School Auditorim House Light Upgrade

The Problem

The auditorium seats almost 600 people and is lit, ready for use, for at least 12 hours every day. The lighting system had been installed with the original build in 1997 and was becoming increasingly unpredictable and inconsistent. It was taking longer and longer for the static, nondimmable lighting to reach capacity after being switched on, costing both time and money. More and more parts of the system were failing and it had become a priority for the school to get it remedied and brought up to date. Additionally, electrical safety regulations have changed since the original installation and a more up-to-date system would meet the stricter safety criteria.

Creative Spark’s Solution

We visited Woldingham to carry out a lighting audit. It quickly became apparent that the fixtures for the non-dim lighting had deteriorated beyond repair and needed to be replaced as a matter of urgency. Knowing that the dimmable lighting fixtures had been installed at the same time, we recognised that it too would have deteriorated and so recommended that it be replaced either at the same time or in the near future, as it would only be a matter of time until it also reached the end of its life.

In less than one week, Creative Spark was able to carry out the following major improvements:

• Replaced 32 old mercury lighting fixtures with highly efficient LEDs. Retained existing wiring to keep material, time and labour costs to a minimum.
• Replaced entire distribution board to meet current BS7671 requirements under which all circuits must have RCD protection. All circuits were fitted with RCBOs which also allowed other circuits fed from the board, such as sockets, to be protected.
• New LED fixtures are rated at 50w, compared to the 150w of the existing units. This could result in an annual cost saving of £2300.
• LEDs offer 4500 lumens of light and a 120° beam angle, perfect for large open areas that need illumination, such as Woldingham’s auditorium. They also have a colour rendering index (CRI) of over 70, meaning objects appear really close to their true colours, as if they were under natural light.
• Changed all switching on systems to instant on rather than discharge – the old system needed to warm up and once turned off, would have to stay off for around 10 mins before being able to turn back on. As the auditorium is used for exams this was particularly problematic in the event of an accidental switching off.

Benefits for our client

Woldingham School now have a safe, fit for purpose, environmentally and cost-friendly non-dimmable lighting system in the entire auditorium. The LEDs used are easy to swap out when they fail (estimated 50,000 hours’ lifespan) as they are factory sealed units that are replaced in their entirety. The old mercury lamps were difficult to dispose of but the LEDs with their metal shells and small elements can be disposed of under WEEE recycling directives. Energy consumption will drop, the system is safe to use and it meets all current safety regulations.

Ryan Skelly, the Technical Manager at Woldingham School who oversaw the project says,

“It had become a matter of priority to future proof the lighting in the school’s auditorium. Not only had it become costly to run, it no longer provided an adequate service and didn’t meet safety regulations. We called Creative Spark with the problem and from the very outset they were brilliant.

Dan and Claire come from a theatrical background and shared our vision for the venue, knowing just what we wanted the lighting to achieve. They listened to our concerns, recognised the pain points and provided a quote with everything set out in easy to understand sections, considering the job from all angles.

We knew at once that they were the perfect people for the job and as soon as we gave them the go ahead, they were extremely professional and made us feel at ease. Everyone we dealt with from Creative Spark was similarly minded and they worked non-stop to complete the work in less than four days.

I wouldn’t hesitate to use Creative Spark again and I would recommend them to anyone else needing a professional lighting company. There will be many more projects coming their way and we welcome their input into those future projects as well. We noticed the cost savings as soon as our next electrical bill arrived, and the students and staff alike have all commented on the huge improvement in the lighting. A brilliant outcome all round.”