Knowledge Hub

TM65 Embodied Carbon

At Dextra we are committed to understanding and publishing the carbon content of our products throughout their life cycle, from manufacturing and lifetime repair through to end of life disposal. With accurate embodied carbon data we will be able to focus our future design and development to minimise carbon intensive materials and manufacturing processes, whilst making this data publicly available will ensure that we are transparent and accountable in our commitment to carbon reduction.

TM66 Circular Economy

A critical aspect of our commitment to minimising the carbon and environmental impact of our ranges is to adopt the principles of circular economy product design contained in CIBSE TM66 to ensure that our luminaires are designed for longevity, ease of repair and simplicity of upgrade.

LED & Luminaire Lifetime

When purchasing an LED luminaire customers understandably need to know the lifetime that the product will provide, both to understand maintenance and replacement schedules and also to ensure that they are purchasing a high quality product that will provide state of the art life expectancy. Accurately estimating luminaire lifetime requires consideration for several factors which are outlined in this article.

Emergency lighting systems

All internal public spaces and places of work require emergency lighting to ensure that buildings can be safely evacuated in the event of power failure. Such systems require regular testing and failure to correctly maintain an emergency lighting system can result in substantial penalties and even criminal liabilities should injuries occur during an incident where the lighting was not operational through negligence. There are numerous emergency lighting systems offering varying degrees of complexity, cost and ongoing maintenance, this article explores the most commonly available systems, their benefits and disadvantages.

Lamp Phase Out & Alternatives

Given that lighting is estimated to consume 15% of all electricity globally it is no surprise that inefficient light sources are often targeted by governmental bodies as a key aspect of energy saving and carbon reduction. Phase out of traditional light sources can however be an inconvenience for users with a high percentage of fluorescent or halogen sources installed on their estates so it pays to be aware of the dates at which spare lamps will no longer be available.

Colour Temperature, Colour Rendering and R Values

Colour temperature and rendering are key considerations when specifying your lighting installation and substantially effect both the look and feel of an area and the accuracy with which colours can be identified.

Emergency Exit Signage

At Dextra Group we offer a comprehensive range of emergency lighting products. Whilst we’ve built a range to cover all scenarios, there is often a need for guidance when attempting to select the correct signage for a given application.

LED Due Diligence

With hundreds of lighting suppliers offering LED products from around the world how can you be sure you are purchasing a product that will give you the quality of light, durable long term performance and the energy reduction that you require to justify the investment?

Benefits of Lithium

When considering the ongoing costs of operating your lighting installation the maintenance costs for emergency luminaires can form a significant proportion, second only to power consumption.

Aside from the need to undertake function testing on a monthly basis and duration tests annually whilst maintaining accurate test records off site, the limited life time of Nickel Cadmium and Nickel Metal Hydride batteries means that regular battery replacement is required.

Colour Consistency and MacAdam Ellipse

Due to the method by which LEDs are manufactured variations occur within batches of chips. Significant progress has been made in this area over the last few years and production variations within batches of LEDs are generally smaller, however such variations are an inevitable part of LED manufacturing which will likely never be completely eliminated.

Common Commercial Dimming Systems

There are a wide range of dimming systems available for commercial lighting systems offering differing benefits, here we explore the most commonly used systems, the purpose they fulfil and potential pit falls to be aware of.

Central Battery Systems

Emergency lighting is most commonly provided in the UK with integral emergency control gear, this provides a robust and reliable system given each emergency luminaire operates independently during power failure, however can be costly to test and maintain as each emergency luminaire contains its own battery.

Thermoplastic Diffuser Guidance

Dextra group recessed luminaires which are subject to thermoplastic regulations are manufactured with TP(a) diffusers to ensure they offer optimum safety in the event of a fire and to allow installation in a range of installations and configurations without the restrictions applied to TP(b) rated diffusers as per The Building Regulations 2010 Fire Safety Approved Document B, Volume 2: Buildings other than Dwelling Houses.