Eindhoven, a city already known for its high-tech pedigree, is getting a lustrous makeover with a series of projects that bring the concept
of light to life.

by Anna J. Kutor

Over the past century, light in architecture has completely transformed the way people perceive and navigate
urban space. From accenting and decorating everything from indoor domains to
exterior facades and landscapes, light, used as a fashion-forward building
material, has proven invaluable at transforming architectural aesthetics and
creating surprising visual effect and experiences. Architectural lighting
designs of today place high priority on energy efficiency and resource-sparing
technologies, like in Eindhoven, where city officials have joined forces with
electronics giant Phillips and a slew of architects and designers to devise a
new-age lighting master plan for the tech-focused Dutch town.

To improve the efficiency of urban lighting and secure Eindhoven’s ‘Leader in
Technology’ position, a comprehensive citywide initiative was launched in 2004
by Municipality of Eindhoven, CityDynamiek and VVV Eindhoven. An effective
lighting plan wedding optical performance with aesthetic design and
environmental sustainability was devised by Rik van Stiphout, lighting program manager of the city, which identified a short-term priorities and programed projects up to 2010. One of his leading efforts has pushed for the phase-out of traditional light bulbs in favor of energy-efficient LED
(light-emitting diode) lights all throughout the city, which will “save
electricity expended on street lighting in Eindhoven by a minimum of 33 percent
and reduce carbon emissions by nearly 37 tonnes of year”.

Within the framework of the program, the modular and electronically guided Phileas bus connecting Eindhoven airport
with the downtown area received a 30 meter long line of LED lights fitted in
the road surface at each bus station. The line of light shifts in color throughout
the day and whenever a bus is at the stop. Other permanent LED-fitted solutions
include the roundabout at Woensel shopping mall engineered by Paleco Led
Applications and the High-Tech Campus Viaduct, a concrete bridge cocooned in a
glowing nerve tissue, a lighting application masterminded by Har Hollands and
completed in 2007.

Light Ambitions

The initiative reached its culmination with a year-long event series entitled “Eindhoven City of Light 2007”
which shed international light on the city through the illumination of key
urban landmarks and newly-opened buildings as well as a range of provisional
light-themed events, exhibitions, advertising and artistic activities. The
Centrum Kunstlicht in de Kunst (Centre Artificial Light in Art) and Temporary Art
Centre (TAC), for example, held a series of art installations which explore the
use of light in communication, the relationship between light and space and
even a card game of artificial lighting.

More recently, Eindhoven’s councilor Mary Fiers
presented one of the city’s 62 new car park ticket machines that run on light
energy. In direct online contact with a central control unit, these modern
machines reduce local authorities management and maintenance costs. Also in the
pipeline are projects such as the ‘Kristal’ bus shelters in which over 200 new
LED lit shelters will replace the former fluorescent structures as well as the
Light Finder (LiFi), a testing facility set up at the Eindhoven-Noord Sports
Complex in the beginning of this year. Developed for walkers and runners, LiFi
is an innovative guiding system which features smart LED-laden lighting columns
that light up at the arrival of joggers, forming an interactive network of
routes (each with their own color) that not only create a clear sense of
direction but also an more stimulating work-out experience.

Future Vision

Linking Eindhoven’s yesterday with its today and tomorrow is the Royal Phillips Electronics, a global conglomerate
operating in the city since 1891. The company’s former industrial campus,
Strijp-S, stands at the forefront of the city’s light-based redevelopment plans
with creativity and culture made visible and tangible in all facets. Across the
27 hectare estate, historic structures are undergoing restoration and
alternation while a whole host of new residential, commercial and recreational
facilities are being developed in a broad range of architectural styles at the
site. Philips Design, contributing to the international BLISS (Better Lighting
in Sustainable Streets) project, has masterminded a public lighting system for
the so-called “Creative City” that utilizes cost-saving LEDs without
the customary pole illumination. This cutting-edge lighting design will debut
in the district by 2010, along with other technology-driven innovations in the
field of litter control, recycling and energy conservation.