A practical approach to emergency lighting for energy-efficient buildings
17 February 2026
Marcus Walsh, Director at Ventilux, examines how tightening building performance standards and whole-life cost considerations are driving a shift towards central battery emergency lighting with DALI control as part of integrated electrical and building management strategies.
Building performance standards continue to tighten, with clients placing greater emphasis on whole-life cost and operational efficiency. As a result, emergency lighting is increasingly assessed as part of the overall electrical and control strategy rather than as a stand-alone safety system. For consultants, contractors and facilities managers, this has driven renewed interest in central battery systems, which combine centralised emergency power with digital addressing and monitoring of every luminaire on the system.
In a conventional self-contained arrangement, each emergency fitting includes its own battery and charging circuitry, resulting in a large number of individual components drawing standby power continuously.
From an energy and maintenance perspective, this can become significant over the lifespan of a building. With a central battery system, charging is managed centrally and more efficiently, reducing cumulative standby load and simplifying ongoing servicing requirements.
DALI control adds a further layer of operational and commissioning benefits. Each luminaire is individually addressable, allowing automated functional and duration tests to be scheduled and logged without manual intervention. Test results and fault data can be accessed remotely, reducing site visits and enabling maintenance teams to plan targeted interventions rather than reactive inspections across entire floors or buildings.
This shift reflects how emergency lighting is now being specified as part of coordinated building systems. For specifiers and contractors, the advantage of DALI central battery lies in bringing emergency lighting into the same digital environment as the rest of the lighting and controls infrastructure. This improves commissioning, simplifies compliance reporting and reduces operational costs over the life of the installation.
From a design perspective, central battery architectures provide greater flexibility when layouts change. Because luminaires are not dependent on integral batteries, fittings can be replaced or upgraded without the constraints of battery compatibility, while addressing and grouping can be modified through software rather than physical rewiring. This is particularly relevant in education, healthcare and commercial buildings where space usage often evolves over time.
Integration with building management systems is another factor influencing system selection. DALI gateways allow emergency lighting status, test results and fault alerts to be viewed within the same interface as other building services, supporting a more coordinated approach to maintenance and energy monitoring. For facilities managers, this improves visibility and reduces the administrative burden associated with statutory testing records.
Installation and maintenance considerations are also central to energy and sustainability targets. Fewer individual batteries mean reduced material usage and lower replacement volumes over the system lifecycle, supporting embodied carbon reduction strategies and simplifying waste handling. Centralised battery maintenance also reduces the need for repeated access to ceiling voids or occupied spaces, improving efficiency for service contractors.
When clients look beyond capital cost and begin assessing energy use, maintenance time and replacement cycles, central battery with DALI control consistently performs well. The approach is not solely about compliance, but about delivering measurable operational efficiencies.
As emergency lighting becomes more closely aligned with broader building performance objectives, central battery systems offer a practical route to improving energy efficiency, maintenance productivity and system transparency. For project teams seeking solutions that support both regulatory compliance and long-term operational value, centralised, digitally monitored emergency lighting is increasingly specified as part of an integrated electrical strategy.
At Ventilux, emergency lighting systems are developed with a focus on compliance, control integration and lifecycle performance, supporting consultants, contractors and facilities managers in delivering buildings that meet both safety requirements and energy efficiency targets.
