In modern cities, there is an increasing need for vandal resistant lighting. This lighting not only provides safe lighting, but also protects against inclement weather and man-made damage. Choosing the right vandal resistant lighting is essential to maintaining public safety and reducing long-term operating costs. But the most expensive is not necessarily the best. So, continue reading the information below to help you choose the most suitable vandal resistant lighting.
What is Vandal Resistant Lighting？
Vandal resistant lighting refers to a lighting system that is specially designed to resist human-made destruction, accidental impact, natural disasters and other possible external factors without affecting lighting function.
This lighting product is usually made of sturdy and durable materials, and some of them are tamper-proof. These characteristics determine that it is widely used in public areas, transportation facilities, industrial areas and other scenes where external impacts occur frequently. In mental hospitals, prisons and areas with high crime rates, vandal resistant lighting products are also popular to prevent malicious damage by others.
How to Choose the Right Vandal Resistant Lighting?
Many factors affect the quality of vandal resistant lighting products. You can weight each factor according to different situations. The following factors are mainly for your reference:
Acquisition of Certifications and Compliance with Standards
Among all the selection factors, the certification and standards of vandal-resistant lighting products are the most important, as they are obtained through professional institutions and perfect procedures. Choose lighting equipment that meets international standards and ensure that it has IK and IP rating certification. The IK rating indicates the impact resistance of the equipment, while the IP rating indicates its waterproof and dustproof capabilities.
Generally, outdoor vandal-resistant lighting needs to have an IP65 rating and above, and the impact resistance should reach IK08 or IK10. These certifications can help you understand the sturdiness and suitability of the lighting equipment in different environmental conditions.
Manufacturing Materials and Structural Design
The shell of vandal resistant lighting equipment should first be made of impact-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials, such as polycarbonate (PC), aluminum alloy or stainless steel. They have high strength and high toughness and can effectively prevent external violent damage. In addition, the surface of the shell is usually coated with special coatings or other surface treatments, which are equivalent to a second layer of protection and more effectively avoid damage and invasion.
Lighting equipment used outdoors is usually exposed to sunlight for a long time, so UV protection is very important. Choosing materials with UV resistance can effectively prevent the lampshade from yellowing or aging, thereby extending the service life of the equipment.
It is also best to have a tamper-proof design to prevent someone from easily disassembling or damaging the equipment. This includes measures such as using anti-tamper screws, enclosed wires and reinforced installation.
Lighting Performance
While durability and robustness are critical to vandal-resistant lighting, lighting performance as a basic function of lamps cannot be ignored. Light output and distribution are the first considerations. Choose the right lumen output (brightness) and beam angle to ensure that the light can provide enough brightness and is evenly distributed in the lighting area.
Also, choose energy-efficient LED lighting that can effectively reduce energy consumption. In fact, LED lights can reduce energy consumption by 40% to 60% compared to traditional lamps. This not only extends the product life, but also reduces overall maintenance costs.
Environmental Conditions Assessment
Different environments have different requirements for lighting equipment, so when choosing vandal resistant lighting, it is necessary to make appropriate assessments based on specific environmental conditions and application scenarios. Outdoor lighting faces more challenges, including natural factors such as heavy rain, strong winds, and sun exposure, so vandal-resistant lighting must have stronger impact resistance and waterproof capabilities. For indoor applications, although the environmental conditions are relatively stable, it is still necessary to consider human damage or long-term use of the equipment.
In areas with extreme temperatures, it is important to ensure that the lighting equipment can withstand temperature fluctuations from extreme cold to extreme heat. Choose lighting equipment with good temperature tolerance to ensure that it can work stably in all weather conditions.
In crowded areas such as subway stations, bus stops, shopping malls, etc., lighting equipment may encounter more collisions, vandalism or malicious tampering. Choose lighting equipment with high impact resistance and anti-tampering design to ensure its long-term stable operation in these high-traffic areas.
Style and Aesthetic Design
Vandal resistant lighting equipment is just like its name, mainly based on practicality and functionality. Therefore, in the early days of its appearance, few manufacturers paid attention to its appearance design. However, with the development of the times and the advancement of technology, the aesthetics of lighting design is also emphasized in modern urban planning and public space design. A typical manifestation is the night lighting of modern cities. This is not only related to the safety of the city, but also has a profound impact on the overall image of the city.
Besides, the appearance design of vandal-resistant lighting equipment should be integrated with the surrounding architectural style and landscape elements. The purpose is to avoid abrupt designs and affect the beauty of the environment.
In addition to safety and convenience, visual pleasure is also crucial to people's experience of using public spaces. Good lighting design can make the space more attractive and improve people's satisfaction and sense of belonging to the area.
When choosing the right vandal resistant lighting, consider its standard certification, materials used, appearance design and lighting performance. It is also important to evaluate application scenarios and usage environment of lighting products. These will not only improve public safety and reduce equipment damage, but also reduce long-term operating costs. Ultimately, it will provide cities and residents with safer and more durable light sources.
