Ahead of the World Cup final in Mumbai, Bajaj Electricals says it has set a record by commissioning the tallest lighting towers at the Wankhede Stadium.
The 72-metre-high masts with 112 numbers of 2KW metal halide floodlights are said to be the tallest polygonal high-mast structures used in the country for floodlighting of any stadium. Each mast weighs over 40 tonnes. The Bajaj lighting design team has so far illuminated over 40 stadiums across India.
Mr Anant Bajaj, Executive Director, Bajaj Electricals, told
The primary norm was to satisfy the ICC guidelines for lighting which are stringent. The luminosity has to satisfy the requirements of HDTV (high definition television) transmission and camera and ensure lighting without glare for players, spectators and umpires alike.
BEAM CONTROL
Mr Bajaj said the specially designed 2KW floodlights provide high-efficiency light beams and are coupled with internal beam-control mechanisms to reduce light spillage on the surrounding area of the stadium.
The beam control decides the output of lumens, travel distance of light and where it should be pointed to.
The beam primarily ensures the extent of light spread required. Here again the focussing of the lights (in addition to the angle) becomes critical as it has a direct relation to spillage.
In addition, the lighting has to factor in the size of side screens, crowd, the actual quantity of grass on the field, besides dew and humidity for diffusion.
The Wankhede Stadium has a playing arena of 68.5-metre radius with major constraints of open space both inside and outside the stadium.
Bajaj had its share of hiccups in executing the Rs 6.5-crore contract. It had to get the consent of 16 housing societies and two colleges on the periphery of the stadium to carry out the installation. The Western Railway too had its objections as one of the accesses to the stadium was on the railway track side, he said.
PLC SYSTEM
The entire floodlighting system is controlled by a programmable logic controller in individual control rooms for switching of floodlights to provide the lighting level suitable for individual levels of the game. For this part, a centralised system is provided to control and monitor the entire floodlighting system.