Tender for LED floodlighting: content and text modules

Derive the lighting class according to DIN EN 12193 from the level of competition and state the corresponding values. Clarify beforehand whether your association requires more.

• Lighting class: I, II or III, derived from the planned use
• Maintained value: the average horizontal illuminance that must never be undershot. State explicitly that maintained values are meant, not initial values
• Maintenance factor: specify it uniformly for all quotes, otherwise the calculations cannot be compared
• Uniformity: with the ratio stated, in the modules Emin/Em
• Glare: highest GR value for the playing area
• Colour temperature and colour rendering: colour temperature in Kelvin and minimum Ra value
• Control: levels for training and competition, separately switchable sub-areas

According to licht.de, planners and operators agree on the maintenance factor and maintenance method at the start of planning. If no factor can be determined, licht.de gives 0.7 for outdoors as a reference.

Require a verifiable lighting calculation with the quote, produced with the light data of the luminaire offered, usually an LDT file. These details make calculations comparable:

• Number and location of luminaires, number of masts and mounting height
• Sport, lighting class and maintenance factor
• Average, minimum and maximum illuminance and the uniformity
• Highest GR value of the installation
• Total power in kW

For acceptance, require a measurement report. The association guide of the football associations of Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia specifies a measurement on a grid according to DIN EN 12193 with average, minimum and maximum values, uniformity, glare and total power; the operator receives the result in writing.

If houses are nearby, room brightening and glare at the point of immission belong in it, because GR says nothing about the neighbours. The benchmark is the guidance of the Bund/Länder-Arbeitsgemeinschaft Immissionsschutz.

For new masts, state the locations, ground conditions and access. For construction work, the VOB/A requires essential site conditions such as soil and water conditions to be described so that bidders can assess their effects. The mounting height results from the lighting calculation. For football, the association guide recommends 16 m for training and 18 to 20 m for competition facilities.

For existing masts, structural documents are usually missing, according to the association guide. Clarify before the tender who commissions the structural check. From the bidder you need the data the structural engineer calculates with:

• Number and weight of luminaires per mast
• Wind exposure area of the luminaires
• Weight and arrangement of the crossarms

State the wind zone of the location according to DIN EN 1991-1-4. For the calculation, the association guide also specifies an ice load of 3 cm. The structural stability verification is produced by a structural engineer or a testing company. Whether the installation needs a building permit, clarify early with the local building authority.

If the Kommunalrichtlinie is to fund the project, its conditions belong in the service specification. For floodlighting on sports facilities, the guideline and technical annex specify:

• Luminaire with replaceable module and ballast
• Correlated colour temperature generally at most 3000 K, in exceptional cases at most 4000 K if the sport requires it
• Minimum lifetime L80 of 50,000 operating hours according to the manufacturer
• Illuminance at most 30% above the value of the lighting class
• ULR of 0% for the whole installation
• Control suited to use, for example two levels for training and competition
• Design according to DIN EN 12193 by a qualified specialist planner

Under the Kommunalrichtlinie, no supply or construction contract may be concluded before the grant notice. You may already request quotes if the enquiry explicitly states: award and contract only if funding is approved. State programmes have their own rules, for example on the number of quotes.

Above the EU thresholds, § 31(6) VgV and § 7 EU(2) VOB/A (2026 edition) prohibit references to a particular production or origin, to property rights or types, if this favours or excludes certain companies or products and the subject of the contract does not justify it. A reference is permitted in exceptional cases only if the subject of the contract cannot otherwise be described precisely and comprehensibly enough, and then with the addition “or equivalent”.

§ 31(2) VgV and § 7a EU(2) VOB/A require the same addition when referring to standards. That is why it appears after DIN EN 12193 in the modules.

Below the thresholds, § 7(2) VOB/A for construction work and § 23(5) UVgO for supplies and services contain comparable rules. The UVgO applies only through regulations of the federal government and the states. Which regulation applies to your project depends on the type of contract, contract value and state law. Your procurement office clarifies this; the modules do not replace a procurement law review.

You fill in the square brackets for your project. Compare the values with the valid standard and your association’s requirements before publication.

