The existing floodlighting at Durham Cathedral and Castle, installed in the 1960s, had reached the end of its serviceable life and the lamps and control gear were no longer energy efficient. Therefore it needed replacing, using modern equipment.
So a competition was launched to redesign the exterior (a World Heritage Site (WHS)) was organised by Durham County Council, Durham City Vision, Durham University, WHS Coordinating Committee and the Institution of Lighting Professionals.
In February 2013, after three years of work the Cathedral's lights were switched on. The scheme is designed to make an impact whether viewed close up or from far away with the design developing significantly in between SLDS being announced as winner of the competition to completion of the scheme, and it ended up being 100 per cent LED.
