Specialist Areas

LDP’s award winning group of passionate lighting and electrical designers and engineers are very accomplished at providing environmentally sustainable and highly considered design solutions for all aspects of unique or varied landscape and city beautification projects.

While working alongside the artists, landscape architects, planners and other designers, LDP help develop interesting, enticing and safety enhanced useful spaces that utilise best practice lighting principles and a whole of life value proposition.

LDP’s design inputs are very considerate to the art form and cultural aspects and always strive to help subtlety create the appropriate ambiance of a space, be it, cities’ main streetscapes, artistic sculptures and works, interactional community and family landscaped areas or to enhance structural elements such as bridges or building facades, other community congregational spaces or areas of significance.

As a society we must be conscious and extremely considerate of the pivotal relationship we play between all living things and their environment and the positive or negative impact, effect and influence we can have on the animal and plant life of a particular region or habitat.

Light pollution can effect individual species of biota which in-turn may affect the ecology within the region.

Where two species occupy an identical niche, the population frequency of each species may be changed by the introduction of artificial light, if they are not equally affected by light at night. For example; some species of spiders avoid lit areas, while other species are happy to build their spider web directly on a lamp post. Since lamp posts attract many flying insects, the spiders that don’t mind light gain an advantage over the spiders that avoid it, and consequently become more dominant and then have the potential to upset the natural balance.

The rate of change between the species may then have knock-on effects, as the interactions between these species and others in the ecosystem are affected and food web feeding relationships are altered. These ripple effects can eventually affect even diurnal plants and animals. As an example; changes in the activity of night active insects can change the survival rates of night blooming plants, which may provide food or shelter for diurnal animals.

The LDP specialists are highly recognised and recommended in environmental circles and are often involved as experts in environmental hearings, where development projects boarder on sensitive ecological areas.

LDP’s experts work closely with ecologists to research practical methods to avoid, mitigate or minimise effects such as those illustrated in these examples;

NZ long-tailed Bat protection areas: LDP have worked with planners and ecologists to explore illumination levels that would be appropriate as to not affect the Bat population or mitigate the effects of streetlights and vehicle headlight sweep beaming into a protected area
Coastal nesting bird populations: Bird populations situated close to proposed expressways or highways. Care should be taken not to introduce light close to these nesting populations’ areas, as the light from road lights could attract unwanted pests or predators from nearby city or urban areas into the sensitive nesting area
Migratory birds can also be affected by high rise lighting or developments close to the shoreline. The birds can become disorientated, especially the juvenile, as migratory birds often travel in the hours of darkness to reduce dehydration
Indoor and Artificial habitat enclosures: From penguins and kiwis and even to lizards and the plants that make up an artificial habitat, the LDP team have vast and varied experience and specialist knowledge in helping create an as “close to nature” experience for the subject flora and fauna. The purpose and importance of a well-considered design is to optimise the habitat’s occupants’ health and wellbeing and to accurately simulate required night and day and the seasonal cycles and stimulus requirements and to also be able to respectfully align with potential visitor or observer interaction.
The effect that artificial light has upon organisms is highly variable. Light at night can be both beneficial and damaging for certain species and this may also differ during various seasons or cycles of the moon. As an example, humans benefit from using indoor artificial light to extend the time available for work and play, but the light disrupts the human circadian rhythm, and the resulting ongoing and cumulative impact can be quite damaging to one’s health and wellbeing.

The day-night cycle is the most powerful environmental behavioural signal. Almost all animals and living things can be categorised as nocturnal or diurnal. If a nocturnal species is only active in extreme dark, it will be unable to live in areas being influenced by artificially introduced light. The most acute affects are directly next to streetlights and lit buildings, but even the diffused light of skyglow can extend out to hundreds of kilometres away from city centres.

To ensure that our modern society doesn’t upset the ecosystem’s balance beyond its capability, the inclusion of LDP professionals and experts, within the greater planning and design team, can ensure a fully considered and necessary approach.

LDP specialists have vast experience offering professional services for all lighting related environmental effects. The team have advised on many projects of significance.

The team have written Assessments of Environmental Effects (AEE), Resource Consents (RC), both applications and review, along with evidence and attendance at Council and Environmental Court hearings, mediation and expert advice. The team has also been involved with Lighting Management Plans (LMP) and Construction Lighting Management Plans (CLMP). In addition, Preparation of Notice of Requirement (NOR).

The right mix of natural and artificial light within educational and learning environments is absolutely paramount in the efficiency, productiveness and pleasantness experienced by all that are using the space and being expected to perform, concentrate and be settled hour after hour, day after day.

Having the total lighting environment and inputs being skilfully and sympathetically designed, and also well considered for the various tasks and uses that each space is adapted to during each day, is the role of the LDP award winning specialist design team.

Sound scientific research confirms that these areas when properly lit, having had the mix, type and placement of the right lighting properly designed with the human needs at its core, reap the following benefits.

When designing for health, whether the design project is for an, aged care, retirement, private or general hospital the health and wellbeing of the staff and patients are of priority considerations. Considerations to medical professionals, patients and visitors is an important element to a successful lighting installation.

Light impacts human health and the ability to perform daily visual tasks. Light controls the body’s circadian system, affecting mood and perception, and by enabling critical chemical reactions in the body. Light can positively impact outcomes in healthcare. The quality of the visual environment has a positive effect on the occupant’s feeling of wellbeing and in the case of hospitals and healthcare buildings this can affect staff performance and patient recovery.