Saudi Lighting Company highlights its solutions for emergency lighting, which is a vital installation in any building

Saudi Lighting Company has an array of reliable emergency lights: from simple stand-alone lights to sophisticated centralised systems that interact with a building and its people.

At the Al Faisaliah Center, the company's emergency lighting systems were installed in the retail mall, its general-purpose lights used in the parking areas and other lights were supplied for the facade.

''Emergency lighting has a vital role to play in any building,'' says Christer Rosenlund, the marketing manager of the Riyadh-based firm.

He continues: ''In large buildings with multiple activities such as offices, shops, banks, restaurants and hotels, there are always a lot of people on the move. Their safety and security is of paramount importance and this responsibility lies on the owner of the building.

'While we can't put a price on human lives and assets, we can guarantee that a safe and secure emergency lighting system is in place to help rescue lives in case disaster should strike. ''

''The only way to be sure that emergency lighting will work when it's needed is to choose reliable systems backed up by professional know-how, and equally importantly, to maintain and monitor the system's performance,'' he says.

For emergency lighting, Saudi Lighting offers two different solutions. Rosenlund elaborates: ''There are self-contained stand-alone lighting fixtures with batteries that work in case of power failure. These systems have low initial investment costs but high operation and maintenance costs due to the short battery life expectancy and manual monitoring. They have a degree of risk as their performance depends on how well they are monitored manually, and whether maintenance staff have regularly checked the performance of the batteries and lamps.''

''The other solutions on offer," he says, ''are the Ceaguard 48 or ZB 96 emergency lighting systems, which have central battery back-up and constant computer-aided test and monitoring facilities.

''These systems can also be interfaced with a building management system (BMS). Their initial investment is higher, but operation and maintenance costs are low. And, most importantly, you know that your emergency lighting will work, if and when needed.

''These state-of-the-art systems have batteries centrally placed in a panel but can, in combination with substations, offer a decentralised system. In the event of a mains failure, each substation that is connected to the central battery responds individually in the affected area. This results in enhanced flexibility, economic efficiency and safety.

''Since the batteries provide 220V DC operation in emergency mode, it is possible to use specific high frequency electronic (HFE) ballasts. Not only do HFE ballasts help save energy during normal operating mode, but some versions can also be programmed to increase or decrease light output. This offers the possibility of maintaining a uniform lighting installation during emergency operation without sacrificing extra battery capacity.

''The problem of unreliable batteries is solved by using high-quality lead acid batteries which come with guarantees of up to 10 years. These systems' batteries were found to be fully functional even 20 years after their installation.

When this is compared to a life expectancy of between one and three years for standard operating battery packs used in self-contained systems, it becomes clear that the initial higher investment will quickly be paid off.

''The ZB 96 is a self-monitoring system that stores test data, and when connected to a computer, will show up any eventual malfunctions or problems. When compared to a 15-20 storey structure with maybe 300 luminaries containing individual battery packs which have to be manually inspected by people on a regular basis, a centralised system's advantages are obvious.''

In summation, one should choose a centralised battery system as emergency lighting solution. ''This will provide better safety for the public and lower operation and maintenance costs for the investor,'' Rosenlund says.