Tridonic SceneCOM Evo DA2 Application Controllers Enable Smart Emergency Lighting Upgrade At Prestigious University
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At the New Cairo campus of The American University in Cairo (AUC), Aimex Egypt collaborated with Tridonic to accomplish a near-impossible task: upgrading the existing emergency lighting system to DALI-2 without altering the original wiring.
Founded in 1919, AUC is a leading educational institution in the Middle East. Its New Cairo campus, inaugurated in 2008, features 136 smart classrooms and 200 laboratories, all designed according to sustainable, eco-friendly campus principles. The architectural design integrates traditional Egyptian elements-such as *Mashrabiya* shading screens-with passive cooling systems to significantly reduce energy consumption. As a signatory to the UN's "Race to Zero" campaign, AUC has committed to achieving carbon neutrality and net-zero emissions by 2050.
To meet these sustainability goals and comply with strict safety standards (NFPA 101 and UL 924), the university initiated a modernization project for its emergency lighting system. Existing fluorescent fixtures were to be replaced with LED luminaires equipped with smart DALI-2 controllers. The project was initially viewed by the industry as an "impossible mission" because the university imposed a strict condition: no rewiring was permitted, ensuring that normal campus operations remained undisturbed.
Challenges
The campus covers a vast area, with a total cabling length of 7 kilometers spanning 12 building zones, making the emergency lighting modernization highly complex:
- Transition from Serial to DALI: There was a fundamental structural conflict between DALI's open bus architecture and the existing traditional wiring (RS-485 serial with terminal resistors). However, the university rejected any proposal to completely replace the cabling.
- Centralized Monitoring: The entire system required centralized monitoring and unified control of emergency lighting across the entire 7-kilometer campus from a single control room.
- Ensuring Cable Integrity: Before commissioning the new controllers, control cables and power cables had to be carefully separated to ensure circuit safety.
- Strict Standards: The system had to comply with NFPA 101 standards for means-of-egress lighting (escape route lighting) and UL 924 requirements (providing at least 90 minutes of illumination during a power outage).
Solution
Instead of rewiring the entire system, the engineering team disconnected the final terminating resistor in the serial loop and installed only a minimal amount of additional cabling within the vertical shafts. This approach allowed the existing legacy infrastructure to be segmented into controllable DALI lines, with each segment supporting up to 64 devices.
"By selecting an eight-core fiber optic cable, we ensured the campus system is future-proof: the backbone offers ample capacity for the future integration of building systems such as HVAC or security technology." - Mohamed Kamel, Project Manager at Aimex Egypt
To ensure secure data transmission, project partner Aimex installed an eight-core fiber optic backbone network within the university's existing utility tunnels. This network now connects 20 Tridonic sceneCOM evo DA2 controllers, enabling precise control and monitoring of 1,100 LED emergency exit signs that meet European energy efficiency (EEC) standards.
The Tridonic sceneCOM evo DA2 controllers feature an intuitive traffic-light status indicator system, providing facility management teams with real-time, detailed operational data. This solution allows the American University in Cairo to achieve maximum reliability while minimizing maintenance costs.
On March 9, 2026, Tridonic won the International DALI Lighting Award in the "Best Emergency Lighting Integration" category for this project.
Products Used
- Standalone DALI-2 Master application controller
- Independent lighting control supporting up to 192 DALI control devices across 3 DALI lines
- Compatible with DALI MSensor G3 and XC G3 DALI-2 devices
- Simple configuration via web interface
- Supports cross-DALI-loop linked control
- Functionality expandable via software licenses
- Built-in automatic detection, scheduled testing, and monitoring for DALI emergency lighting (number of emergency devices depends on activated licenses)
- Compliant with IEC 62034 standard
- 5-year secure firmware update service from the date of purchase
- 5-year warranty
About Gainer LED:
Gainer LED was established in 2012. The company focuses on providing advanced technology solutions for medium and high power general lighting, special lighting and high-end display fields. Its products are widely used in commercial lighting, industrial lighting, smart buildings and professional display screens. Relying on a global marketing network and professional technical service system, Gainer LED continues to provide global customers with high-performance lighting products that meet international standards and fully meet the diverse needs of the market.
For more customer service needs, please contact us:
- Phone: +8615818679054
- Tel : +86-755-27835429
- Email: info@gainer-led.com
