Commercial Lighting Systems expands solar roof
Commercial Lighting Systems is expanding its roof-based solar panel installation so that it can provide more power for its manufacturing facilities. The Hampshire-based firm has now had approval from its local Distribution Network Operator (DNO) to add more photovoltaic units so that it will have a total system of 36kW on its factory roof.
‘This latest investment will further enhance our sustainability and help make our fleet of EV’s even greener’ said managing director Phil Cutting.
Commercial Lighting Systems making luminaires in the UK using local components and energy efficient technology. The firm has created a remanufacturing division called ReVive. Much of its work is reconditioned Willy Meyer luminaires – the company is a UK distributor of the brand – but it is also happy to upgrade products not originally supplied by it.
‘While replacing end-of-life fittings with new would be easier and more profitable for us,’ says CLS, ‘we strive for sustainability and value for the client above all else.’ Other firms with significant investments in solar panels include Holophane, which moved to purchasing all its electricity from renewable sources. In 2021, it has installed solar PV roof panels which are expected to provide 70 per cent of electricity requirements this year.
The 686 solar PV panels are mounted on the roof of its head office and manufacturing facility in Milton Keynes and return approximately 45,000 kWh to the grid each year. The remaining 20 per cent is procured from 100 per cent renewable sources such as hydro-electric, wind turbine, thermal and biomass sources.
Recently SG Lighting has installed 2,000 solar panels on the roof of its factory in Lillesand, Norway. The photovoltaic installation – which covers 7,200 square metres – represents one of the most ambitious PV projects in the industry. The panels have an estimated annual output of 807,000 kWh – more than the family-owned company requires for its own 10,000 square metres of warehousing and administration operations. The surplus is sold back to the Norwegian power grid.
• Diary date: Circular Lighting Live 2024, Recolight’s flagship conference and exhibition, takes place on Wednesday 9 October 2024 at the Royal College of Physicians in London. Free to specifiers, Circular Lighting Live 2024 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
