BMC to hire agency for DOOH field survey, proposes camera+sensors to monitor illumination
The civic body will also conduct a citizen survey before finalising the DOOH illumination rules
After toying with the idea to cap the illumination levels of all digital screens during the night at 3.2 Lux of the ambience light in the upcoming DOOH advertising policy, the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (BMC) has decided to appoint an agency which specialises in lighting to conduct a thorough study on “illuminance” first.
A decision in this regard was taken in a meeting held on July 16 chaired by Municipal Commissioner Ashwini Joshi. The name of the agency and timeline for such a survey have still not been determined yet.
BMC had earlier constituted a technical committee comprising professors of IIT and VJTI to frame guidelines. The committee has proposed a cap of 3.2 Lux.
Illuminance primarily means the measurement of the amount of light falling onto (illuminating) and spreading over a given surface area. Illuminance also correlates with how humans perceive the brightness of an illuminated area.
The agency is expected to conduct a field survey to measure the luminosity of the current hoardings. The survey will be supervised by committee members which include IIT Bombay experts, EY consultants and BMC officials. The data will be uploaded on a cloud-based platform.
The agency will also explore the feasibility of installing sensors and cameras to monitor the illumination of all DOOH screens across the city.
In a bid to make the policy more inclusive, BMC will also conduct a “citizens survey” before finalizing the illumination rules for digital screens in Mumbai.
While Mumbai doesn’t have any policy with regards to luminosity of outdoors screens, in many countries luminosity often varies from location to location and time of the day.
Sensors, placement and orientation of screens
BMC stipulates that hoardings should be equipped with ambient light sensors to dim or turn off the lights during curfew hours. BMC has already proposed that all DOOH boards will be turned off by 11 pm, every night.
Proper placement and orientation of digital screens will also be mandated to “minimise the glare”. Besides, BMC also plans a regular monitoring and adjustment of illumination
Digital screens often face criticism for their alleged adverse impact on drivers. To avoid any risk, BMC has banned video ads on roads and highways, capped luminosity and has proposed an automatic switch off for all DOOH at 11pm in Mumbai.
