The first step to optimising your lighting system is to assess its energy consumption against its performance. With many ports and terminals requiring huge lighting infrastructures, and as a necessary annual expense, lighting should be evaluated every six months for its energy efficiency. At present, most owners and operators aren’t aware of the benefits of having regular audit procedures in place. This can lead to poor performing, energy-sapping solutions being routinely applied. When operators do look at performance more closely, the savings can be tangible. For example, upgrading outdated lighting solutions to high quality LED lighting can reduce energy consumption as much as 70%, saving important costs and carbon emissions. Because the individual costs of maintaining each light in an antiquated system are low, they often go unnoticed. This is a common trend in ports, a focus on the ‘big ticket’ items, and why routine audits of best practices is a critical component to a successful operations.

Are you constantly having to replace broken bulbs?

Although initially cheaper, high-pressure sodium, metal halide, or other similarly dated technologies, lack durability or quality – lasting one to two years at most. The maintenance required to continuously replace broken fixtures resulting in unnecessary costs.

For example, while a replacement bulb may initially be the cheaper option ($20-50 per bulb) the labour required to repeatedly replace broken lighting, cost of new fixtures and the avoidable safety risk, means in the long term, it is cost ineffective.

As many ports and terminals do not have a process in place to cohesively track and report maintenance on lighting, or the replacement of singular bulbs, the cost of replacing hundreds of lights can often go unnoticed.

With solutions like LED lighting lasting for a minimum of ten years, assessing the entire product lifecycle is key to increasing safety standards and reducing avoidable maintenance costs.

The size and design of a lightbulb directly impacts the security of a port or terminal and the safety of workers. Outdated lighting solutions, and even inadequately designed LED lighting, can increase glare, reduce visibility and cause eye strain and fatigue for workers. Bulbs that are designed to effectively funnel light can dramatically reduce glare and increase colour recognition – an element that is also important in enhancing other technologies, such as CCTV systems, for example.

Traditional light bulbs are orb-shaped, meaning that light is emitted from every possible direction. So if you can see the light bulb, then its shining back at your eyes, creating glare. The proprietary optics Midstream Lighting utilizes channels the light to the specifically designated area, dramatically reducing glare perceived from outside the lighted area

Investing in a sophisticated control system to automate lighting is fundamental for those looking to reduce energy consumption, increase efficiencies and subsequently save costs.

Control systems can allow you to better define the level of power output, notify workers when a light goes out and create zones to ensure lighting is only on in specific areas of the port or terminal when required.

Similarly, the data from such systems can be utilised to further optimise operations. The greater potential for data amalgamation and analysis enabling owners and operators to identify where further efficiency gains can be made. Through working smartly, owners and operators are not only able to reduce costs through optimising daily operations but increase the efficiency of infrastructure in the longer term.

Lighting is purchased with the primary purpose of creating a safe operating environment. However, following installation, many owners and operators fail to check the performance of their lighting on a regular basis. In fact, around 90% of ports and terminals are not carrying out routine checks – resulting in inadequate lighting that reduces visibility and increases the risk of accidents and occurrence of crime.

It is therefore vital that safety is central to the evaluation of performance, optimisation and upkeep. It should after all not take a major accident, and huge insurance claim, for lighting to be upgraded.

That is one of the first questions we pose to port and terminal owners and operators asking how important investing in lighting is. A fundamental yet often overlooked asset, lighting underpins the safety, security and continuation of operations. Taking this into consideration, and despite it being a significant annual expense, economically and environmentally adverse lighting solutions, such as high-pressure sodium, and metal halide, remain the predominant solutions in ports and terminals across the world.

The reason for this often being a lack of awareness by owners and operators of the significant and easily accessible efficiency gains that upgrading lighting solutions can incur.

However, the argument for investing in energy-saving lighting solutions is two-fold. Firstly, with lighting accounting for nearly 5% of global CO2 emissions, with a proportion of these existing within logistics operations, lighting must be factored into port and terminal decarbonisation strategies. While there is currently no set regulation for the energy efficiency of lighting, European environmental initiatives such as EcoPort, which comprises of 102 different members from 25 nations, highlight energy efficiency in the top three environmental concerns for ports in its 2019 and 2020 report.

Upgrading outdated lighting solutions to LED lighting can result in over a 70% reduction in energy consumption. Owners and operators can therefore massively increase the energy efficiency of their maritime hubs, and as a result generate fewer CO2 emissions, by re-evaluating one of their most important assets. Likewise, LED light bulbs last up to 20 times longer than standard forms of lighting, in turn, reducing waste.

A prime example of a port successfully including lighting in its decarbonisation strategy is the Port of Tyne. With an investment in LED lighting, alongside a suite of other proven energy-saving solutions targeted in it its clean energy plan. The investment in a range of energy saving technologies saw the port win two clean energy awards at the Maritime UK 2020 Awards. The port also cut its carbon emissions by 700 tonnes in 12 months, with LED lighting highlighted as fundamental in achieving this.

Secondly, significantly increasing energy efficiency significantly reduces cost. While the initial cost of traditional lighting solutions can be higher, and an initial deterrent for some owners and operators looking to invest, LED lighting is undoubtedly the most cost-effective solution. Its durability, and the energy efficiency savings it realises, meaning that the technology pays for itself over a very short period of time. .

Not only this, but as an enabler technology, LED lighting can pave the way for performance gains in other areas of port operations, such as safety, security, and operational performance. For example, LED lighting delivers greater visibility when compared to other lighting solutions, increasing light levels by up to and above 50%. This in turn can increase the performance of CCTV systems and safety of vessel loading equipment – capitalising on existing assets.

The answer as to why port and terminal owners must invest in energy-saving lighting solutions boils down to reducing OPEX, supercharging operations, and increasing energy efficiency. As the maritime industry, and wider society, seeks to reduce GHG emissions in line with the energy transition, every element within the supply chain must be scrutinized. And lighting is an incredibly fundamental element.