Case study Elk Mill Retail Park

Background

Elk Mill Retail Park in Oldham provides 245,000 sq. ft of retail space and car parking facilities, with over 1,100 parking spaces. The centre is owned by British Land plc and managed by Savills plc. Key retail occupiers include household names such as Currys PC World, Next, Boots, Argos and Carphone Warehouse, and restaurant chains McDonald’s, Nando’s, KFC and Pizza Hut.

Brief

Evotech were asked to design a suitable replacement lighting scheme for the site that would deliver energy reduction savings and improved lamp lifecycles. The scheme also needed to enhance the customer experience by the provision of a crisper lighting output that would provide a brighter, lighter feel around the site and a greater sense of safety throughout the car park areas.

Summary of works provided

Working with our supply partner, Thorn, to identify the most appropriate solution, we specified the Thorn Indra LED 98W luminaire with automated 50% overnight dimming control. This low maintenance solution provided the highest lumen output available whilst offering significant savings in energy consumption. Our team installed 45 new fittings onto existing lighting columns, using double-headed units where applicable.

The installation and commissioning of the replacement lighting scheme successfully achieved our client’s pre-agreed objectives. The new scheme enhanced the customer experience, and improved safety levels across the parking areas, through the provision of more effective, brighter lighting.

The forecasted power consumption for the new scheme totalled 8,820 kWh per annum, an impressive reduction of 89% on the original scheme. Following installation, our building performance team conducted a three month study to assess the actual performance and energy reduction achieved.

Results showed that energy consumption reduced significantly by 78% during this three month period and the savings were projected to rise to 89% over the LEDs operating lifecycle.

This in turn will deliver a return on the initial investment in less than 3 years, with substantial overall lifetime net cost savings of £58,883.

Backed by Thorn’s comprehensive five year product guarantee and with minimal maintenance costs expected, the new lighting scheme provides peace of mind for the centre’s management team and tenants alike.