With more than 85 manufacturing facilities around the world and a target of being ‘net zero energy’ by 2020, the Kingspan group of companies has its work cut out.
When the firm acquired the 32,000 square-metre production and warehousing facility in Selby in 2008, it acquired an “old and inefficient” site which was in dire need of renovation. It didn’t chart on BREEAM’s sustainability standard and needed attention.
When it came to actually renovating the site more recently, one of the first measures undertaken was to completely replace the entire roof. High-performance trapezoidal roof panels were fitted across the entire facility’s roof space, around 7% of which was installed with polycarbonate roof lights.
Those panels, while essentially allowing light in with minimal heat wastage, would become an integral part of the facility’s lighting system.
What followed was the installation of intelligent lighting controls which measure total illumination within the building, keeping it at the ideal level through balancing natural daylight with that provided by high-bay LED luminaries. The overhaul of the roof and lighting took the facility to EPC Grade A and a ‘very good’ rating under BREEAM standards.
Tony Ryan, building technology manager at Kingspan Insulated Panels, told Clean Energy News that the system had saved the Selby plant 91% of its lighting costs which had risen to £46,000 each year. That performance meant the installation had paid for itself within just over three years. “Regardless of that [investment], a payback of 3.2 years and an IRR of 50%, it’s very attractive to any financial director,” Ryan added.
LED lighting is often regarded as a ‘low-hanging fruit’ for energy managers, especially those new to the trade. It’s comparatively cheap and can deliver almost instant results, particularly in trades were facilities are operational 24 hours a day.
This has resulted, Ryan said, in the market becoming saturated with LED providers. Few take into account the possibility of utilising as much natural lighting as possible, as well as dimming solutions and occupancy sensors to tailor that system.
“Large commercial and industrial buildings can benefit substantially from natural daylight via roof lights installed. If this is the case we can calculate the optimal amount of roof lighting using a holistic approach.
“It’s quite different rather than just replacing bulbs. We’re actually installing a lighting solution which delivers a level of brightness, and that level of brightness can be achieved via natural daylight or artificial daylight,” Ryan said.
Efficiency statistics
- 30,000m2 – Kingspan Selby roof size
- 7% – Roof coverage taken up by polycarbonate roof lights
- £46,000 – Annual lighting costs before the solution was installed
- 91% – Savings achieved on lighting costs each year
- 3.2 years – The payback period for the required investment
