May 2011 - Illuminating Engineering Society

Photos courtesy of Lumenpulse
PP
PRODUCTS
IN PRACTICE
CHURCH BELLS CHIME FOR LEDs
For more than 100 years, St. John the
Evangelist Church has helped Winthrop,
MA, residents see the light.
But until recently the century-old building
was, itself, in the dark. Using 24 white LED
luminaires, project manager Paul Marks
of Winthrop made its detailed brick and
granite façade as clear as the bells that
ring in its belfry.
Because the church is surrounded by residences,
Marks wanted to ensure that the new
façade lighting wouldn’t spill light onto neighboring
properties. He was also looking for a
lighting solution with low energy and maintenance
costs. White LED luminaires from Lumenpulse
met Marks’ controllability and energy
efficiency criteria.
Two color temperatures of white LEDs were
specified—2,700K and 3,000K—to light the red
brick and white granite, respectively. Positioning
the luminaires was another issue. “Pole or
ground mounting wouldn’t have achieved the
same effect,” says Marks, so the luminaires are
building mounted on extrusions set back 4-in.
from the façade. Four 2-ft-long, 2,700K LEDs
luminaires are mounted between the doorways
(top, left) to “highlight the accents on the
red brick façade with the rose window,” says
Marks, while eight 1-ft-long, 2,700K fixtures at
the base of the 75-ft-tall bell tower (top, right)
reveal its architectural details. Mounted atop a
cornice on the granite portion of the tower, 12
1-ft-long, 3,000K luminaires complement “the
white tone of the [stone].”
Using only 441 watts total, the luminaires feature
a flat lens that eliminates glare and reduces
light spill into the surrounding neighborhood.
Elizabeth Hall
The Challenge: Illuminate
the two-toned façade and
bell tower of an historic
church without spilling light
into surrounding areas.
The Solution: Buildingmounted
LED luminaires
in two different color
temperatures direct light
only on the façade.
www.ies.org LD+A | May 2011 105