When choosing floodlights for your sports pitch, did you know that there are different types of lighting masts available for your floodlights to be mounted on? Having the right type of mast is vital for ensuring that your floodlights are safe and meet the requirements of your project.
These requirements might be:
Common Lighting Mast Types
Raise and lower
These are the most-commonly used masts for projects undertaken by Halliday Lighting.
The masts we use are uniquely manufactured for Halliday Lighting and are available in different gauges and heights. This allows us to recommend them for a broad-range of sports pitches and facilities.
Halliday Lighting raise and lower masts are base-hinged which means they can be easily and safely operated by trained personnel using a hydraulic mechanism during installation or when maintenance, cleaning or other work needs to be carried out.
Other raise and lower masts may be mid-hinged and different lowering mechanisms, such as a winch, are also available.
Raise and lower masts eliminate the need to work at height on floodlights and therefore also remove the need for access plant such as a cherry picker or crane. This can save time and money and provides more flexibility when arranging site access.
Telescopic
For projects with aesthetic requirements, either due to planning or the preference of the client, then telescopic masts can be the ideal solution.
They are raised and lowered using pneumatic air pressure for a smooth and quiet operation that takes just a few minutes. As they can be lowered easily and quickly, the visual impact of having a floodlit facility is limited to when the lights are extended for use.
Static
As a basic lighting mast solution, static masts require access plant when the floodlights are installed or when they need to be maintained. Unit costs are marginally less than other mast options but when you consider the additional plant requirements needed for install and maintenance, the cost-saving then tends to be negated.
Other factors to consider
Mast height
The correct mast height ensures optimum aiming elevation of the floodlights to give consistent light levels across your pitch. A proposed mast height takes into consideration the pitch size, required light level, and distance of the masts from the pitch side.
Carrying capability
Depending on the number of floodlights and their associated weight and wind-area, different masts will be able to safely accommodate a certain number of light fittings.
Number of masts
A sports pitch will usually have 4, 6 or 8 masts dependent on lighting design, pitch size and site requirements.
Whilst we hope that this article gives you an overview of what’s available when it comes to lighting masts, don’t let the detail bog you down when selecting lights for your sports pitches or courts.
Our experienced design team are available to help guide you through the process of choosing the right products for your facility. They have worked on thousands of projects ensuring that the correct system is designed and installed for the facility.
To send us a sports lighting enquiry for your project, click here.
