How to choose the right LED lighting

What do I have right now?

What are the minimum requirements for illuminance and uniformity?

This information is available in the relevant standards. For sports facilities, there are additional, more stringent requirements set by the respective sports associations.

What kind of lighting will be needed in the future?

Good lighting with higher uniformity and color rendering can reduce the risk of injury!

Make a true 1:1 comparison:

For example:

A new system equipped with 8 metal halide lights typically provides an illuminance of 130–150 lux on a soccer field with a uniformity of approximately 0.6. The power consumption in this case is about 18.8 kW.

For an LED system providing the same brightness (and uniformity of 0.7), power consumption currently stands at approximately 12.4 kW. Further savings of over 70% in total can easily be achieved, for example, by dimming the lights during training sessions.

Note:

Alternatively, one could also reduce the output of the LED system—for example, to around 80 lux—which often results in poorer uniformity. Of course, this comparison is extremely flawed, as you would also receive significantly less light. Additionally, there is a high risk that the illuminance will fall below Light Class III (75 lux) over time due to dirt buildup (which club cleans its LED lights annually?) and light loss.

We therefore do not consider such a comparison to be valid.

Compare the weights and the wind-exposed surface area (outdoor only) of the old and new lighting systems

Is a pole inspection necessary?

A pole inspection can often determine the load capacity with the new luminaire

Is a light emission assessment according to LAI necessary?

Which lighting scenes make sense?

Smart control:

- Time and twilight

- Dimming

- Wireless or wired control of the luminaires

- Remote control and maintenance

- Mobile control

- Energy consumption data collection

- Luminaire status monitoring

Warranty and local service?

Costs and potential grants?

Payback period calculation for retrofits

Especially for these investments, which are intended to be used for some time into the future, high-quality products from original manufacturers make sense.

There aren’t as many of these as one might think. For example, when it comes to the 8-module luminaire, AAA-Lux is clearly the only original manufacturer that has been illuminating fields with it in compliance with standards since as early as 2009.