Twenty of Youngman Group’s Ecolite lighting towers were trialed at the recent Glastonbury Festival in the UK as part of the festival’s efforts to become the world’s first major carbon neutral rock event.
The Festival normally uses around 16000 l of fuel for its 175 rented towers over the five days of the event. Youngman says its Ecolite is approximately 75% more efficient than traditional 1000 W lighting towers - by using energy efficient ceramic discharge metal halide technology combined with patented prismatic lenses on the lamps.
Youngman claims that Glastonbury would have saved 63 t in CO2 emissions if it had used Ecolites throughout the festival.
Following the festival the 20 towers were acquired by TLC (Tower Light Company), which specialises in renting equipment to the festival. Asked about product development plans, John Bungay, business development director at Youngman Group, tells IRN that the company is focused on promoting the benefits of its existing products; “Rather than rethinking the wheel, we think our product offers significant benefits over traditional towers, even the newest versions. We’re saying use less fuel, have less CO2 emissions and get the same light.”
He acknowledges that switching to new towers can be a big decision for larger rental companies - involving major investment - but says that many smaller independent rental companies have started to build up fleets of Ecolite machines.
He says some users are simply focused on the most ‘green’ solution - fuel savings and CO2 reductions - and there is another group who like the Ecolite safety system that prevents the tower being towed or moved while the mast is up. “Safety, sustainability and fuel cost savings are the main drivers - and the first two are the most important”, says Mr Bungay.