Business customers pay a regular fee for Philips to handle their entire lighting service – design, equipment, installation, maintenance and upgrades – only paying for light consumed – the ‘lux’. The long term plan is for it to be available for everyone. The bespoke system saves upfront costs associated with installing energy-saving lighting. By planning for longevity rather than a ‘fit and forget’ approach, it provides the most efficient and cheapest lighting possible – which encourages the uptake of energy-saving lighting. At the end of the contract, products can be returned to the production process again, reusing the raw materials, optimising recycling and reducing waste. The metro system in Washington DC was one of the first to sign up for this model, alongside the UK’s National Union of Students and the Netherlands’ RAU Architects