An NHS Trust delivering vital services to thousands of patients across Herefordshire and Worcestershire has been supported in its continued drive towards running a more energy efficient estate by leading lighting manufacturer NVC Lighting.

Herefordshire and Worcestershire Health and Care NHS Trust provides a range of mental health, community, and learning disability services across the region, including community hospitals, minor injury units, sexual health services, and specialist dental services.

Over recent years, the Trust has been actively working on improving energy efficiency across its facilities, backed by financial support from the NHS Energy Efficiency Fund (NEEF), which started in 2018 and has now completed its third phase. This included being awarded 90k from the NHS EEF to upgrade lighting across the whole Trust, in line with the NHS’s goal of becoming Net Zero by 2040.

After carrying out a rigorous vendor screening process, the Trust contacted Adam Masters, Profit Centre Manager at electrical wholesalers, Edmundson Electrical, to execute the lighting supply works. Adam in turn reached out to Aaron Chandi, Business Development Manager at NVC Lighting, to support with product selection and delivery from a trusted partner.

Rehan said: “It’s vitally important for providers across the NHS to find ways to become more energy efficient. This is in line with the overall aim of the NHS to become net-zero by 2040. It’s equally important that we do this in a way that is cost effective and supports local businesses. We strongly believe that by using more energy efficient lighting such as LED lights, automatic timer lighting, we can make a significant difference in reducing our overall energy consumption.”

“In line with our Green Plan, we are progressing towards net-zero by 2040, and this change is a major step towards a greener and more sustainable NHS. A greener NHS will not only benefit the planet, but also prove beneficial for patients by giving them better quality air to breathe in and more green spaces to relax.”

The project focused on seven older buildings from the Trust’s estate, offering a range of services across mental health, nursing, child development and more.

The plan was to move from older light fittings in need of replacement to more modern, energy-efficient lighting solutions from NVC Lighting, provided by Edmundson Electrical.

Rehan said: “We had issues with the throw of light and colour temperature(the type if light emitted e.g warm white or cool white) . These issues made the existing lighting less suitable for our staff and visitors. The new lighting also provided a neutral white glow to the spaces, making them appear calmer.

“We also wanted to have a greater degree of precision over how our lighting is used, so newer products which could be controlled with additional switches and dimmable controls were a priority for us.

“As well as granting us greater control and adaptability, this also provides us with energy saving and product usage benefits.”

Sites including Tenbury Community Hospital, Warndon Child Development Centre and mental health service buildings (The Knoll and Rose Cottage) all presented unique challenges when it came to selecting the right lighting solutions.

A bespoke, people centric approach was taken in order to ensure that the products specified were fit for purpose and attributed to creating the correct atmosphere at each site, taking into consideration on the ground feedback from staff.

Edmunson Electricals’ Adam Masters said: “It was important that we got this right first time and because it was a unique set of challenges across multiple different sites, we wanted to do as much groundwork as possible to make sure that there were no unexpected surprises.

“We visited all seven sites, spoke with staff and assessed each building – so it was a mixture of anecdotal, on the ground insight, as well as analysis based on our experience on which products would be suited to the environment.”

Based on the requirements of the Trust, Adam reached out to NVC Lighting’s Aaron Chandi for support in selecting the right products for the job at hand.

NVC Lighting is a leading manufacturer of LED lighting, providing high-quality solutions for commercial, residential, educational, and various other applications.
The brand has worked with several NHS Trusts and its high quality, low glare product range, alongside its reputation for quality customer service, made it an ideal partner for the project.

Products selected include YALE PRO, which offer UGR<19 low glare and are ideal for use in corridors and high footfall areas.

Other products included the IP65 and IK10 rated COLUMBUS, PORTLAND bulkheads, as well as WASHINGTON recessed downlights and TEXAS battens.

Aaron Chandi, Business Development Manager at NVC Lighting, said: “We were delighted to be able to support this project and understood what was required of us.

“The quality of our products and our warranty offering meant we were ideally placed to provide the perfect solutions for the Trust– but what was just as important was speed, agility and transparency when it came to deliverables.

“We pride ourselves on building strong relationships based on trust, so we were ready to do what was needed to ensure the right products were in the right place at the right time.

“Communication was key, and I even got out to site to manage a delivery, to show support to Adam and the team at Edmunson – it was a real team effort.

“We’re confident that staff across the Herefordshire and Worcestershire Health & Care NHS Trust will feel the benefit of NVC Lighting products in their daily activities, while Trust leadership will soon see the energy and cost savings associated with our products.”