
BENGALURU: An environment-friendly initiative by the Rail Wheel Factory (RWF) in Yelahanka has ensured bright illumination round-the-clock across the floor of this spacious factory. It manufactures wheels, axles and wheel sets for Indian Railways and international customers.
The factory has started reaping the benefits of a pilot project initiated three months ago. An innovative step introduced here was to tap direct sunlight using a Piped Daylighting System, said GM, RWF, Chandra Vir Raman.
Sharing details with the TNIE, Raman said.
"The working principle of the Piped Daylighting System is quite simple. The system has a reflective system connected to a sunlight collector which helps transmit natural light or sunlight over longer distances. At the end of the light pipe, a light diffuser is placed which diffuses natural light/sunlight to all interior spaces."
The system's main components are a Sunlight Collector Dome, an Aluminum light pipe and a sunlight diffuser dome. The system uses a diffuser dome with a diameter of 500 mm.
"Since sunlight is abundantly available almost throughout the year in Bengaluru, it was decided to explore the installation of this system to increase illumination in the shop floor," the GM said. The system was installed in RWF in October 2024.
The advantage of the system is that it consumes Zero energy & requires no cabling for installation. Hence it can be provided in remote locations like the Mould Repair Shop and Lime Storage Shed, which are relatively darker areas of RWF and needs more illumination during day time. "They are relatively easy to install for a fraction of the cost of conventional lights, Each unit of Piped Daylighting system is priced around Rs 25,000. This is a very nominal cost compared to the lifetime savings in electrical energy use," explained Raman.
Savings in Energy:
A total of 10 electrical fittings, each having a rating of 110W have been supplemented with 12 lighting systems. "Assuming an average 10 hours of daylight availability, these units can substitute for 11000 Wh or 11KWh/units resulting in an average saving of Rs 70 per day. Over the course of an entire year, these savings would amount to approximately Rs 20,000," the GM said.
While the savings appear to be small, the system can be scaled up with suitable adaptations to cover the entire plant resulting in savings at scale.