Sustainability 33
The Bright Side to Energy Conservation
Beckhoff helps Toronto’s Fifth Light Technology deliver intelligent lighting for buildings
A
pproximately 15 percent of all elecwhere an Internet connection is available. tricity generated in North America “It’s never been easier or more convenient is consumed by the indoor lighting systo save energy and improve lighting quality. tems of commercial, industrial and Lighting technology has finally met Internet institutional facilities. Fifth Light Techtechnology,” said Ray Dableh, Fifth Light’s nology Ltd., based in Oakville, Ontario, director of research and development. To has demonstrated that effective lighting help facilitate this connected lighting automanagement can save a significant pormation system, Fifth Light utilizes hardware tion of this energy while yielding an from Beckhoff Automation. attractive return on investment (ROI). “We wanted to standardize the design Fifth Light offers a variety of energy of our lighting control panels on a reliable saving lighting devices and a complete control platform that supports a variety of control system. The product offering is I/O systems and Beckhoff Automation compliant with the open lighting comproved to be the ideal supplier,” Dableh munication protocol known as the adds. “We have been using Beckhoff in the Digital Addressable Lighting Interface field for more than three years in approx(DALI) and includes a line of dimmable imately 30 major installations across North ballasts, relays and a suite of web-based America.” software applications. Maple Leaf Square, an office high rise The system includes Beckhoff C6920 Fifth Light employs advanced energy development in downtown Toronto, is fully Industrial PCs with Intel Core 2 Duo savings strategies such as photo sensor- fitted with a Fifth Light web-based lighting processors; a CP6608 Ethernet Control based daylight harvesting, user-based control system with Beckhoff technology. Panel equipped with a 533 MHz Intel scheduling, ballast factor tuning and IXP420 processor with XScale technology; motion sensor based occupancy detection. Fifth Light has and TwinCAT PLC software. Fifth Light also utilizes Beckpioneered several facility management features including hoff Bus Terminal I/O networked using a variety of Beckautomatic tube fault detection and e-mail dispatch, multi- hoff BK9000 Ethernet TCP/IP Bus Couplers, KL6811 DALI building consolidation and intelligent software integration master terminals for integration of lighting-specific devices with the file format used by architects and engineers to design and KL6581 EnOcean master terminals for wireless, batterybuildings (DXF). less building automation devices such as switches and sensors. Easy Being Green “Perhaps the most compelling contribution of the Beckhoff Using web devices such as a Cisco VOIP telephone, BlackBerry platform has been expediting development time,” Dableh or an iPhone, Fifth Light provides simultaneous access to said. “The modular architecture of the Bus Terminal I/O thousands of users so they can easily adjust light levels any- allows Fifth Light to support a wide range of lighting equip-
www.design-engineering.com
September | 2010