Thorn Lighting’s Craig Lensky has praised Douglas Borough Council for ‘investing to save’ after the Council resolved to convert the borough’s 4,400 street lighting lanterns to the company’s LED units.

Launched in February 2017 the £1.5 million capital investment scheme is projected to achieve energy savings of around £2.7 million over the lanterns’ 15-year warranty period and led to the Council winning the Biggest Saving in the public sector category in the Department of Economic Development’s 2017 Energy Awards.

Mr Lensky, pictured above with Councillor Ritchie McNicholl, said: ‘The Council is to be congratulated for investing to save by opting to convert to intelligent LED street lighting. These energy-efficient units lower wattage consumption by around a half, so significantly reduce energy use. They also require far less maintenance and the whole system is fully automated to achieve optimum regulation of light levels.

‘With the new system the Council is also providing a better light quality, as the LED lanterns produce a whiter light which improves night-time vision and colour definition.’

Councillor Ritchie McNicholl as Environmental Services Chair, who initially proposed and drove the conversion scheme, said: ‘The Council is pleased to be working with Mr Lensky and his team on this major project, which justifiably achieved public recognition in this year’s Energy Awards.

‘This street lighting programme, with its associated £2.7million projected savings, is a prime example of how the Council is succeeding in delivering more for less. The project not only brings financial benefits for the Council and, by extension, for the ratepayers of Douglas, but also for the wider community in that the whiter, more natural light produced by LED lanterns improves lighting levels and creates a general feeling of greater safety and security. I believe it’s fair to say that by implementing this scheme the Council is not only improving quality of light but also quality of life in the Borough.’