Münchwilen (AG) relies on environmentally friendly lighting - in every respect

16.04.2022

Münchwilen (AG) renovated their entire street lighting in 2021. The municipality opted for efficient LED luminaires that they control via the Interact City light management system.

They go one step further and combine the first climate-neutral street lights on the market with Eagle Eye Zhaga sensors, setting new standards in sustainable street lighting.

A major concern during the refurbishment was not only to illuminate efficiently, but also with consideration for the environment and local residents. Therefore, the light color 3000 K is used in Münchwilen - a good compromise between energy-efficient and environmentally friendly. To minimize glare from residential buildings, luminaires with backlight louvers are used in the neighborhoods.

"With the controls, we can better meet specific needs, and they make our daily lives easier. For example, at events - from Fasnacht to Räbeliechtliumzug - we want to be able to handle it easier to control the light. And of course there is great potential to save even more electricity costs and make lighting more environmentally friendly. Current studies show how the animal and insect world is disturbed by too much light. We want to actively do something about that."

Roland Oeschger, former local councilor and project manager Münchwilen

With the Eagle Eye motion-dependent control system, the lights can also be dimmed down to a minimum at night. However, as soon as vehicles or pedestrians are detected by the radar sensors, the street lighting dims up in advance, as can be seen clearly in the video recording.

We were once again on a visit to the Aargau community and were able to see impressively how the lighting of the community has apparently changed.

Eagle Eye lighting control - environmentally friendly lighting in Münchwilen

Luminaires with light color 3000 K and motion-dependent control

In the before-and-after comparison, it is clearly evident how the amount of light could be greatly reduced with little traffic. The new luminaires also shine in a more targeted manner and no longer emit light upwards into the night sky.

Before

After

Before

After

Luminaires in the neighborhood streets in the village center are only dimmed up when motion is detected, to avoid unnecessary stray light in the surrounding area and to save energy.

Proven design language of the bell pendant luminaire has been retained: The newly-installed BadenCity pendant luminaires shine less upwards/backwards and more purposefully onto the street.

Before

After

Handover of certificate for climate-neutral street lights 2021

One of the first municipalities with climate-neutral lights

Münchwilen is not only exhausting all possibilities in technical terms: As one of the first municipalities in Switzerland, they offset the CO₂ emissions of the new Luma street lights and received the certificate from myclimate this spring.