Philips launches DimTone in the Middle East for the hospitality industry

Facility managers in the hospitality industry have long had to balance the creation of a warm and inviting atmosphere in spaces such as bars, restaurants, lobbies and conference rooms with demands to reduce energy consumption and implement financial savings.  Philips’ 7W GU10 MASTER LED lamp with DimTone has been developed to address these requirements, mindful of the need to provide a solution for spaces with high daily light burning hours while also retaining an inviting and intimate atmosphere for guests to enjoy. 

DimTone is a new dimming feature that not only reduces the amount of light when dimmed, but also reduces the color temperature. When dimmed, the light gets warmer to create an intimate atmosphere (a pleasant ‘sunset effect’); radiating a warm and soft light, similar to that produced by incandescent and halogen lamps. DimTone creates new possibilities for businesses such as hotels and restaurants, to create a natural and cozy atmosphere in spaces where this is needed, reminding guests of the ambience in their homes.  

With 24/7 operations, the hospitality industry is a sector with significant potential to make large energy savings. Lighting is one of the most impactful ways to do this - currently 42% of energy usage comes from lighting, of which 70% is inefficient. The DimTone LED lamp dimming feature provides a lighting solution which will improve the bottom-line and enhance guests’ comfort, surroundings and sense of well-being.   

Philips’ 7W GU10 MASTER LED lamp with DimTone has already been introduced in the Spar Hotel in Gothenburg, Sweden – replacing 130 50W Halogen GU10 lamps in the breakfast area of the hotel, reducing the cost of lighting this area by 82% with a pay-back of one and half years based on 12 burning hours a day. Alexander Pehrsson, property manager at Spar Hotel, which is part of the Bygg-Gota Group, commented: “At a hotel, it is important that the light creates a pleasant environment, which gives the guests a comforting feeling.  At the same time, our aim is to be cost efficient and reduce our environmental impact.  We switched to DimTone because we wanted to create a warm and inviting atmosphere, the halogen lamps often broke down, and we had very high energy consumption.” 

In addition to energy savings and innovative ambience creation possibilities, the 7W GU10 MASTER LED lamp with DimTone has a significantly longer life span than traditional lighting solutions, lasting 40,000 hours in comparison to a halogen lamp’s 2000 hours life span, thus reducing the need to replace spot lights and subsequently lowering maintenance costs.  

Paolo Cervini – General Manager of Philips Lighting Middle East & Turkey said: “Especially in the current economic climate, hospitality managers are under pressure to cut costs without compromising on their guests’ experience.  The 7W MASTER GU10 LED Lamp with DimTone offers allow hoteliers, bars and restaurant owners a light quality that is both soft and warm to create a natural and cozy ambience, while benefitting from the long life span and energy-saving features offered by LED technology.”