company name: UNLUMITED Lighting Solutions. But to be honest, we don’t necessarily solve a lot of problems. It’s more that we go way beyond offering standard applications. We listen to what clients envision as their ideal lighting set-up and create a suitable lighting plan that meets all those wishes and needs.
But would it be a big problem if doesn’t do all of that? Not necessarily, at most it’s a bit of a bummer probably. But in the case of this project, our work is actually having an impact on people’s daily lives.
We were recently asked by our partner Axioma Nederland to help with a lighting solution for an Attent healthcare institution. It is a care home for more than a hundred elderly people, some of whom are suffering from dementia.
They don’t go outside much anymore, or even at all. Most of them spend their days indoors in the various rooms that the institution houses, such as the living room, the kitchen, the activity room, and so on.
Human centric lighting
Axioma Nederland received a request from the institution to add human centric lighting as a functionality by installing a new lighting system. Human centric lighting, or HCL in short, simulates the natural course of daylight. The light radiates a warm white colour in the morning, like the morning glow. Towards the afternoon it becomes whiter and cooler. In the afternoon it goes back to that warm white, to imitate the setting of the sun.
This is extra important for anyone who spends much of their day indoors. Your biological clock can become upset if you no longer follow the light of day. It can also lead to anxiety.
To improve upon the current situation, Axioma was asked to create a test case for HCL in one of the rooms. Eight MANTA fixtures from UNLUMITED were used for this purpose, all equipped with white LED PCB’s that can deliver colour temperatures ranging from 2700 to 6500K.
The ‘testing room’ consists of two parts: a seating area with a TV and second part with a dining table. Four MANTA’s were installed in each of the parts. The solution had to be completely wireless, so our own Zen-Lite control solution was used. This works via Bluetooth MESH technology and is easy to operate via both physical light switches and an app.
Range extenders
We did encounter a problem, because the fixtures are made of metal and the concrete ceiling contains iron. So the wireless bluetooth modules are trapped between concrete and metal. We suggested adding range extenders to all fixtures These are transceivers that increase the wireless range. The great thing about them is that they can be fully integrated into the fixture. You don’t even see it and the coverage is much better. Turns out, we actually did solve a problem this time.
Next week we’ll go into more detail about the actual impact of this new lighting on the residents. Because that’s wat truly matters. It was a special project for us to be involved in. It comes as no surprise that we as a company find lighting very important, but rarely does it make such an impact as this project does.
