DYNAMICALLY ILLUMINATED LIVING WORLDS

As a central component of the product displays and atmospheric scene-setting, lighting in furniture stores has a special significance – as is the case at Segmüller. When building its latest branch in Pulheim near Cologne, the furniture giant considered the most flexible lighting design possible as paramount. This was achieved by means of a structured electrical installation as implemented by Wieland Electric throughout the building. The industrial, pre-assembled, plug and play components of the gesis system permit optimum planning, reliably calculable time and project flows, reliably calculable schedules and project flows, as well as maximum flexibility, from planning to installation through to continuous operation.

Light generally performs several functions in furniture stores: It provides orientation, puts displays in the spotlight and ideally creates a feel-good atmosphere that positively impacts the customer's dwell time and willingness to buy. Because fixtures and decor are in a constant state of flux in this area, the lighting design needs to be highly flexible. And so the requirements for the basic electrical installation, which must ensure that any adjustments can be made simply and quickly, are equally high.

To able to guarantee flexible lighting over an area of around 30,000 square meters, split over several floors, functional and easily installed solutions are needed for electrification. Furniture giant Segmüller was also aware of this when building its branch in Pulheim near Cologne. For the 230V infrastructure supply throughout the building, the owner therefore chose the modular installation system gesis from Wieland Electric. "We are impressed by the flexibility and simple handling and so will continue to rely on a future-proof system", says Reinhold Gütebier, Press Officer for the company. He knows what he's talking about, since the system has been used in all of the furniture dealer's new and renovated buildings since 2006.

Optimum calculability of time and costs

Especially for new builds, it is extremely important for both the owner and planner to be able to reliably estimate the time and cost frameworks. This is where the gesis system, thanks to its high degree of pre-assembly, comes into its own. The industrial pre-assembled components help achieve a smooth construction site operation, since installation is simple and quick. The connectors simply need to be plugged together, without cutting or stripping conductors – as would be the case with conventional wiring. The saves an enormous amount of time and guarantees an optimum level of workmanship. In addition it has a positive impact on the project as a whole.

Segmüller reaped the benefits of the high-degree of pre-assembly for the installation of the lighting department, for instance, where the finished wiring harnesses only had to be laid in the product carriers on the construction site. The modular gesis system offers a high-degree of planning freedom and flexibility. Even with building-specific deviations or expansions, the plug and play system allows quick and assured adjustment to new requirements.

Clear and safe installation

The project presented a challenge, not only for the furniture store planners, but for the electrical installation engineers too. Ultimately, over 46,000 Wieland components needed to be installed in the new Segmüller superstore. This includes around 20,000 assembled conductors, approximately 10 km gesis NRG flat cables with a cross section of 10 mm² and around 8 km of flat cables with a cross-section of 4mm² . Furthermore, 2,500 gesis RAN distribution boxes with fuses were positioned on the flat cables, which are responsible for the decentralized energy distribution.

Besides the simple pluggability of the system, the installation engineers also benefited from the mechanical coding of the gesis plugs. As a result, installation was extremely well arranged. Mismating and the associated loss of time for the installation were effectively avoided. Because, in addition, the interfaces to the installation and trade transitions – from the building installation to the equipment installation through to the product displays, were clearly defined, there was no coordination problems and the schedules for the Segmüller construction project were met without any problem. "Thanks to the simple handling of the gesis system, we were able to install all components systematically, clearly and flawlessly – in a short time as well", explains Mathias Künstler, Construction Manager of Schubert GmbH who were responsible for the electrical installation.

Simple handling in continuous operation

The modular construction and the simple handling of the gesis components pay off during course of large projects such as the Segmüller new build, not only in the planning and initial installation, as Robert Gerhäußer, Sales Manager Building Installation at Wieland Electric, explains: "With our gesis components, functionality, flexibility and sustainability are absolutely paramount. This enables us to provide clients, planners and installers with optimum support and even to enable changes and extensions to be made quickly and easily during ongoing operation.

It doesn't take a qualified electrician, for example, to replace lights in the showrooms. With the Segmüller new build, this means that employees themselves can make changes easily and quickly – by simply by unplugging and connecting a different light. The color coding of the connectors make is easy to see which light types can be attached to them. The use of GST18 multiple sockets even allows the sockets to be moved. And so the entire system can be installed quickly and without great effort to meet the requirements for different decor as the seasons change – even during operation.

Segmüller itself developed a customer-specific plug and play concept for connecting all display panels. Together with the shelfing-system manufacturer and Wieland, a solution was created where every panel is centrally supplied with power and can be replaced at any time within the display without the need for tools.

Summary

Modular installation systems come into their own wherever flexible lighting concepts are needed. Particularly flat cable systems such as the gesis NRG from Wieland Electric create huge scope for the lighting design, as branches can be mounted quickly and safely at arbitrary positions without cables needing to be interrupted. The industrial pre-assembly of the pluggable components also ensures a high degree of planning reliability, as well as simple and rapid installation – as with the new build of the Segmüller branch in Pulheim near Cologne, whose 230 V infrastructure supply is based entirely on Wieland Electric components. The specialist for pluggable installation technology from Bamberg also acts as a technical link and was able, drawing on its years of experience in the retail sector, to offer all those involved comprehensive support, from planning through to completion of the electrical installation.