Home / Solutions / Case Studies / Education / Blackridge Primary School

Blackridge Primary School

Products

  • Blackridge Primary School
  • Blackridge Primary School
  • Blackridge Primary School
  • Blackridge Primary School
  • Blackridge Primary School
  • Blackridge Primary School
  • Lamp efficacy

    Lamp efficacy

    Ensuring the lamp efficiently converts electricity into light (lm/W).

  • Ballast classification

    Ballast classification

    Controlling the electricity supply to the lamp (Energy Efficiency Index).

  • Luminaire distribution

    Luminaire distribution

    Controlling light emission using optics which bend and shape the light to the correct location.

  • System efficacy

    System efficacy

    Combining optical and thermal control within the luminaire (luminaire lm/W).

  • Presence/absence detection

    Presence/absence detection

    Presence: Lights automatically turn on/off with movement. Absence: Lights automatically turn off and must be manually switched on.

  • Daylight detection

    Daylight detection

    Artificial lighting which responds to the natural light conditions.

  • Constant illuminance

    Constant illuminance

    A function designed to produce correct light levels for the duration of the maintenance period.

  • Task-scene setting

    Task-scene setting

    Allowing the user to set scenes and adapt the lighting to different tasks.

  • Timed off

    Timed off

    Automatic cut-off can be installed to turn all lights off during unoccupied hours.

  • Task lighting

    Task lighting

    Lighting task areas with the correct amount of light.

  • Zoning of lighting

    Zoning of lighting

    Lighting is zoned according to area use.

  • Maintenance schedule

    Maintenance schedule

    Maintenance must be performed in response to product age, performance and environment.

  • Waste light

    Waste light

    Eliminating waste light which does not hit the intended target.

  • Reflectance

    Reflectance

    Taking advantage of light which is reflected from the surface within the space.

  • Visible smart metering

    Visible smart metering

    Results of actions can be quickly seen as increased or decreased energy use to encourage responsible energy consumption.

West Lothian has one of the best school estates in Scotland, thanks to ongoing investment throughout the area. It has recently added a new £1.5 million state-of-the-art Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) centre next to the Blackridge primary school to its portfolio.

What’s extra special about this new building is that it is a modern, purpose-built Passivhaus standard nursery. Passivhaus buildings are specially designed to provide users with enhanced thermal comfort using virtually no energy for heating or cooling – this is the first nursery of its kind for the region and only the second non-domestic Passivhaus building in Scotland.

Built by Morrison Construction, the facility will provide up to 64 spaces for eligible two, three, and four-year-olds. The development includes a new 3G floodlit Multi Use Games Area (MUGA) and dedicated parking and drop-off facilities directly off Main Street.

WGM consulting engineers supplied the M&E design package and specified Thorn Lighting to meet the demands of the new service due to its product portfolio for education. EJ Parker installed the lighting scheme.

Following the Passivhaus concept and to keep carbon emissions low, the lighting was required to be low energy while providing optimum comfort for teaching staff and learners alike. Secondly, the client wanted to create a welcoming environment to facilitate a learning atmosphere.

A broad range of the Thorn Lighting family of luminaires was selected to light the complete building from the continuous suspended IQ Waves in the main nursery space, Omega Pro 2 in the offices and kitchen, Chalice in the toilets and corridors to R2L2 in the external car park.

Young children acquire social and emotional skills in their first few years of life, such as regulating emotions, sharing with others, and following instructions. These skills set the foundation for developing literacy, numeracy, and other critical cognitive abilities for later school and life. Lighting can influence the effectiveness of the learning setting, and IQ Wave was the ideal choice. Its innovative, patented optics offer excellent uniformity and glare control with direct/indirect light for illuminance on faces and walls to encourage a comfortable, communicative learning environment.

The entrances, however, were the main features of the project. As the first point of contact for children and parents, the lobby should be warm, motivating, and inviting. The brief was to make them stand out from the rest of the nursery.

To achieve this, the team took a different direction and designed a suspended rectangular arrangement of the elegant Thorn Equaline, a flexible and modular system. The Equaline configuration delivers 1,760 lumens per metre in a bright white light (4000K). The effect is a stunning statement piece that emits a welcoming and stimulating light. 

Elsie Aitken, Development Officer at West Lothian Council, says, “‘The lighting is great because it’s flexible and allows the room to be lit to meet the children’s needs. Outdoor play is an important part of the school’s curriculum, so it is great that the external lights will allow the children to play outdoors in the autumn and really enhance the look of the building.”