Visitors to a new national tourist attraction are finding their
way around with the help of local firm, Abacus Lighting.
The company, based in Sutton in Ashfield, has supplied a new
range of environmentally friendly LED Quartz® lighting bollards
to the Derbyshire Eco Centre which have been installed throughout
the paths and car park.
Set in fifty acres of Derbyshire Countryside, the new
£1.4m eco-centre at Middleton-by-Wirksworth has been designed
to promote sustainable living and the Abacus Quartz® LED
Bollard was chosen by the project's main contractor, Wildgoose,
because of its sustainability and ability to reduce running costs
and promote efficiency. Its simple, aesthetic appearance also suits
the building's picturesque surroundings whilst LED technology is
helping to reduce its carbon footprint by providing big energy
savings.
The Centre, an official Site of Special Scientific Interest
(SSSI), uses solar panels for heating water, a grass roof and
harvests rainwater for its toilets. Chris Anderson, Regional
Account Manager at Abacus, said: "Our new LED Quartz® bollard
is one of the most energy-efficient amenity lighting systems of its
kind so fits in perfectly with the ethos of the Centre. A
traditional louvered bollard will emit typically 28% of the light
it produces but our new bollard emits 90%. The LED technology
also gives big energy savings, using 60% less wattage than
conventional bollards, meaning lower energy bills for the Centre."
The LED Quartz® gives over 50,000 hours lighting use - four
times longer than conventional HID lamps - significantly reducing
maintenance and replacement costs. And, because LEDs contain
no UV, they are an ideal safe solution for pedestrian areas.
The Eco Centre site, which was funded by Derbyshire County
Council, The Skills Funding Agency and the Derbyshire Economic
Partnership, contains six former quarries, four lime kilns and over
one hundred and twenty disused lead mine shafts.
The Centre is Derbyshire's hub for courses and activities
focusing on education for sustainable development and supports the
Council's work to address climate change issues. It offers
sustainable building skills workshops, including dry stone walling,
to support the rural economy and conserve its heritage, as well as
woodland management, pottery and basket making and map reading
courses delivered by partners including the East Midlands Heritage
Skills Training Group and the East Midlands Regional Centre of
Excellence for Education for Sustainable Development.
To complement the lighting scheme, Abacus has also supplied a
number of 5m columns around the site carrying its contemporary flat
glass 'Oris' lanterns.
Dave Cox, Senior Electrical Services Design Engineer at
Derbyshire County Council, said: ''Our in-house design team worked
very closely with Abacus Lighting to develop a scheme which had to
be both efficient in terms of light output and economical to run.
The solution met the planning requirements we needed to obtain a
high BREEAM score and helped us achieve an 'Excellent' rating for
the building.''