Hot-dip galvanized steel is the right material for road and highway poles. Aluminium is the right material at the coast, at ground level, and wherever the pole’s shape matters. Those two sentences answer most projects. The rest of this guide is about the cases where they are not enough, and about the details that decide whether a pole reaches year fifteen looking acceptable.

Artay Lighting fabricates galvanized steel poles, fabricates poles and bollards from extruded aluminium profile, and casts aluminium in its own die-cast foundry in Istanbul. We make all three, so the comparison below is not a case for the material we happen to sell.

What are street lighting poles actually made from?

Three materials cover almost the entire market. Hot-dip galvanized steel — steel sheet cut, rolled and welded into a conical or cylindrical shaft, then dipped in molten zinc. Extruded aluminium profile — aluminium alloy pushed through a die into tube, then cut and fabricated. Die-cast aluminium — alloy melted and injected into a mould to produce a shape rather than a section. A fourth, composite or GRP, exists in specialist use and is rare in general street lighting.

Most delivered poles combine two of them. A cast decorative base and a cast luminaire housing on a galvanized steel shaft is the single most common specification in decorative street lighting, because it puts the shape where people see it and the structure where the wind load is.

When is hot-dip galvanized steel the right choice?

Steel wins on structure and on price. It carries higher loads for less money than aluminium, which is why every 8-12 m road pole you see is steel. Galvanizing to EN ISO 1461 is not paint: the zinc metallurgically bonds to the steel and protects it sacrificially, so a scratch that exposes bare steel still does not rust at that point — the surrounding zinc corrodes first. Inland, that gives decades of service with no maintenance.

Steel is also the material that can be repaired in the field. A pole grazed by a vehicle can be straightened, and damaged galvanizing can be made good with a zinc-rich repair coating. Aluminium in the same situation is usually replaced.

One weakness matters most. Chloride: on the coast, zinc consumption accelerates, and the coating system has to be specified for that environment rather than assumed. This is the point at which aluminium usually becomes the better answer.

Project-specific work on a steel pole means changing height, diameter, wall thickness, arm geometry, door position or base plate pattern. All of these are cutting and rolling parameters, so there is no tooling cost and no minimum order.

When is aluminium the right choice?

Aluminium does not rely on a coating to survive. It forms its own oxide layer immediately, so its corrosion behaviour is different in kind from steel’s rather than simply better or worse. That is why it dominates three situations.

Coastal and marine sites. Promenades, marinas, island projects and anywhere carrying salt-laden air. This is the clearest case for aluminium and it is worth paying for.

Ground level. A bollard sits in the splash zone, takes irrigation water, de-icing salt and cleaning chemicals, and is the first thing a mower reaches. We do not make bollards from galvanized steel at all — every Artay bollard is aluminium, cast or fabricated from profile.

Where the shape matters. Extrusion produces a section; casting produces a form. If a project needs a fluted column, a base carrying a municipal emblem, or a housing profile matched to a facade, that shape has to be cast, and casting needs a die. Our foundry in Basaksehir casts in EN AC-46000 (AlSi9Cu3) alloy, which is why a project-specific form is routine work here rather than an exception.

Aluminium’s own weaknesses are honest ones: lower stiffness per section, higher material cost, and poorer behaviour under impact repair. For a 10 m arterial pole in an inland city, steel is simply the better engineering answer.

How is aluminium finished, and why does it decide the outcome?

This is the part of the specification that gets written as three words — “electrostatic powder coating” — and then decides how the product looks in year five.

Aluminium is never coated straight from the die or the extruder. Every part first goes through a chromate conversion pre-treatment: the surface is cleaned and a chromate conversion layer is formed on the metal. That layer does two jobs. It gives the coating something to key into, and it stops corrosion creeping underneath the film from the first stone chip or scratch. Electrostatic powder coating follows, applied dry and oven-cured.

Leave the pre-treatment out and a powder coat can look perfect for one season, then lift in sheets from a single scratch. It costs little, it is invisible in the finished product, and it is the step most suppliers never mention. When you compare quotations, ask which conversion coating is used — not just which paint.

Steel or aluminium: side by side

What happens where steel meets aluminium?

This is the failure almost nobody specifies against, and it is worth a paragraph of its own.

When two dissimilar metals are in contact and moisture is present, you have a galvanic cell: the less noble metal corrodes preferentially. A cast aluminium base bolted directly onto a galvanized steel shaft, or a stainless fastener through an aluminium flange, will corrode at the joint long before either component fails on its own — and it fails exactly where nobody inspects, at the base, under a cover.

The remedies are simple and cheap: isolate the two metals with a gasket or sleeve, choose fastener materials deliberately rather than by what is in the box, and keep the detail drained so water does not sit in the joint. Ask any supplier offering a mixed-material pole how they handle it. If the answer is vague, the joint has not been designed — it has been assembled.

