Cardiff deploys smart lighting network

by Nicholas Fearn , November 22

Around 14,000 IoT-enabled smart lights are being installed around Cardiff as part of new plans to reduce energy costs and provide better lighting for residents.

Cardiff Council has almost completed the first stage of the project, which is seeing it deploy thousands of Phillips Luma LED street lights across the Welsh capital.

The lights are connected to the Philips CityTouch system, which city officials can use to set up and manage smart lighting networks. They can do things like dim and increase the brightness of lights.

Aiming to improve efficiency within councils, it provides managers with an overview of the city’s lighting network so they can quickly identify and address any faults.

Phillips has already installed this system in 37 countries, including Toronto, Amsterdam, Buenos Aires, Jakarta and Los Angeles. Cardiff is the 1000th light installation for the firm, it said.

Chris Jones, lead electrical officer at Cardiff City Council, said: “We looked at a broad range of factors when selecting our new connected lighting system.

“Our top priorities were to ensure maximum benefit for our citizens and capitalise on potential cost and energy savings. Philips Lighting has given us an infrastructure that will grow with our needs and provide quality light to make our citizens feel safer.

“With continual monitoring, we can now respond instantly – such as increasing light levels at peak times outside schools and hospitals.”

Jacques Letzelter, head of public lighting at Philips Lighting, added: “Our connected street lighting will contribute to a safer environment for the citizens of Cardiff and will enable the city to achieve savings in energy and enjoy operational efficiencies.

“It provides a scalable and flexible digital infrastructure which gives the city options for the future, such as inputting data into smart city dashboards or adding sensors that could, for example, monitor noise or traffic.”

Image credit: Jeremy Segrott