*3.1. Base Case: the EVR of a Traditional Design in the City of Rotterdam*

The base case for the design is the currently dominant existing system. The chosen lamppost for this base case is the "Kegeltop", on a 4 m aluminium pole. This luminaire is one of the most used ones in residential streets in the Netherlands and is a well-known design.

The Functional Unit (FU) of the analysis is: (1) one street, 1200 × 20 m (2) one year with a light level according to regulations (minimum of 3 lux at street level and a uniformity rate of at least 25%). The life span of a lamp post system is set to 40 years. The life span of PV cells is assumed to be 20 years.

The Total Costs of Ownership (TCO) of the base case comprises:

• Manufacturing and installation costs. These costs include the purchasing costs of the pole and luminaire and the working hours and administration costs of the installation process. Creating a grid connection, digging for cables and the pole are expensive: about 55% of the installing costs. Purchasing the pole and luminaire is the other 45%.


The TCO of the base case is depicted in Figure 9.

**Figure 9.** Costs (Total Costs of Ownership, TCO) for lighting: one street for one year of the base case.

The eco-costs of lighting system is depicted in Figure 10. Not all issues of the TCO have relevant eco-costs: administration and technical management consist out of labour, which is usually not part of an LCA. Maintenance does require some car kilometres to be driven, but that can be neglected in the LCA. The eco-costs of the energy consumption are highest together with the eco-costs of manufacturing. The eco-costs of the End of Life phase are negative since the material of the pole (aluminium) is reused in the circular business model of the contractor.

**Figure 10.** Eco-costs costs for lighting: one street for one year of the base case.

The costs, which represent the value, and eco-costs are plotted against each other in Figure 11. This graph shows which life cycle steps are most harmful for the environment and which steps are most expensive. The EVR ratio is highest after the manufacturing phase followed by the energy consumption, installation phase and technical and administration management.

**Figure 11.** The 2-dimensional representation of costs and eco-costs of the base case (one street, one year). The absolute EVR is provided at each point of the curve.

From this graph it can be concluded where improvements should be made. The 'manufacturing' and 'energy consumption' phase cause the biggest rise in eco-costs, so it makes sense to focus on these issues to reduce eco-costs in the design process. Costs can be saved mainly in 'installation', 'energy consumption', and 'technical and administration management'.
