Swedish municipality maximizes energy savings with smart lighting control and LED fixtures

Ovanåker Municipality has taken a significant step towards a more energy-efficient and smarter future by upgrading its entire street lighting network with wireless lighting control from LumenRadio. The investment is estimated to provide the municipality with an energy saving of over 60%, not only resulting in a significant reduction in energy consumption but also introducing smart lighting control features that enhance efficiency and sustainability.

Located in central Sweden, Ovanåker Municipality has several thousand streetlights covering a large area. To maximize energy savings while ensuring safe lighting for residents, Ovanåker embarked on a project to replace 3,500 high-pressure sodium and metal halide lamps with LED lights. At the same time, motion sensors and LumenRadio’s AirGlow for wireless lighting control were installed on all 3,500 streetlights.

During the project’s first phase, carried out in the fall of 2023, approximately 700 streetlights were updated with new LED fixtures, PIR sensors and AirGlow.

“The new wireless control allows the luminaire to illuminate using only 8 watts for 92-95% of the time,” explains Ulf Ståhlberg, Technical Manager for Ovanåker who was responsible for the project. “When movement is detected, the brightness increases to full effect, requiring only 32 watts to achieve a good level of lighting.”

The municipality is now planning for the next phase, which involves updating another 700 fixtures, this time focusing on several park areas. Continuing with LumenRadio’s AirGlow is seen by Ulf as a natural choice.

“We have already seen a significant energy saving in the area and I am impressed by the simplicity of the lighting control system. Having the app on your phone and making adjustments as needed is a great advantage. The upgrade has also been well received by residents who have noticed an improved outdoor environment.”

AirGlow offers great flexibility by allowing users to set up different zones and scenes to optimize each area as needed. The simplicity of installation and the absence of recurring fees are aspects valued by Ulf and the other contributors to the project.

“For this project, we have collaborated with Strihl, specialists in energy-efficient lighting, and Sentab, who carried out the installation. We are all satisfied with its success and we want to continue investing in innovations that save energy and improve outdoor spaces for our residents.”