Healthcare lighting

On average, lighting accounts for 16% of a hospital’s total energy consumption and over 40% of its total electricity usage. Areas like waiting rooms and hallways are often active 24/7, making lighting a key priority for every healthcare facility. Using the correct and proper lighting design strategy is therefore crucial to healthcare facilities. Not only can the correct lighting solutions improve energy consumption, but also have a positive impact on dedicated labour time, sustainability goals, patient wellness and worker productivity.

Improving energy consumption and cost saving

New lighting fixtures and lamps, such as advanced LED offerings, allow facilities to operate with less wattage while achieving the same level of brightness. In healthcare facilities operating around the clock, LED technology provide key opportunities for energy savings. By utilising a range of solutions and technologies healthcare facilities gain opportunities to reinvest the resulting short and long-term savings and maintenance time.

Decreased Labour and Downtime

Each time a lamp burns out or scheduled re-lamping occurs a labour cost is incurred. While some organisations may have in house electricians, many healthcare facilities need to call upon subcontractors to complete this work, at an added cost. In critical areas like operating rooms, changing lamps requires additional labor time to complete full sanitation after the maintenance is complete. While the initial cost of acquisition might seem like an obstacle, upgrading to higher quality fixtures and lamps with longer lifespans like LEDs  can create a significant decrease in overall labour and downtime in facilities.

A Better Patient and Staff Environment

Several studies have shown that optimised lighting has multiple benefits in healthcare facilities, including; accelerated patient recovery time, decreased anxiety in patients and employees and Increased productivity. Light levels and light brightness are both intrinsically linked to our health and well being. Eyestrain and increased stress levels can result from lighting that is too bright, while stimulation of hormones that cause sadness, fatigue and even depression can result from lighting that is too dim. A lighting strategy planned around providing sufficient ambient and natural lighting create a calming, welcoming environment that encourages a healthy sleep-wake cycle, improves moods and lowers fatigue.

KLNIK & ASCO Lights

A fantastic project we worked on was the prestigious building known as the KLNIK in Wilmslow, Cheshire. The KLNIK is a luxury aesthetics and well-being centre which is now claimed to be the aesthetics most prestigious clinic outside of London, with a £3.4 million investment.

This project was extremely challenging from a lighting design perspective based on very specific brief to fulfil, creating a truly unique environment. The brief was set by Dr Rosh (Clinical Director), the award-winning clinical director who Ajay worked very closely with throughout the whole project.

The overall aim was to create a sense of serenity in order to make clients and feel completely relaxed and comfortable as soon as they stepped into the environment in order to relieve any anxieties before clinical procedures are carried out. The staff were also taken into consideration to ensure we create the best possible lighting experience for all concerned.

Our lighting designers focused meticulously upon the client’s “journey” as soon as they entered the clinic and assessed the different emotions they would be feeling as they move from the reception, to the relax area, to the consultation room, procedure area and then into the secondary relaxation suite. The Occhio Mito products suspended and surface mounted were used in the reception areas and were perfect for this environment based on the visual aesthetics of the product and the LED technology created a perfectly diffused lighting effect without any glare, with the ability to colour tune from say 2700K to 4000K. The colour of the finish, rose gold, works in harmony with the overall interior design of the project and created the high-end boutique feel, and the warmth we intended to create in the environment.

Many seamless lighting solutions were used within the products such as recessed profiles and ceilings, low level lighting up the stairs in order for these architectural products to be a part of the fabric of the building allowing the lighting effects to only be seen and the eye-taken to the more visual elements such as the bespoke chandelier over the stairs and various other decorative lighting features used throughout. The seamless profiles in the corridor areas we used to subtly guide patients into the consultation and procedure areas, whilst they passed the living wall which was also lit in a dynamic manner.

At Asco Lights we specialise in healthcare lighting design, with multiple successful projects completed. Please do feel free to get in touch if you want help with any commercial or residential lighting projects.