Since its opening in 1929, the magnificent Nottingham Council House has been the heart of the city and a source of pride for the people of Nottingham. Its 61 m (200 ft) high dome dominates the city skyline, and its clock tower bell can be heard for miles around. The Council House serves as the hub for Nottingham's local politics; both elected councilors and general citizens gather within its grand walls to conduct business. The building is also used as a setting to receive and entertain visiting members of the Royal Family and public officials.
As part of an ongoing initiative to rejuvenate the city of Nottingham, Nottingham City Council commissioned LITE Ltd. to devise an LED lighting solution for the Council House. To provide a dynamic new lighting system, LITE Ltd. partnered with Color Kinetics and electrical engineering firm Fred K. Lamb Ltd.
The metal halide floodlights previously illuminating the building's exterior consumed a great deal of energy and required frequent maintenance. In addition, temporary lighting had to be rented and installed to create light shows at Christmastime and for other special occasions, incurring additional costs.
The Council House needed a cost-effective lighting system that could produce color-changing shows and effects, eliminating the need for temporary lighting. The Color Kinetics lighting system replaced the metal halide floodlights with energy-efficient LED luminaires, dramatically reducing labor and maintenance costs.
LITE Ltd. used ColorBlast Powercore and ColorGraze Powercore (now specified with
ColorGraze IntelliHue Powercore) to bring the façade of the Council House to life with color-changing light. Each of the Ionic columns on the building's exterior is uplit with ColorBlast Powercore wash lights. ColorGraze Powercore grazing luminaires are set against the building's outer walls, behind the columns, to illuminate the recessed fascia. ColorBlast Powercore luminaires are set at the base and on the ledge of the dome of the building's iconic clock tower, bathing it in colored light and giving it pride of place on Nottingham's night skyline. All of the luminaires in the system are controlled with a Color Kinetics iPlayer 3 DMX controller.
The new lighting system uses only 1 kW of power per year, as opposed to the 11.5 kW consumed by the previous system. The energy savings amount to approximately £2,500 per year, with additional savings on maintenance costs and temporary lighting. With the new LED lighting system in place, the Nottingham Council House won a Lighting Industry Federation Award.
