AN INNOVATIVE project in Hampshire – the largest of its kind – has meant huge savings for the local authority.

Since 2010, Hampshire County Council’s consumption of street lighting has been significantly reduced by 41 per cent – the equivalent of powering 3,500 homes per year.

The Complete Lighting Control Central Management System, supplied by Mayflower, allows individual lights, signs and bollards, to be monitored and controlled through a smart node.

The company, which forms part of Scottish Southern Electric Enterprise Contracting, has installed nearly 150,000 nodes across the county, making it the world’s largest network of its kind.

Hampshire County Council’s executive member for Economy, Transport and Environment, Cllr Seán Woodward, said: “The installation of the latest technology will give us greater flexibility in how we manage street lights, giving improved visibility in areas that need it and the ability to dim lighting in other areas that don’t, all in all having a positive effect on the amount we spend on carbon tax.”

Cllr Frank Pearson, Winchester City Council’s portfolio holder for Environment, Health and Wellbeing, said: “Winchester is a city rich in history that has often been at the forefront of change. This attractive lighting, which the county council maintains on behalf of the city council in Abbey Gardens, shows how state-of-the-art technology can sit happily in the most historic of settings and provide benefits for residents, visitors and council taxpayers.”

Patrick Mitchell, managing director of Mayflower, said their company was excited about forthcoming projects and looking to grow as a major contributor within its industry.

“It is fitting that the 250,000th Mayflower unit to be installed in the UK is in Hampshire, given the project is Mayflower’s largest system deployment,” he said.

“We have worked closely and in a partnership approach with the local authority and SSE Enterprise, its service delivery partner.

"To have played a key role in the development and deployment of the largest CMS network in the world, which is generating significant energy savings for Hampshire County Council, is a great achievement of which the Mayflower team and I are extremely proud.”