The gaslights are going out all over Europe

Replaced by LEDs

"A ninety per cent reduction in energy and costs isn't enough?" asked Heather Goldsmith.

The historic gas street lamps you see in ancient European cities like Berlin, Prague and Warsaw are to be lost. The iconic lights are to be snuffed out and replaced by energy-saving LED technology. It’s good for the environment, but some traditionalist have asked: are we chucking the baby out with the bathwater?

The technology upgrade comes courtesy of a solid-state retrofit designed by Berlin-based Braun Schaltgeräte & Service and their collaborators in LED, Future Lighting Solutions. The first eight LED models were recently installed on Berlin’s Alexanderplatz public square, slashing power consumption by more than 90 per cent. But did they also kill the atmopshere of one of europe’s most celebrated cities?
No, insists a spokesman. “We did not alter the old-world look or the light quality of the gas-driven fixtures,” he said.
One critic, however, begged to differ. “It’s no more realistic than those plastic real fire effect covers you used to see on electric heaters in the 70s. How many icebergs have they saved, by doing this? Was it all worth it?” asked John Burke, a visting artist from Rochester, Kent.
Braun claims its drop-in LED replacement modules replicate the distinctive golden glow of gas lighting with warm white Luxeon Rebel LEDs: “providing a beam colour that cannot be reproduced with cooler light sources like mercury vapour and sodium vapour,” says an official statement. “In addition to reducing energy bills, the LED lamps will last more than 50,000 hours compared to 4,000 for gas and an average 16,000 for standard electrical illumination. They will also improve colour rendering for better visibility of street signs and other objects,” the company claimed.
Engineers at Future Lighting Solutions, the supplier of Luxeon LEDs, provided the proof-of-concept and other technical support services. They created the optical modeling to help Braun develop an LED retrofit that would use the same four screw base sockets as the incandescent mantles in the existing gas lamps.
Have they neutralized the romance of this gaslit capital? Write and tell us.
Meanwhile, progress cannot be halted. Braun plans to market its ‘LED Gaslight’ throughout Europe, which has more than 100,000 gas lamps overall. The design already was rated top in a comparison of four vendors’ retrofit products for its replication of the color, brightness and light distribution of the gas originals, Braun claims.
Yes, but what were the others like?

Heather Goldsmith, the feisty marketing communications manager at Future Lighting Solutions, said the criticism was unfair. "So how many pints did the 'artist' have before he compared our case study to a faux feu?" she said.

"Ninety per cent reduction in energy and savings isnt enough for the artist? And as a Canadian , I am offended by his use of the word Iceberg!"

A detailed case study is available here