Why Aluminium

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Aluminium Lighting Columns have evolved. Our extruded aluminium columns are unlocking Passive Safety, Environmental and Whole-Life Cost Saving benefits to our clients up and down the UK.

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Best Value – Aluminium Lighting Columns

Why Aluminium Lighting Columns? This can be summarised in a few words; Passive Safety and Whole-Life Cost Savings.

Owing to its natural Aluminium Oxide layer which forms a protective barrier when in contact with Oxygen, the metal is naturally corrosion resistant. When aluminium columns are scratched or dented this protective layer re-forms; they are the only ‘self-maintaining’ columns on the market regarding surface treatment.

This resistance to deterioration reduces maintenance costs by minimising road closures and possession orders, cuts operator time and reduces the time that maintenance workers must spend in hazardous roadside and track side environments conducting structural tests.
It also provides a fitting solution for coastal and rural environments where the potential for corrosion is heightened.

Such characteristics also mean we can offer a 50-year design life on most projects, twice that of most steel columns, with several examples of columns far exceeding this.

Aluminium – the detail.

Download the Why Aluminium Best Value Diagram here.

Initial installation:- Aluminium lighting columns weigh less than 1/3 of steel columns, aiding transport and installation costs.
Condition/Structural testing: – Is proving to be a time consuming and expensive necessity on steel columns, mainly due to ever increasing evidence of premature deterioration. Aluminium has a proven record justifying little or no testing.
Scrap value:- Scrap value return on steel columns is cancelled out by disposal costs – aluminium columns can return of 10% of their original purchase cost at today’s prices.

By taking maintenance into account and not relying solely on initial purchase costs, one can begin to understand the whole-life-cost of the product, clearly placing aluminium as the best value available.

Testimonial

“Having used ALC columns for in excess of 12 years, West Berks are realising the savings predicted at the outset and are using these savings to invest in other areas of the service.” — Alan Brashier, Lighting Manager – West Berkshire Council

To find how much you could save by specifying aluminium, please contact our sales team and ask for a ‘Best Value Report’ based on your specific scheme.

At a time where environmental considerations play a vital role in most developments, aluminium as a material for minor structures has come to the fore. Both fully recyclable and long-life, aluminium ticks many of the boxes that other materials cannot.

Environmental – Climate Neutral Group:

Our column suppliers Nedal Aluminium B.V. have an agreement with the Climate Neutral Group to offset their remaining minimal CO2 emissions. This is achieved by investing in sustainable projects, securing climate neutral status for their lighting range.

Through the carbon Neutral Group, Nedal are investing in a ‘Landfill Gas’ project, incinerating landfill material to generate energy. By collecting and destroying methane during incineration, and by displacing some 35,000MWh ‘of electricity generated by power plants connected to the electricity system’, the project is ‘fighting climate change and curbing greenhouse gas emissions’

Environmental – Cradle to Cradle Certified:

The use of re-melt aluminium and the recyclability of ALC/Nedal aluminium lighting columns secures compliance with the ‘Cradle to Cradle®’ model, described by the EPEA (Environmental Protection Encouragement Agency) as:

“[different] from conventional recycling and the concept of eco-efficiency. It is about eco-effectiveness and goes beyond conventional sustainability tools and approaches, which primarily show the negative influence of humans on the environment. [It] creates equal economic, social and ecological benefits.”

Environmental – Keen on Green Project:

We participated in the ‘Keen on Green™’ project in cooperation with the Environment Federation Utrecht. Our column supplier, Nedal Aluminium B.V., assessed their production process, making several improvements based on their findings:

Nedal are now using recycled aluminium whilst preventing material degradation – recycled aluminium requires 95% less energy to process than primary aluminium, and significantly less than competing materials.
Nedal have increased their use of clean energy sources.

Such improvements, coupled with the natural lightweight nature of aluminium, have reduced emissions associated with production, transport and installation respectively.

Testimonial

“Being able to use a product that not only conforms to all current standards but fits in with our environmental policies is a huge plus for us”.

— Dan Robinson, Senior Lighting Engineer – London Borough of Southwark

Passive Safety Built In

The energy absorption ability of a column influences their passive safety rating considerably, and depends on various factors such as structural form, but in regards to the material used:

Steel:

Absorbs large amounts of energy due to its unforgiving material properties.
The vehicle undergoes a rapid deceleration generating high g-force for the driver and occupants.
It is the g-force that induces blackouts and can kill. The impact will also severely damage the vehicle, possibly making control after the primary accident difficult.

Aluminium:

Greater elasticity and therefore absorbs smaller amounts of energy.
The vehicle undergoes a much slower deceleration with a much-reduced g-force.
The damage to the vehicle is likely to be less serious, making it easier to control to prevent secondary accidents.

For a full Passive Safety overview, along with an explanation of the new BS EN 12767:2019 standard, please visit our Highways Page.