30.11.2009
Better light control reduces power consumption

Copenhagen Airport is focusing on reducing power consumption in the terminals. This is being done, among other things, by optimising automatic lighting control so that light is not left on at night in areas where it is not necessary.

Most people would not leave the light on unnecessarily all night at home. Neither is it necessary to leave the light on all night in all parts of an airport, although a private home cannot be compared with an international airport that is open round the clock and is subject to special requirements in terms of safety and security, service and working environment.

Copenhagen Airport’s energy experts have launched a pilot project in a gate lounge this year where sensors and automatic control turn the light off at night during periods when there are no people in the lounge.

Increased focus on energy and climate
The project is to demonstrate whether it is possible to reduce the power consumption for lighting in the lounges and other areas of the airport without inconvenience to passengers, business partners and airport staff such as, for example, cleaning and security staff.

The project is an element of the efforts to reduce the airport’s power consumption by 10% or more by 2012, compared with the 2007 level, and thus reduce CO2 emissions from the airport’s activities.

“When the airport terminals were designed and built, there was not nearly as much focus on climate and energy savings as we see today. We are therefore confident that we can identify many areas where power consumption can be reduced by optimising lighting control,” says Kristian Kongstad, VP, Real Property, Copenhagen Airports.

Dimming or switching off light
Light control has already been installed in most of the terminal areas so that the light is switched off automatically during periods with plenty of daylight. This reduces annual power consumption by 20-25% for the installations involved. Moreover, the intervals between replacement of the light sources are longer.

In certain areas of the airport, light dimmers have also been installed which gradually reduce the level of electric light based on the level of daylight, which saves even more power than pure on/off functions. More areas will be equipped with light dimmers in the years to come.