Airline catering flies high with quality LED lighting from Philips

Flight catering services company LSG Sky Chefs is reaping the benefits of food, workplace safety, productivity and energy efficiency by switching to LED lighting provided by Royal Philips, the global leader in lighting.

LSG Sky Chefs New Zealand has an 11,600 square metre facility at Auckland Airport where around 550 employees produce 17,000 meals and 7,000 fresh-food products every day, for their international airline customers. With no natural light at the facility, LSG Sky Chefs Head Chef Tony Wright says optimum lighting is essential for his team of around 50 chefs to meet the high standards set for product quality, hygiene, employee safety and productivity.

“Our whole production area must be designed to ensure we have the best visibility possible, which is why we chose Philips LED lighting. Natural looking light is important when we’re using sharp equipment such as knives, sanitising fresh produce, as well as preparing food to ensure absolute consistency and the highest catering quality.”

Philips projects LSG Sky Chefs will achieve energy savings of approximately 37 percent1 which equates to $77,000 savings per year in comparison to a non-LED solution, in addition to maintenance savings due to the long lifespan of LED bulbs. There are also environmental benefits as LSG Sky Chefs’ 100 percent LED lighting saves approximately 42 tons per year in CO2 emissions2, which is roughly equivalent to taking eight cars off the road for approximately a year.

Kevin Burrows, LSG Sky Chefs Project Manager, says the company is also making significant savings in terms of maintenance costs. The Philips LED lights having been in place for over six months now without the need to replace or adjust a light. Previously it spent around three hours per week on light bulb maintenance so this is a huge advantage, says Burrows, with the added benefit that there has been less employee downtime as production is no longer halted and business interrupted to swap out lights.

Philips New Zealand partnered with Electrical Consulting Services Ltd to develop the custom-designed Philips LED lighting system*. The products fitted were specifically designed to operate within controlled clean room environments, removing the risk of contamination from lighting units and consequent disruption to food production areas.

Gordon Wiffen, Philips Lighting New Zealand General Manager said Philips LED lighting goes far beyond its primary function of illumination, to unlock value and wider benefits. LSG Sky Chefs New Zealand is a great example of this, but equally relevant are retail outlets, offices, and other workplaces that are considering updating their environment in a way that enhances employee safety and productivity, he states.

The state-of-the-art facility at Auckland Airport provides fresh food, drinks and other amenities for airline customers and their on-board guests. Having a well-lit, clean and energy efficient environment is crucial.

*Project information

Location: Auckland Airport, Auckland, New Zealand. Space: Newly-built 11,600 square metre facility. LSG Sky Chefs New Zealand champions this as one of the first LSG Sky Chefs facilities to implement a 100 percent LED lighting solution.

Lighting products: Approximately 2,000 luminaires including Hygeia LED Cleanroom, Pacific LED waterproof, GreenPerform LED Batten, CoreLine Office, GreenSpace Downlight, GreenPerform LED Highbay, and Tango LED Floodlight.

Lighting designers: Electrical Consulting Services Ltd (Ross Crawford) and Philips Lighting New Zealand (Geoff Lewthwaite). 1 Philips calculation comparing Philips LED lights to T5 f luorescent lights. 2 Philips calculation of the annual aggregate kW/ hr consumption.