Local CU Phosco P852s

Phosco's diminutive P852 LED lantern started being installed in Derbyshire towards the end of 2014. By then, the UK market for LED lanterns was very well saturated; a very different picture from only a few years prior to this, when LED lanterns were still relatively uncommon. Quickly, the P852 became Derbyshire's commonest lantern (on residential roads, at least); taking the crown from Thorn's Beta 5 SOX lantern, which it had held for nearly forty years.

This example is mounted to a 5 m tubular steel column in the village of Dalbury Lees.

A SELC / Westire AcRo one-part NEMA photocell is fitted here.

Two slots exist either side of the LED cluster, in order to assist with heat dissipation.

Nearby, another example exists, although as this is mounted to an Electricity Company conductor support pole, it is installed on a side-entry bracket.

A small strip is fixed to the front of this lantern, in order to reduce the amount of light being cast forward into the windows of neighbouring properties - my 'somewhat' warped mind makes me think of this addition as resembling a false moustache! Notice that, although the bracket spigot is powder coated, the actual lantern is finished in its natural unpainted aluminium (though powder-coated lanterns are also produced to individual requirements).

A couple of new 6 m columns topped with P852s were installed as part of a new housing development in Middleton-by-Wirksworth in early 2015.

The Royce Thompson Oasis 2000 photocell blended in rather harmoniously with the surrounding sky!

This image demonstrates the slim profile of the lantern - it is not much wider than the 76 mm diameter shaft of the column. Yes, the column is leaning; it's not an optical illusion! This issue would be remedied prior to the lighting being adopted by the Local Authority - the column would also require painting and numbering before then.

The left-hand image below reveals the fins that are cast into the top of the lantern canopy; again, as a means of dissipating heat away from the temperature-sensitive LED cluster. The right-hand image shows the narrow matrix consisting of 12 LEDs, each with their own individual lens. In a somewhat unusual move for a European lantern, the lantern's power rating (16 Watt) is displayed on the column spigot adaptor.

This P852 in Hadfield was fitted in place of a Philips 'Streetfighter' SGS 101 lantern. As the installation is located on a footpath, a mid-hinged column is provided, for ease of maintenance.

This view demonstrates the method by which the lantern attaches to the column, along with the means of adjusting the tilt. Again, an AcRo photocell is employed. This cell was replaced with a Charles Endirect CELxcelLP CEX1000 unit in September 2022, owing to an intermittent fault that had developed.

This P852 is installed on a 6 m column on the Heanor Gate industrial estate; the additional mounting height making the lantern seem particularly tiny from ground level.

This lantern is has a power consumption of 25 W, meaning that the LEDs will be driven at a slightly higher running current and will therefore emit more light.

Following real-world testing, Phosco made a slight revision to the P852's design in early 2018. This saw the addition of a small drainage plug at the lowest portion of the lantern body. This example on a footpath is just such a type.

Along with the official Phosco label, a larger label is also present - this allows the lantern's exact credentials to be viewed from ground level. The various parts of the code translate as: C = CU Phosco, 13 = Wattage, P5 = Designed to meet a P5 lighting class, and D = dimmed output after 21:30 (75%) and again after midnight (50%). Another Oasis 2000 photocell, this time, set at 20 Lux (though, in reality, this seems to be set considerably higher) photocell is employed.

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