Lighting may not always be the first thing that people associate with ports and terminals – rather, immense container vessels manoeuvring along the quayside and automated cranes quietly moving containers to their appointed positions tend to capture the imagination, writes Lars Meurling, Chair of the PEMA Safety & Environment Committee and Ryan Hertel, Phoenix Lighting, PEMA member.
Lighting, however, has a decisive role to play in safe, efficient, and environmentally responsible port and terminal operations; and it is an area highlighted in one of the latest information papers published by the Port Equipment Manufacturers Association (PEMA).
Prepared by PEMA’s Safety & Environment Committee, the ‘Lighting Technologies in Ports and Terminals’ information paper seeks to provide an independent overview for decision makers regarding conventional and emerging lighting techniques for ports and terminals.
"While lighting is perhaps not an area people readily associate with ports and terminals, it does plays a crucial role in safe and efficient operations," explains Lars Meurling, Chair of the PEMA Safety & Environment Committee.
"The lighting industry has experienced revolutionary technical advancement in the past five years, and this paper provides an overview of a variety of lighting technologies. It outlines the issues that typically arise when implementing lighting systems on mobile equipment and stationary fixtures," Meurling adds.
The information paper covers the advantages and limitations of conventional lighting technologies, and highlights the advances made in contemporary lighting techniques such as Light Emitting Diodes, (LED), and briefly considers the future and the emergence of Light Emitting Plasma, (LEP) alternatives.
Other areas addressed include warm-up periods, programming, dimming, rendering, (and how this is determined by the ‘warmth’ or otherwise of a given lamp type), return on investment, downtime, maintenance, service life, and even environmental considerations such as energy use, disposal, and light pollution.
The paper was prepared by Melissa Stephany, Director of Marketing, Phoenix Products Company Inc., as its main author, together with Ryan Hertel, Global Manager, Ports & Terminals for Phoenix Terminal Solutions. Phoenix is a Member of PEMA and the PEMA Safety & Environment Committee.
"While PEMA does not advocate any specific lighting solution, the paper is intended to contribute to industry awareness of the issues and the options that ports and terminals should consider when making their selection," says Hertel.
He suggests that port and terminal operators tend to prefer newer lighting sources due to the reduced energy consumption and reduced maintenance costs that such lighting offers.
"As crane installations increasingly adopt video-based remote operation systems, visual detail is more and more a key factor when looking at lighting options," Hertel explains.
‘Lighting Technologies in Ports and Terminals’ is part of a series of information papers developed by PEMA’s Safety & Environment Committee intended to inform readers about the design and use of equipment and technology to improve the safety of people, equipment and cargo, as well as improving the environmental performance of port and terminal operations.
Reflecting the growing use of shore power in ports, the Safety & Environment Committee has also released a detailed information paper on shore power standards and best practice.
The association is becoming an increasingly active contributor to the debate on issues facing the global ports and terminals sector. The Safety & Environment Committee, along with PEMA’s other committees – Automation & Control Technologies, and Equipment Design & Infrastructure – regularly publish information papers, technology briefings and independent research.
Topics recently covered in the committees’ publications include container weighing, crane fatigue, container yard automation, and laser technologies. All publications are can be downloaded free of charge at pema.org/publications/