• Scope: LED floodlighting installation for [number] pitch[es], pitch dimensions [length x width] m, [new build with new masts / conversion using existing masts].
• Use and class according to DIN EN 12193 or equivalent: [Class III, training, school and leisure sport / Class II, regional league play / Class I, national and international competitions].
• Average horizontal illuminance Eh as maintained value: at least [75 lx / 200 lx / 500 lx].
• Uniformity Emin/Em: at least [0.5 / 0.6 / 0.7].
• Glare rating: at most [GR 55 / GR 50 / GR 50].
• Maintenance factor for the lighting calculation: [value].
• Colour temperature: [value] K. Colour rendering: at least Ra [value].
• Control: [number] levels for training and competition, separately switchable in [sub-areas].

For higher leagues, replace the values with the association’s requirements. The 3. Liga statute, for example, requires at least 800 lx Ecam on average; new installations should reach 1,200 lx.

The values apply to outdoor tennis; the standard gives other values for indoor tennis halls.

• Scope: LED floodlighting installation for [number] tennis courts, dimensions of the area to be illuminated [length x width] m including run-off, [new build with new masts / conversion using existing masts].
• Use and class according to DIN EN 12193 or equivalent: [Class III, training, school and leisure sport / Class II, regional and local competitions / Class I, national and international competitions].
• Average horizontal illuminance Eh as maintained value: at least [200 lx / 300 lx / 500 lx].
• Uniformity Emin/Em: at least [0.6 / 0.7 / 0.7].
• Glare rating: at most [GR 55 / GR 50 / GR 50].
• Maintenance factor for the lighting calculation: [value].
• Colour temperature: [value] K. Colour rendering: at least Ra [value].
• Control: switchable per court, levels [values in lx].

According to licht.de, the illuminance may drop only slightly for a few metres beyond the sidelines, because play continues there. As a comfortable solution, licht.de gives a design for 500 lx with two switching levels at 300 lx and 200 lx.

The values apply to outdoor hockey. The uniformity of 0.7 applies in all three classes.

• Scope: LED floodlighting installation for [number] hockey pitch[es], pitch dimensions [length x width] m, [new build with new masts / conversion using existing masts].
• Use and class according to DIN EN 12193 or equivalent: [Class III, training, school and leisure sport / Class II, regional and local competitions / Class I, national and international competitions].
• Average horizontal illuminance Eh as maintained value: at least [200 lx / 200 lx / 500 lx].
• Uniformity Emin/Em: at least 0.7.
• Glare rating: at most [GR 55 / GR 50 / GR 50].
• Maintenance factor for the lighting calculation: [value].
• Colour temperature: [value] K. Colour rendering: at least Ra [value].
• Control: [number] levels for training and match play, separately switchable in [sub-areas].

For non-televised outdoor hockey, the world federation FIH recommends more: over 350 lx in its Class II and over 500 lx in Class I, in each case Emin/Em over 0.70, GR under 50, Ra over 65 and more than 4000 K. The Kommunalrichtlinie, by contrast, allows at most 4000 K. Clarify before fixing the specification what applies to your installation and your funding.

You add this part to every sport module. Delete what does not apply.

• Lighting calculation: A verifiable lighting calculation for the installation offered must be enclosed with the quote, produced with the light data of the luminaire offered as an LDT file or in an equivalent data format.
• Content of the lighting calculation: number and location of luminaires, number of masts, mounting height, maintenance factor, average, minimum and maximum illuminance, uniformity, highest GR value, total power in kW.
• Luminaire data: datasheet with power, luminous flux, colour temperature, colour rendering, lifetime, weight and wind exposure area.
• Neighbourhood: verification of room brightening and glare at the points of immission [designation] according to the LAI guidance.
• Acceptance: measurement report after completion, measurement on a grid according to DIN EN 12193 or equivalent, with average, minimum and maximum values, uniformity, glare and total power.
• New masts: [number] masts at the locations shown in the plan, mounting height [value] m, structural stability verification for mast and foundation, wind zone [value].
• Existing masts: [number] masts, structural stability inspection report dated [date]. The bidder states the weight and wind exposure area of luminaires and crossarms per mast.
• Funding: the technical requirements of the programme [name] apply. Award and contract only if funding is approved.