Brussels Airlines

The Maintenance Department of the airline Brussels Airlines awarded Encon the contract to realise a relighting project in the hangar in which aeroplanes are repaired and serviced. Because it must be possible to house several aeroplanes simultaneously, including long-haul aircraft, this relates to a very large building. It was an unusual project in many respects: a working height of almost 30 metres needs installers without a fear of heights. And with passenger aeroplanes in the immediate environment, it was also important to work very carefully and special safety measures applied. However, the scale of the project also strongly highlights the benefits of good relighting.

Not many companies were willing to take on the challenge from Brussels Airlines to formulate and realise a relighting project for their maintenance hangar in Zaventem. Not so surprising. It was a challenging project in many respects. But also an example of the many benefits that redesigning a lighting installation can have. Encon took up the challenge and was granted the contract. Since April 2012 the Brussels Airlines aeroplanes are repaired and serviced under Encon’s new, energy-efficient lighting.

The contract from Brussels Airlines stipulated the following: design and install a new, more energy efficient lighting installation. Important condition: the maintenance hangar must be available for continuous use during the installation period to service the aeroplanes. Furthermore for safety reasons working above the aeroplanes was not permitted. An additional challenge was that Brussels Airlines could not predict when which aeroplanes would be in the hangar beforehand. Therefore the project required flexible planning.

Consumption -70%, comfort + 70%

Encon was granted the contract and designed an installation in which the 114 existing light points were replaced by 484 new fittings. The light intensity on the work floor thereby increased from an average of 200 lux to 300 lux. An increase in lighting comfort of 70%.

Because the new installation has 4 times more lighting points, the quality of the light is significantly better than in the previously existing installation: more lighting points ensure less shadow and provide more even lighting. Furthermore if one lighting point should fail this is hardly or not at all noticeable on the work floor. In the old installation light failure resulted in a dark area on the work floor.

Danny Vanspringel, Vice President Purchasing & Facilities at Brussels Airlines, is very satisfied with the result: “Although the new installation yields 70% more light, the consumption has fallen spectacularly. Our new lighting installation consumes significantly less electricity than that needed for the old installation. This was a reduction of no less than 70%. The installation’s annual consumption has fallen from almost 860,000 kWh approximately to 280,000 kWh. And that is a major asset for Brussels Airlines. We are, after all, striving to decrease our energy consumption and simultaneously to reduce CO2-emissions of our activities. In addition to the decrease in CO2-emissions of our aeroplanes, we are also making efforts to reduce CO2-emissions in our buildings. This relighting therefore not only saves us money on our energy bill but also allows us to decrease CO2-emissions by no less than 440,000 kg per year.”

The significant drop in energy consumption and the improved light yield is made possible via a well-designed combination of fittings, ballast and lights. RReflectors were also adapted to the specific situation.

A part of the saving is realised through daylight control. Because the hangar has skylights that allow daylight in, the additional light requirement is not always the same. In clear weather the installation therefore dims. This was not possible with the previously existing installation which worked at full power 24/24 and 7/7.

Savings on maintenance

The lights chosen are not only economical; they also have an exceptionally long life. This not only means that savings are made on the purchase of replacement lights. Because the lights are installed 30 metres above ground, the replacement of the lights also entails an important cost. The old lights were replaced each year. The new lights have an exceptional life and only need replacing after 8 years. This provides an important financial and logistics advantage.

Environmentally friendly that pays for itself

The project at Brussels Airlines is a great example of what a good relighting project can mean: 70% more light, greater comfort due to less shadow formation, lower energy consumption (and the CO2-emissions!) to 1/3rd of the original consumption and decreased maintenance costs.And this top quality installation will pay for itself in 2 years and 4 months. As Robin Bruninx from Encon explains: “We are very happy that we had the opportunity to realise this project.

We look back not only on a wonderful partnership with the customer; it was also a very challenging project. This project is a truly model project. It clearly shows all the benefits of a good lighting installation and this combined with a good return on investment.” For more information: please contact Eef Juarez (Marketing) on +32(0) 89.410.820 or +32(0) 472.721.095.

Robin Bruninx is General Manager of Encon, a consultancy firm specialising in the development and realisation of energy projects for companies. Encon operates throughout Europe and has offices in Flanders, Wallonia, France and the Netherlands.

www.encon.be

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