Which material for which project?

Urban road or arterial, inland, volume quantities. Hot-dip galvanized steel, 8-12 m, specified to EN 40-5 with the wind-load calculation covering the foundation anchors.

Coastal promenade, marina, island. Aluminium, 4-6 m, with the chromate pre-treatment and coating warranty written for coastal conditions rather than a generic figure.

Park, plaza, pedestrian zone. Aluminium at 3-5 m, or aluminium bollards at 0.6-1.2 m. Close enough for people to touch, so finish quality is what will be judged.

Heritage street or a municipality that wants its own identity. Cast aluminium on a galvanized steel shaft, cast to your drawing, with the galvanic joint properly detailed. A new mould is a one-time 4,000-50,000 USD depending on part size, minimum order 1,000-2,000 units, first delivery 7-9 weeks from drawing approval, and every repeat order on that mould ships in 3 weeks with no further mould charge.

Distributor or private-label programme. Any of the above under OEM and private label agreements; we export to more than 33 countries and the mould, once cut, stays reserved for you.

Send a drawing, a 3D model, a photograph or a written specification to info@artaylighting.com and we will return a technical drawing with a wind-load calculation.

Five material mistakes that cost money

1. Specifying galvanized steel for bollards. Ground level is the harshest position on the site. Aluminium belongs there.
2. Buying a coating without asking about pre-treatment. The paint is not what fails; the interface underneath it is.
3. Mixing metals without isolating the joint. Galvanic corrosion at the base is a design decision, not bad luck.
4. Using an inland coating warranty on a coastal project. Ask for the warranty to be stated separately for chloride exposure, in writing.
5. Paying for a mould you do not need. If your specification differs from a catalogue only in numbers, that is a fabrication change with no tooling cost. Say so before anyone quotes a die.

Related guides

• What drives the cost of a lighting pole — what moves the price, what a quotation leaves out, and how to compare two of them.
• Coastal lighting poles — chloride, chromate pre-treatment and what changes in a seaside specification.
• Ancient cities collection — the fifty models named after ancient Anatolian settlements, with the site behind each name.
• Street lighting pole types — how to choose the right one for your project.
• Street lighting pole manufacturers in Turkey — what nine manufacturers publish about casting, standards and lead times.
• Street lighting poles — heights, galvanized steel and what a custom pole costs.
• Decorative lighting poles — styles and materials for parks, plazas and pedestrian zones.
• Outdoor lighting poles — types, heights and materials for any outdoor project.
• Street lighting poles for Iraq – what Ministry of Electricity specification D-13 requires, and why EN 40 alone is not an answer there.
• Lighting poles for Georgia – zero duty since 2008, diagonal cumulation with the EU, and what 2,435 mm of rain a year does to a pole.
• Lighting poles for Croatia – HRN EN editions, the exact date CE marking became mandatory, and designing for the bura.
• Lighting poles for Serbia – SRPS EN designations, CE alongside the domestic 3A mark, and a Serbian-language Declaration of Performance.
• Lighting poles for Kosovo – CE recognised in law, but duty on industrial goods is still being phased out.
• The EN 40 series explained – which part does what, which one carries CE marking, and what EN 40 leaves to other standards.
• Garden and landscape lighting — mounting heights, EN 13201 P classes and the obtrusive light zones that decide a park or garden scheme.

Specifying bollards? Bollard lights: how to choose and specify them — why they are aluminium and not galvanized steel, glare control at eye level, and which standard actually applies.

Street lighting poles fall into four families: conical and cylindrical steel poles, die-cast aluminium poles, extruded aluminium profile poles, and decorative and architectural poles. Which one your project needs is decided by three things in this order — the mounting height the lighting design calls for, the corrosion environment, and whether the form has to be unique to your project. Everything else is detail.

This guide covers each family, what it is genuinely good at, the standards that govern it, and what changes when you need a pole that is not in anyone’s catalogue. Artay Lighting has cast aluminium in its own die-cast foundry in Istanbul since 1999 and fabricates steel and extruded aluminium poles alongside it, so the comparisons below come from making all three rather than selling one.

What are the different types of street lighting poles?

The families are not interchangeable. A 10 m road pole is a structural component carrying wind load and a luminaire at the end of a lever arm; a 4 m plaza pole is largely an aesthetic decision with a modest structural requirement. Specifying a decorative pole where a road pole belongs is the single most expensive mistake in this category, because it usually surfaces after installation.

Which material should you specify: galvanized steel, die-cast aluminium, or extruded profile?

Hot-dip galvanized steel is the default for road and highway lighting and it deserves to be. It carries the highest loads for the lowest cost, it can be repaired in the field, and galvanizing to EN ISO 1461 gives decades of service inland. Its weaknesses are weight, and coastal chloride exposure where the coating system has to be specified carefully. Custom work on a steel pole means changing height, diameter, wall thickness, door position or bracket geometry – all cutting and rolling parameters, so there is no tooling cost and no minimum order. We have set out the head-to-head reasoning, with the zinc corrosion figures behind it, in aluminium or galvanized steel: which should you specify.

