Reusable packaging cuts costs for lighting on London project

Major reductions in packaging waste and more efficient working on site for the lighting installation on a large London project have been achieved by a re-usable packaging system devised by Thorn Lighting. Hundreds of lighting fittings were supplied for Stanhope’s 23 000 m2 W8 project on Regent Street, and the challenge was to reduce the amount of packaging waste generated by hundreds of 600 mm-square recessed modular luminaries, while at the same time speeding up installation, as the fittings were supplied with ready-to-fit flying leads. The successful solution used moulded polypropylene trays with profiled high-density foam inserts to locate and separate product. Each pair of trays accepts eight luminaires. Each luminaire was individually bagged to keep dust out. The complete unit was stretch wrapped onto a 1200 x 800 mm Euro pallet. The trays and pallets were collected for re-use when the next batch of products was delivered. The only waste materials are the bags and stretch wrap, which can be recycled or returned with the trays and pallets for disposal. Although there was an initial premium for new packaging materials, the developer, Stanhope, estimates savings of £25 000 to £30 000. Savings were made by not having to buy cartons, no labour cost in packing each fitting, unpacking on site and moving to skips and reduced landfill charges.

Related links:

• www.thornlight.com