Caernarfon Station

Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railways are a heritage gem nestled in the scenic heart of North Wales. The company runs both the world’s oldest narrow gauge railway (Ffestiniog) and the UK’s most extensive heritage railway (Welsh Highland). Three of the first locomotives still operate with original carriages which date back over 150 years, offering passengers an unparalleled experience back in time to the ‘golden age of rail travel.’

The Welsh Highland Railway is the longest heritage railway in the UK, running 25 miles from the walled castle town of Caernarfon to the harbour town of Porthmadog. Passengers the world over travel to enjoy the picturesque journey, which runs past the foot of Snowdon, through the idyllic village of Beddgelert, and by the breathtaking Aberglaslyn Pass, on its way to Porthmadog.

Following the £1.25 million renovation of Porthmadog Harbour Station in 2014 – which saw greatly-improved passenger facilities – Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railways were keen to also improve their Caernarfon Station, by building a brand new station.

The proposed budget for this project was £2.2 million. The new Caernarfon Station also formed a crucial part of the £16 million Waterfront Development Project, led by Gwynedd County Council. This larger project aims to give parts of Caernarfon a significant boost.

THE SOLUTION

MPH Construction Builders and Contractor Systems Electrical were responsible for the project. Max Fordham was the consultant, and Purcell were the architects. Dextra Lighting was chosen for the project as we offer the decorative and architectural products able to meet the project requirements and could also coincide with the controls strategy.

For this project, we supplied lighting for the stations’ shop, cafe, office, main commercial kitchen, ticket desk and waiting area. We also supplied lighting for the WC and lobby, plant rooms and storage area, glass-roofed rotunda area, and both the front external and back external areas of the new station building.

For the shop and cafe areas, we opted to install our RUNWAY SURFACE/SUSPENDED lighting. This product was selected as it features the lines the architect required to fit between vertical boards. We supplied 24 of these luminaires in total, all emergency versions (NM3) and sensor-controlled (REAS DR LL ML).

We also installed 18 of our RUNWAY RECESSED luminaires in the cafe area. These were emergency versions (NM3), and sensor-controlled (REAS DR LL ML). Dextra Lighting’s RUNWAY RECESSED luminaires are the recessed version of our RUNWAY SURFACE/SUSPENDED lighting. Both products are particularly ideal in applications where lighting is required to fulfil both practical and architectural purposes. These were selected as they could carry on the design feature fanning across the building. The area in which we installed these luminaires has plasterboard ceilings so the lights could be recessed to suit both the architecture and aesthetic. This attractive, durable yet slimline lighting is available in a range of lengths, lumen outputs and with a variety of customisable options to enhance any environment for workers or potential customers.

For the public WC and WC lobby circulation, we installed our popular Protec LED. Dextra Lighting’s Protec LED offers ingress protection options, including an IP65 rating for use in bathrooms and wet areas, which fitted the requirements of this application. This lighting also offers impressive energy cost savings, which tie in well with environmental management policies requiring a commitment to energy savings. Popular with high-end specifications, our Protec LED offers an extensive range of interchangeable bezels, beam angles, reflectors, and colour attachments, as well as a range of emergency, dimming, and sensor-compatible options. We supplied a total of 28 luminaires in this area. These were emergency versions (NM3) with an integral sensor control (REAF 7 6A LL).

The main commercial kitchen required special requirement lighting, for which we installed 6 of our emergency version (NM3) IMPR LEDs. This product was selected as it offers ingress protection IP65 and covers requirements for both the area and ceiling type. Dextra Lighting’s IMPR Luminaire range is durable, recessed, and IP65 rated, and is ideal for arduous applications with dirty, dusty and wet environments. We offer this lighting in many sizes and lumen outputs, as well as dimming and emergency options, making it easily customisable to each application.

The station office required a compliant fitting for the use of VDUs. For this reason, we chose to install 5 of our MOD OFFICE luminaires with emergency versions also and sensor-controlled (REAF7 6A LL). Dextra Lighting’s MODLED OFFICE LED is specially designed for applications where monitors are used, such as classrooms and offices. This high output LED offers a high lux level while complying with the latest BSEN 12464 glare requirements.

In the ticket desk and waiting area, we installed 11 CAPO XL luminaires with manual switch dimming. This product fitted the desired aesthetics thanks to its a silver/grey body fitting and had the output requirements to meet the design. Dextra Lighting’s CAPO XL is a contemporary take on the classic Highbay luminaire and is popular in warehouse, manufacturing and retail applications all across the country.

The rotunda and customer ticket desk, and waiting areas also needed lighting that could compliment the CAPO XL, highlighting feature artwork and information boards. For this, we installed 21 of our HI-TRACK luminaires, with manual switch dimming. This product was ideal as we were able to offer the light outputs, colour and beam angle required. Dextra Lighting’s HI-TRACK range is ideal for retail and display lighting applications. Able to meet a variety of display lighting applications, all luminaires can be rotated and pivoted as needed, for quick and easy adjustment of lighting displays. We also installed 3 emergency versions of our LED3 luminaires in this area. This product was selected as it is a surface-mounted product so could be mounted in the glass-roofed rotunda, both suiting and enhance the aesthetic.

For the station plant room and storage areas, we supplied 6 emergency versions of our HYDRA LED. We chose this product due to its suitability for storage and plant room environments, and our ability to offer ingress protection of IP65, covering the requirements for these areas and their ceiling type. Dextra Lighting’s HYDRA LED is ideal for storage and industrial applications where protection from dirt and dust ingress is vital. Both weatherproof and IP65 rated, this durable batten luminaire is made from premium injection moulded GRP. We offer our Hydra LED with a wide range of lumen outputs, dimming variants and integral emergency options.

A small recessed product was required to be mounted into soffit to light the front entrance fascia of the building. For this, we selected our PTEC LED FIRE RATED DOWNLIGHT, which was best suited for these requirements. Dextra Lighting’s PTEC LED FIRE RATED DOWNLIGHT is available in six different models, with LED options including 10w and 6w Chip on Board Solutions. All PTEC fire-rated downlighting comes with a choice of a white or brushed chrome body finish. We installed 18 luminaires for this project, all sensor-controlled via photocell. To the external rear of the property, we installed 7 of our OPUS 2 LEDs. We chose this product as it features a silver and grey body which matched the aesthetic of the building cladding and could offer the specific light levels required.

The project was an overwhelming success, and the new Caernarfon Station officially opened in June of this year. Dextra successfully supplied all lighting to meet both the architectural and control strategy requirements, while also supporting the client’s commitment to energy savings. For ease of maintenance, Dextra backed all products with a comprehensive 5-year warranty, comprising labour and parts for the first 3 years, and free-of-charge components for the final 2 years.

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(+44) 01747 858100
(+44) 01747 858100