Extruded aluminium profile is the right answer on the coast and anywhere weight matters. Aluminium forms its own oxide layer, so corrosion behaviour is fundamentally different from steel rather than simply better. Profile poles are also cleaner-looking, which is why they dominate pedestrian zones and plazas. Custom work here means selecting section, wall thickness, height and finish; again no mould, no tooling charge. Artay buys in extruded profile – like most of this market, we do not run an extrusion press – and fabricates poles, luminaire bodies and bollards from it.

Die-cast aluminium is the only one of the three that can produce a shape. Casting melts alloy into a mould, so a base carrying a municipality’s emblem, a fluted column, a housing profile matched to a facade – none of these exist without a die. This is what our foundry in Basaksehir does, in EN AC-46000 (AlSi9Cu3) alloy, and it is the reason a project-specific form is normal work here rather than an exception. Custom work means exactly that: we cut the die. The trade-off is real and stated below.

Most real poles are a combination. A common and sensible specification is a cast aluminium decorative base and luminaire housing on a hot-dip galvanized steel shaft – the shape where it is seen, the structure where it is needed.

Can a street lighting pole be made to your own design?

Yes, and this is worth separating into two different questions, because suppliers answer them as if they were one.

Changing the dimensions of an existing pole – height, diameter, wall thickness, arm length, door position, base plate pattern, RAL colour – is available from almost any fabricator, ours included, with no tooling cost and no minimum order. If your specification differs from a catalogue only in numbers, say so and ask for a price; you should not be paying for a mould.

Changing the form itself is a different job. A shape that does not exist has to be cast, and casting needs a die. Send a technical drawing, a 3D model, or simply a photograph of a form you have seen somewhere, and we return a technical drawing with a wind-load calculation. If it is approved, we cut the die in our own tool shop.

Here are the figures, because almost nobody in this market publishes them. A new mould is a one-time cost of 4,000-50,000 USD depending on part size, and the tool then stays reserved for you. Minimum order on a new mould is 1,000-2,000 units. Cutting the die takes 4-6 weeks and series production a further 3 weeks, so a first delivery lands 7-9 weeks after drawing approval. Every repeat order on that mould ships in 3 weeks, with no further mould charge and no minimum – which is why the second project with a custom form is usually easier than a standard one.

If your quantity does not reach that minimum, say so early. In many cases the form you want can be achieved in fabricated steel or profile instead, and we will tell you that rather than sell you a die you do not need.

How is a steel lighting pole actually made?

A steel lighting pole begins as a flat plate, not as a tube. The plate is cut to a long tapering shape, folded into a cone on a press brake, closed with a single weld running its whole length, and only then galvanized. Almost every dimension a specifier writes into a tender – height, base and top diameter, wall thickness, door position – is fixed at the cutting stage, which is why changing those numbers carries no tooling cost while changing the material changes everything downstream.

A pole of a different height, or with its door on the other side, is a different cutting file and nothing more. This is the practical reason dimensional changes are quoted without a surcharge across this category, and it is worth knowing before accepting a supplier who prices them as custom work.

Folding is where a fabricated conical pole separates from a rolled tube. Both can meet the same wall thickness on paper, but the conical section puts material where the bending moment is highest and tapers it away where it is not, which is why conical poles reach useful heights at weights a parallel tube cannot match.

After welding, the base flange, the door frame and any bracket sockets are fitted, and the assembled shaft goes to hot-dip galvanizing to EN ISO 1461. Galvanizing before coating rather than after is not a preference – the zinc has to be applied to bare, pickled steel, and a pole painted first has to be stripped.

How do you choose the right pole height?

Height comes from the lighting design, not from the pole catalogue: the required illuminance and uniformity on the road surface, the road width, and the spacing the layout allows. As a working orientation before the calculation is done, pedestrian areas and park paths are normally lit from 3-5 m, residential streets and car parks from 4-6 m, urban roads from 6-8 m, main roads and arterials from 8-12 m.

Two things change with height and both are frequently missed. Wind load rises sharply, so the pole, the base plate and the foundation anchors all have to be verified together – EN 40-3-1 covers characteristic loads and EN 40-3-3 verification by calculation. And maintenance access changes: above roughly 10 m, relamping needs a platform, which belongs in the operating cost the tender is compared on.

Which standards govern street lighting poles?

The EN 40 series is the reference for lighting columns: EN 40-2 for dimensions and tolerances, EN 40-3-1 for characteristic loads, EN 40-3-3 for verification by calculation, EN 40-5 for steel columns and EN 40-6 for aluminium columns. Galvanizing is governed by EN ISO 1461, and luminaires by EN 60598-2-3. For Turkish municipal and TEDAS work, TEDAS type-project approval is the document that will be asked for.

