Local GEC 'Nightwatch' Z9536 (aka WRTL SRL 55)s

The Z9536 was a popular lantern here in the late 1970s and through the 1980s. Occasional new examples appeared in the 1990s (under the GEC, OSRAM, Siemens and WRTL badges) but by then, the Thorn Beta 2 was taking over as the preferred 55 Watt SOX lantern.

'Z9536' is the GEC 'family' name; though most examples here are in fact the Z9538 which is the gear-in-head, side entry version.

This Z9538 is located on Catterick Drive in Mickleover. The column would originally have been fitted with a 125 Watt MBF Thorn Beta 7.

The same lantern at night looking the other way.

This Z9536 is located under the A52 bridge on Willowcroft Rd in Spondon. It was installed by Jeremy in 1989.

This OSRAM-badged Z9536 was installed towards the end of 2004; again by Jeremy. The column had been installed with an XGS 103 shortly before - being 6 m, this lantern was really not bright enough and so when two spare Z9536s were found in a storeroom at the council's lighting depot, one was installed in place of the XGS 103. A Royce Thompson P42 was used and a one-piece Transtar ballast, ignitor and capacitor unit was fitted in the base. The other Z9536 ended up in my collection.

The following pictures document a damaged Z9538 that I spotted on Hedingham Way in Mickleover on the 5th January 2005; I happened to be walking past the column and noticed that the lantern was missing:

Only a small section of the lantern's canopy remained attached - ironically, this would be because the grub screws had rusted and seized solid to the bracket, preventing this piece of the canopy from detaching when the rest did!

I pictured the column number, with a view to reporting the fault later, but then spotted the remains of the lantern on the verge behind.

The lamp was the worst casualty, having been broken into several pieces. I did consider keeping the lantern parts for spares, but in the end, decided against it.

The bowl was nearby, with only a small amount of damage to its front end.

I telephoned the fault through to Derby City Council's Street Lighting department, and within a few minutes, one of the platform vans turned up, manned by electrician Amrik.

After checking and isolating the supply (surprisingly, the cut-out fuse hadn't blown), Amrik proceeded to head up to remove the stuck remains of the old lantern.

The lantern stump had to be hammered away.

Amrik had taken a new Beta 2 up with him, and fitted it as part of his emergency call-out.

With the lantern wired up, the gear tray was hinged closed and secured.

The Royce Thompson Monostar 1000 employed on the old lantern had survived the fall, and was re-used in the Beta 2. With the fuse carrier reinserted, and a lamp fitted, the lantern sprang into life. Amrik added the bowl, and the repair was complete.

The lantern was lit for a few seconds after the bowl had been attached, but the cell then set and extinguished the lamp.

Work completed, Amrik filled in the job sheet, and headed off down the road.

I checked that the Beta 2 was working that evening and it certainly was!

The column was removed on Saturday, 2nd October 2010, following a relighting of Hedingham Way as part of the Derby Street Lighting PFI. The Beta 2 was, therefore, installed for 299 weeks, three days; 2096 days or 50,304 hours (and I counted every single one of them).

Another of the Hedingham Way columns was damaged in 2005, but in early April. A sizeable gouge was left in the grass verge on the approach to the column by the vehicle that hit it.

The main shaft of the column has twisted from the impact, causing the bracket to point at a very strange angle. This time, there was no sign of the fallen Z9538.

A burnt ballast, possibly from an old Z9539, was found in undergrowth adjacent Wilson Close in Mickleover in July 2007.

Part of the internal coil is visible through a hole in the ballast's casing.

The ballast's rear section is missing completely - notice the lack of fixing holes.

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