Wireless upgrade solves operating theatre headache
Engineers have used a wireless control system to solve an urgent lighting issue at an operating theatre.
Trojan Lighting recently supplied smart lighting to Lewisham Hospital in London during an upgrade of the existing luminaires.
After installation, it became clear that one of the fittings had been supplied with the incorrect driver settings. The result was a significant reduction in light output, a critical issue in a clinical environment.
With procedures scheduled imminently, the NHS Trust wanted to ensure the operating theatre was functional, but the conventional fix would have meant a full weekend shift to open up the sealed space, sending in two electricians, bringing in a decorator to make good, having a hospital representative on site throughout and a deep clean afterwards.
This would have been costly, time-consuming, and risked disrupting patient care, says the firm.
So its engineers explored whether the problem could be solved another way.
Working with its controls partners at Mymesh and Tridonic, they asked whether the driver settings could be corrected over the mesh network, avoiding physical access to the fitting and without the need to visit site. Together, the team isolated the required DALI instructions, overcame several technical challenges, and developed a way to push a remote firmware update across the wireless system.
By the next morning, the hospital team cycled the power to the fittings, and it worked. The driver settings updated successfully, light output tripled, and the operating theatre remained untouched.
‘This is a great example of how adding intelligence during a lighting upgrade can deliver great outcomes,’ said Trojan.
The companies have been working with a number of NHS Trusts on refurbishing their lighting and making it the backbone of a smart control system that has functionality beyond lighting.
The first phase began at St Thomas’ Hospital when Trojan reconditioned a number of ageing fluorescent lights in situ, installing a LED gear tray with a MyMesh intelligent node.
Initially the the Trusts’ interest in the wireless system came from the opportunity to automate the emergency lighting testing and reporting,
Crucially, the wireless network also has the power to deliver other services such as asset tracking. Keeping tabs on wheelchairs, incubators and beds is a major headache for NHS Trusts so some are exploring connecting these to the network.
The NHS recently unveiled an ambitious plan to decarbonise its lighting and other services over the next 15 years.
The organisation, which has a goal of achieving net zero by 2040, has through its Shared Business Services arm published its Decarbonisation of Estates framework agreement.
This will enable which will enable estates managers in health care and other public sector settings to ‘create greener and more attractive buildings and working environments’.
Worth £500m over four years, the framework agreement includes lighting, electric heating and ventilation as well as works such as internal and external wall insulation, ground source and air source heat pumps and photovoltaic systems.
• Learn more about sustainable lighting at Circular Lighting Live 2025, Recolight’s flagship conference and exhibition, which takes place on Thursday 25 September 2025 at the Minster Building in the City of London. Free to specifiers, Circular Lighting Live 2025 will feature leading experts, specifiers and policy makers who will share their insights into forthcoming standards and legislation, emerging technologies and new business models. More info: www.circularlighting.live
