Designed by Martin Valentine of AECOM's Lighting Group, the new scheme replaces 64 Philips Arena Vision metal halide floods with 32 Philips/Color Kinetics ColorReach Powercore LED fixtures. The fixtures can re-create - and actually improve on - the white light of the previous lighting scheme, bringing to life the landmark building's dramatic Romanesque architecture. However, the colour-mixing fixtures also provide many other lighting options which can be exploited by the museum's staff on a seasonal basis or for special events.
White Light undertook the installation on behalf of AECOM, Architainment, who supplied the lighting fixtures, and the Natural History Museum itself. White Light's team installed and commissioned the 32 ColorReach fixtures and the Pharos control system which runs them.
As well as improving the appearance of the building, the new system offers dramatic energy savings - a reduction of electrical load by 75% in normal operation. The LED fixtures also have a useful life of about 50,000 hours, giving a thirty year operating life under normal usage rather than the average three year life of most metal halide lamps and so reducing the Museum's on-going maintenance bills.
The new lighting scheme continues the relationship between White Light and the Natural History Museum; White Light is already an approved supplier to the venue, providing dramatic lighting to events making use of the Museum's spectacular galleries.
(Jim Evans)
