National Hockey Centre, Sophia Gardens

Home of the Cardiff and Met Hockey Club, the National Hockey Centre in Sophia Gardens sees many high-profile events each year including International Hockey Tournaments.

The Project

The pitch required a full LED lighting upgrade to boost performance and achieve the accurate levels for professional levels of play in accordance with the FIH regulations. Kingfisher Sport proceeded with a thorough site assessment including performance checks on the pre-existing columns to ensure they could withstand the weight of the new bracketry and luminaires.

Kingfisher Sport recently provided a LED replacement scheme to the site including full mast and luminaire upgrades.

We proposed all 2kw discharge lamps could be replaced with reflector-based floods to improve performance whilst minimising energy costs for the site. We also recommended utilising a controls system to ensure lighting levels could be adapted for training and events.

The Solution

40 x AMNIS Flood lights on the pre-existing columns to provide a high performance output. The reflector-based fittings allowed us to target the light towards specific areas ensuring maximised optical control whilst minimising obtrusive light. The floods were fixed to bespoke brackets specifically designed to ensure all luminaires were secure for precise, uniform illumination.  

These luminaires also provide a low glare output which increased comfort levels for players and spectators. The AMNIS is flicker free and suitable for slow motion broadcasting, we managed to achieve 1000 lux meeting FIH televised levels so teams could complete at a professional level.

We then paired the luminaires with the Kingfisher Controls system ensuring the site benefited from lighting control. It was preset so the lighting could dim from 1000 lux to 500 lux for training purposes and to reduce running costs.

Project Summary 

• Flicker free AMNIS floods to ensure suitability for televised events 
• Reflector-based luminaires ensuring maximised visual comfort 
• Kingfisher Controls system in place to ensure levels can be altered between training and events.