Siemens Newcastle: Parsons Works

Supporting customers on their way to a sustainable future

About Siemens Newcastle

Today, this industrial Siemens site in Newcastle is at the forefront of future electrification – from manufacturing sustainable power and hydrogen technologies, to renewable energy generation.

Siemens Parsons Works is an enormous site. Imagine the size of a room needed to build a wind turbine.

Originally, C. A. Parsons and Company was a famous British engineering firm and one of the largest employers in Tyneside. Charles Algernon Parsons founded it in 1889 to produce steam turbines – his very own invention. This legacy continues today, under Siemens Energy.

Client Challenges

Siemens wants to be carbon neutral by 2030. Under this strategy, Siemens initiated an Energy Efficiency Program (EEP) for their Parsons Works Site.

1. Key part of meeting their EEP objectives was to modernise their inefficient discharge lighting system.
2. The need to upgrade to reliable high-quality lighting was not only to save energy, but also to improve manufacturing working conditions.
3. Due to extra high ceilings and the 24/7h operation, the maintenance of old light fittings was costly and complicated.

CILS Objectives

CILS’ core objective was to deliver the Energy Performance Contract (EPC) and the guaranteed energy savings for Siemens Newcastle, with the best quality luminaires and Internet of Things (IoT) smart controls system.

We were responsible for the full lighting and IoT solution in the 15 areas identified within the scope of works.
We planned all our installation and commissioning to be done as discreetly as possible, for minimal disruption.
We designed the IoT smart infrastructure to allow the client to integrate their Building Management System (BMS).

£ 364,323

saved on electricity each year at 20p/kWh

363.2 tonnes of CO2

equivalent saved each year

1,821,613 kWh

guaranteed energy saved annually

case study

Siemens is leading the way towards carbon neutrality. They’ve made a firm commitment to be net zero by 2030. This includes all Siemens production facilities and buildings worldwide.

We are proud to have supported Siemens by significantly improving their enormous industrial site energy efficiency and reducing their lighting carbon emissions by over 75%.

Results

Since the completion of the project, Siemens Newcastle has saved over 8 million kWh from our lighting upgrade. This exceeded the project expectations by more than 3%.
New lighting, the measured average across all areas, is 75%+ more efficient than before. A giant step towards being completely carbon neutral by 2030.
As a result, at 20p per kWh, their annual savings are close to £365k over single year.
This is alongside massive environmental improvements. Each year, the equivalent of more than 360 tonnes of CO2 of harmful greenhouse gases are prevented from entering our planet’s atmosphere.
The site has also minimised need for costly lighting upkeep and maintenance, particularly with lights at 30m high.

Why CILS

CILS is in partnership with Siemens, trusted to deliver energy savings and smart infrastructure projects. They contracted CILS to implement a complete solution for Newcastle Parsons Works.

CILS has continuously proven itself to deliver guaranteed savings and work, in line with strict restrictions and policies enforced by Siemens.

Project Delivery

It’s one of the most incredible sites we’ve transformed. Reaching 30m ceilings to replace the high-level lights was not for the faint hearted.

An industrial facility – with large industrial bays, 24/7 operations, high ceilings – required a highly tailored lighting design.

For the most comfortable working conditions, we always design to achieve optimum light levels for the defined purpose. A standard office needs 300 lux of light. Areas where engineers are working on specialised tasks, like assembling engines, require 1000 lux at the working level.

We maintained constant communications with the site staff and included extra H&S precautions. We prioritised delivering the project with the least amount of disruption to Siemens 24/7h operations and preventing any damage to machinery.

Installation highlights:

CILS completed the installation of an LED lighting upgrade and the Enlighted control system in all 15 areas.
On the Enlighted smart system, every light fitting has its own processor, memory, and upgradable software. Meaning motion, power consumption, ambient light levels and temperature can all be monitored and proactively managed.
The Enlighted lighting control system measures the actual energy consumption of the installed fittings. This simplified the measurement & verification process – essential to the delivery of an EPC.
We set up the system ready to integrate BMS (building management systems like heating) with a simple plug load controller.

Lighting controls example in one of the bays;

If sensors do not record any activity for 30mins, the lights in the high bay areas will revert to the unoccupied level of 150 lux.
When the sensors detect presence, the lights revert to the defined ‘occupied’ lux level (not maximum output).
The high-bay sensors also ‘harvest’ any available daylight and adjust light levels accordingly.
Nominated staff were given access to control the lighting via the BMS upon completion.
Where necessary, individual staff needs can define the lighting control settings.

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