Monodraught delivers natural light for healthcare

Monodraught has installed its Sunpipe natural daylight systems in various hospitals over the last ten years, offering health benefits for occupants.

Tony Cull, managing director, discusses the health benefits and the important cost benefits of natural lighting technologies.

Scientific studies conducted in the healthcare sector support the conclusion that natural daylight shortens patient recovery times, improves their mood and generally promotes well being.

SAD and S-SAD are said to affect 20 per cent of the population due to a lack of natural daylight, who are known to respond to the hormone serotonin, whose production is triggered by natural daylight.

Monodraught Sunpipe is increasingly being specified to deliver natural light in hospital wards to assist in patient recovery by increasing the awareness of changes in the daylight entering their rooms.

Sunpipes achieve a more effective solution than traditional rooflights because their super reflective tube intensifies and reflects natural daylight to deliver free outdoor light to the wards below.

Unlike the 'shaft effect' experienced with rooflights, the natural daylight from Sunpipe is evenly diffused by a translucent ceiling fixture, usually with less than 5 per cent light loss from rooftop to diffuser.

This compares favourably with a typical rooflight shaft where as much as 50 per cent of the light captured at rooftop level is absorbed by the white painted walls of these shafts, resulting in a relatively narrow area of natural daylight below ceiling level.

The omni-directional Monodraught Sunpipe Diamond domes capture light from all directions, and the resulting diffused light bounces down into the wards or rooms below.

Sunpipe natural daylight systems also address the problem of growing energy consumption, as they eliminate the need to use electric lighting during daylight hours.

Monodraught estimates that cost savings can result in a 5 to 6 year pay-back period in addition to the considerable health benefits experienced due to the much improved patient environment.

Sunpipes also require little or no maintenance outside the building, saving even more on costs.

The unbreakable diamond shaped dome is made of 4mm UV-protected polycarbonate and is designed to ensure that dust and dirt is washed off naturally by rainwater.

Internal ceiling diffusers require no maintenance.

The Sunpipes' highly effective sealing system prevents dust, dirt, rain, condensation and heat loss, and the units are guaranteed for 10 years with an expected lifetime of 35 years.

The installation and application of Sunpipes is extremely flexible as there is virtually no limit to the length or size of Sunpipe that can be installed.

Using a combination of elbows and connections, natural daylight can be reflected horizontally or vertically with an incremental loss of intensity of approximately 3 per cent per metre length.

This enables Sunpipes to take light wherever it is required, even into basements.

The range of ten different size models is fully supported by the Monodraught design and installation service.

Sunpipe is a registered trademark owned by Monodraught.

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