Port of Houston make the switch from sodium lamps to LED high mast lighting. This largescale infrastructure project centered on Barbour’s Cut, replacing lighting fixtures from the MH to LED Rail Head. The existing lighting installation comprised a series of 120-foot light poles, each fitted with 12 high-pressure 1,000 watt sodium lamps.
Sodium was replaced by LED at a ratio of 2:1 and delivered 50% reduction in energy use. Maintenance requirements not only reduced by using half the volume of light fittings but also from the impressive longevity of LED lights:
Average lifespan
High-pressure sodium: 24,000 hours
LED: 100,000 hours+
No.1 for Waterborne Tonnage
Port of Houston is one of the busiest container terminals in the U.S., handling over 250 million tonnes of cargo every year. The port complex covers a vast area, is home to the largest petrochemical plant in the country and over 200 private and public terminals, all operating out of the Greater Port of Houston area. The port contributes around 20% of Texas’ total GDP.
The ports ambition to serve its community and reduce its carbon footprint has resulted in an impressive 55% reduction in carbon emissions and counting. “Ultimately, it’s about taking care of people working every day, making sure they have the support and resources to feed their families,” said Port Houston Chairman Ric Campo in his 2021 State of the Port address.
The Challenge: Sodium Lamps
Maintenance hours began to spiral as the sodium lamps reached their expected lifetime. Lamp failures put an increasing burden on the maintenance engineers schedule and budget. Costs had to be addressed.
In a busy port environment, clarity of vision is critical for safe operations, 24-hours a day. Sodium lamps have a ‘warm’ color temperature of 2000K, known by their yellow glow. Furthermore, sodium lamp CRI score (color rendering index) is poor, measuring the ability of a light source to accurately reproduce the object it illuminates. Port workers operating at night experienced poor working conditions with shadows appearing darker and overall vision inhibited.
The Solution: Switch to LED
In a busy port environment, any infrastructure project is a big deal. Disruption to operations is to be avoided at all costs. Constellation engineers worked with port engineers to replace all sodium lamps with Alpha Super-Flood LED lights and zero downtime.
One of the many benefits of making the switch to LED is the superior levels of illumination achieved with fewer light fittings. The 12 sodium lamps installed on each light pole were replaced by just 6 LEDs. Light quality increases worker safety and port security. LEDs are proven to improve sharpness of vision, colour, and detail perception.
The Results: Illuminating
LED high mast lighting has become the go-to choice for those in charge of large flood lit areas. Alpha LEDs are able to illuminate both wide and targeted areas of busy working environments. A range of optical grade lens angles from 10° to 150° to provide ultimate flexibility for the port to maximise the benefits of their investment.
Port of Houston’s LED high mast lighting installation is designed for the long haul. Run-cool technology means heat dissipates easily, adding to a long product lifetime. LED technology is long lasting in terms of bulb life, but Constellation LEDs take this further still.
Manufactured from marine-grade stainless steel, surge-protected, and replaceable driverless technology ensures Alpha LEDs are robust to withstand anything the elements can throw at them. Ideal for Port of Houston’s maintenance team.
