LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND — The Footbridge at Princes Dock in Liverpool, England, is both an interesting and attractive structure, and is strategically placed in the heart of an area of the city undergoing significant commercial development. Following discussions with the site owners, Princes Dock Development Company Ltd (part of Peel Holdings), Lighting Designer Graham Festenstein received a commission to develop a lighting scheme for the unique 'wishbone' structure.
The bridge’s new dynamic and interactive lighting, designed by Graham and installed by W T Jenkins, is an eye-catching addition to the Liverpool dockside.Graham has been involved in Liverpool for several years, working with Liverpool City Council and the regeneration company Liverpool Vision at a strategic level, further developing the master plan for Liverpool City Center. The Princes Dock Footbridge illumination is also part of a program in preparation for Liverpool’s distinction as European City of Culture 2008. “As part of this work, we have identified buildings and structures that could be lit and received commissions to undertake detailed design on a number of these,” Graham says.
The Princes Dock Footbridge is an existing structure that Graham felt should be relit. There was a simple existing scheme already in place on the bridge — a white light scheme that used T8 fluorescents, many of which were unshielded and consequently glary. Graham proposed to reuse some of this lighting, but to supplement it with Martin Cyclo 03 fluorescent color changers and EncapSulite MT70 luminaires. The Cyclo 03 is an RGB T5 fluorescent color changer capable of generating nearly all colors or white light of any color temperature.
“Much of the lighting undertaken in Liverpool is to Heritage listed buildings, making the use of color very restricted,” Graham comments. “This structure gave us the opportunity to inject some color to the lighting in Liverpool in an appropriate and exciting manner. We also wanted to use dynamic / changing light and integrate some fun and drama by making this interactive.”
Seven IP65 rated Cyclo 03 fluorescents (54 W), mounted under the perforated steel floor, and six EncapSulite MT70 luminaires operate via a Pharos control system. Architen Landrel was employed as the technical coordinator for the project and was commissioned to design, supply and program the lighting control system.
“As this was an existing installation and a bridge over a dock basin, it did present some practical and health and safety issues that needed to be overcome,” Graham explains. “For example, the installation had to reuse existing fixing locations or clamp to the structure ensuring that the structural integrity of the bridge was maintained. There are also plans for the bridge to be raised to accommodate boats when the canal link opens. This also had to be taken into account ensuring luminaires were only placed in a zone where modifications to the bridge would not impact upon them. The budget was also limited. Together with the help of the contractor, we have achieved a very successful scheme for a very reasonable budget.”
Simple installation of the Cyclo fixtures was welcome considering the awkward location. “The Martin fixtures were popular with the contractor,” Graham says. “Using the Martin HO 54W tubes enabled us to produce a scheme that would otherwise have needed more luminaires to achieve acceptable levels. This would have been more expensive and more problematic to install. It would also have impacted on the drama of the scheme, which is reinforced by the pattern of light and dark on the floor of the bridge. This contrast is achieved because we are using only a few luminaires — a definite case of less is more.”
The scheme incorporates a short dynamic lighting sequence triggered by pedestrians when the bridge is entered at either end. The dynamic sequence interrupts a slow and gentle sequence that runs at other times. The scheme is also programmed to respond to changing tides or the timetable of visiting cruise liners.
The luminaires are all well-shielded with some points of light visible from certain views that add a magical sparkle — however, from most viewpoints the luminaires are not visible at all — the perforated steel structure picking up the light and glowing along with light reflecting from the water below.
Graham would like to recognize the contractor, WT Jenkins of Liverpool and Christopher Rowell at Architen Landrell.
The Princes Dock Footbridge lighting scheme was funded by NWDA (North West Development Agency) and the Merseyside Waterfront. The city’s development includes the new Leeds to Liverpool Canal link, which will pass underneath the bridge, and a recently opened cruise liner facility. As such, when the development work at Princes Dock is complete, the Princes Dock Footbridge will become a gateway to Liverpool for visitors arriving on trans-Atlantic cruise liners.
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For information, please visit www.martin-architectural.com.
