Lighting up Eden Park

Stadia are more than just sportsgrounds, they are ‘theatres of dreams’.  Increasingly, lighting is being used to provide additional emotional impact as modern-day gladiators take to the field in battle.

Eden Park, New Zealand’s premier sporting ground, has recently been redeveloped to further enhance the experience for spectators. Philips Lighting was asked to provide a floodlighting solution that would cater for the different lighting needs of both rugby and cricket and consider future stadium events. A second project called for a high-impact method of illuminating the new south stand to improve the stadium’s overall atmosphere and ambience. 

The challenges

Both projects presented challenges - new floodlighting needed to be an energy-efficient lighting solution that met international high-definition television (HDTV) broadcasting standards and fulfilled the requirement to use the stadium roof for mounting the floodlights, rather than traditional towers. Local resident concerns about light spillage and glare also had to be considered. For the new south stand, the lighting solution needed to showcase architectural features of the stand without overpowering its unique design.

The solutions

482 ArenaVision MVF404 floodlights were installed along the edge of the redeveloped stands to illuminate the playing field. ArenaVision is designed specifically for outdoor sports stadia and offers high light output and optical efficiency, making it the logical choice for Eden Park.

“Ensuring minimal light spillage and glare was imperative given the close proximity of the stadium to residential properties. Using ArenaVision MVF404 floodlights allowed us to provide a high-quality uniform lighting system that could be contained within the stadium,” says Philips Lighting Project Manager Allan Stephenson.

ArenaVision MVF404 floodlights use about 10% less energy than conventional stadium lighting systems and require less maintenance, offering a significant reduction in overall running costs. Controlling the lighting is simple, as the Dynalite lighting control system gives computer-based individual control over all the sports lighting in the stadium. This makes it easy for the Trust to switch between lighting for individual sporting codes.

To illuminate the south stand 24 ColorReach Powercore LED floodlights were used. These provide the vivid changing colours that build up the anticipation, excitement and emotion of the occasion for sports fans approaching the stadium. But they are also a highly energy-efficient solution. Each colour LED only uses 280 W at full output, whereas conventional non-LED lighting would have required 1000 W floodlights, consuming considerably more energy.

The LED system offers virtually limitless options and allows Eden Park Trust to create spectacular colour-changing light shows, themed to each specific event. “Creating a solution for the south stand that was visually interesting was important to us,” says Tracy Morgan, General Manager Sales & Marketing for Eden Park Trust. “It needed to have the wow factor and Philips delivered exactly what we were looking for. The solution provides a visual spectacle for people passing by or attending the games and adds to the atmosphere.”

Benefits

The new lighting - both on the field of play and the on facade - adds to the ambience and experience of going to Eden Park. Sports fans simply love it and the Eden Park Trust is thrilled with the result. “Working with Philips has been extremely rewarding,” says Tracy Morgan. “They are proactive and brought a range of design and capability expertise which added enormous value to the end result. Philips was able to go beyond what we thought was possible while staying within budget and this is a testament to their professionalism and experience.”