Scene-setting lighting controls from Ex-Or, the managed lighting specialists, have been chosen for The Royal Yacht Britannia, now permanently berthed at Ocean Terminal in Leith, Edinburgh.
SceneSelect II, Ex-Or’s scene-setting and dimming system, is in operation on the yacht’s newly refurbished Royal Deck and provides a selection of pre-set lighting scenes configured to match the requirements of the activities taking place there.
During the day the Royal Deck is a restaurant for the many visitors to The Royal Yacht Britannia which is an award-winning visitor attraction. In the evenings, Britannia is an exclusive corporate event venue and the Royal Deck is a flexible function space, which can be used for corporate dinners and drinks receptions, as well as after-dinner entertainment.
Derek Miller, who heads up maintenance and security on The Royal Yacht Britannia, said that Ex-Or SceneSelect II allows them to create and recall custom pre-set scenes. Once the lighting is set up in the area for a particular activity, the combination of lighting levels is saved as a pre-set scene. They can then switch between different pre-sets at the touch of a button.
“SceneSelect II has only just been installed and we have four settings so far, but there is scope for others as we expand the use of the Royal Deck in the months to come,” said Mr Miller.
“At the moment there is a 100 per cent lit function which is used for cleaning and maintenance when the deck is not being used. Other lit scenes we have created allow for differing light levels for day-time and evening dining.
“Another scene has been created for dances, where the light levels differ between the perimeter of the deck, where guests are at their tables, and in the centre where they are dancing. SceneSelect is proving easy to set up, and once the lit scenes have been programmed, they can be recalled at the simple touch of a button.”
Launched in 1953 in Clydebank and 125 meters long, The Royal Yacht Britannia was furnished entirely to the Queen and Prince Philips’s personal tastes. With a full complement of 300 Royal Yachtsmen and Royal Household staff, Britannia helped make the Queen the most travelled monarch the world has ever known. It was the honeymoon sanctuary for four Royal couples during its many years’ service.
In addition to its ability to be easily reprogrammed to suit new requirements, Ex-Or SceneSelect II offers increased lamp life: its soft-start and surge-limiting voltage-regulation technologies protect lamps from high inrush currents and power surges. It helps save energy, as lighting can be adjusted according to ambient light levels or set to automatically switch off when areas are not in use.
SceneSelect II was specified and installed aboard The Royal Yacht Britannia by engineers Ramboll Whitbybird of Edinburgh and Glasgow. The Royal Yacht Britannia plans to have more Ex-Or lighting management systems and controls installed in other parts of the ship in the future.