Artay luminaires are CE marked, and our manufacturing is certified to TSE under TS EN 40 for lighting columns and to ISO 9001 for quality management. Ask us for the certificate with its scope and expiry, and ask every supplier the same – a certificate whose scope covers luminaires does not cover poles.

What else belongs in the specification?

Beyond type, material and height, five details decide whether a delivered pole causes problems. Bracket and mounting: side-entry arms and post-top spigots are not interchangeable, and the spigot diameter has to match the luminaire – 60 mm and 76 mm are the common sizes. Base type: flange-plate poles bolt onto a cast foundation and can be replaced after a vehicle impact; root-mounted poles are planted directly and are cheaper but harder to replace. Access door: position, size and lockability, plus the earthing point inside it. Coating: polyester powder over a properly prepared surface, with the film thickness and the warranty stated in writing – and stated separately for coastal and inland conditions. Cable entry and sealing, which is where water gets in when it is left to the installer to improvise.

All five are also where a pole can be tailored to a project without any tooling cost, which is worth remembering before anyone reaches for a custom mould.

Which pole type is right for your project?

Urban road or arterial, volume quantities. Conical hot-dip galvanized steel, 8-12 m, flange plate, single or double arm. Specify to EN 40-5 with the wind-load calculation covering the foundation anchors.

Coastal promenade, marina or island project. Extruded aluminium profile or cast aluminium, 4-6 m, with the coating system specified for chloride exposure and the warranty written for coastal conditions rather than a generic figure.

Park, plaza or pedestrian zone. Aluminium at 3-5 m, or bollards at 0.6-1.2 m where glare control matters more than reach. This is the family where decorative form usually earns its cost, because people are close enough to see it.

A heritage street, a signature square, or a municipality that wants its own identity. Die-cast aluminium on a galvanized steel shaft, cast to your drawing. This is the case the foundry exists for: an emblem in the base, a column profile matched to the architecture, a pole family unique to one city.

Distributor or private-label programme. Any of the above under OEM and private label agreements. We export to more than 33 countries and produce under other brands’ names as a matter of routine; the mould, once cut, stays reserved for you.

Send a drawing, a 3D model, a photograph or simply a written specification to info@artaylighting.com and we will come back with a technical drawing and a wind-load calculation.

Related guides

• What drives the cost of a lighting pole — what moves the price, what a quotation leaves out, and how to compare two of them.
• Coastal lighting poles — chloride, chromate pre-treatment and what changes in a seaside specification.
• OEM and private label manufacturing — mould cost, minimum order and repeat-order lead times.
• Ancient cities collection — the fifty models named after ancient Anatolian settlements, with the site behind each name.
• Street lighting poles — heights, galvanized steel and what a custom pole costs.
• Street lighting pole manufacturers in Turkey: how to compare them — what nine Turkish manufacturers publish about casting, standards and lead times.
• Decorative lighting poles — styles and materials for parks, plazas and pedestrian zones.
• Modern outdoor lighting poles — LED-ready designs for streets, parks and new developments.
• Outdoor lighting poles — types, heights and materials for any outdoor project.
• Modern lighting poles — design and material choices for public spaces.
• Street lighting poles for Iraq – what Ministry of Electricity specification D-13 requires, and why EN 40 alone is not an answer there.
• Lighting poles for Kuwait – why MEW/S-1 excludes street lighting columns, and what applies instead.
• Lighting poles for Greece – the ELOT technical specification a tender actually cites, CE marking and the A.TR certificate.
• Lighting poles for Croatia – HRN EN editions, the exact date CE marking became mandatory, and designing for the bura.
• Lighting poles for Serbia – SRPS EN designations, CE alongside the domestic 3A mark, and a Serbian-language Declaration of Performance.
• Lighting poles for Kosovo – CE recognised in law, but duty on industrial goods is still being phased out.
• Lighting poles for Moldova – the EN 40 series named by the energy regulator, and a 64-degree annual range.
• The EN 40 series explained – which part does what, which one carries CE marking, and what EN 40 leaves to other standards.

Specifying bollards? Bollard lights: how to choose and specify them — why they are aluminium and not galvanized steel, glare control at eye level, and which standard actually applies.

Steel or aluminium? Lighting pole materials: galvanized steel or aluminium — coastal performance, chromate pre-treatment, and what happens at the joint where the two metals meet.

Turkey has dozens of street lighting pole manufacturers, and their websites say almost identical things. Modern facilities. Quality production. Customer satisfaction. None of that helps a specifier choose. So in August 2026 we read what nine Turkish pole manufacturers publish about themselves — ourselves included — and compared them on the four things that actually change a project outcome: which metal process they run in-house, which standards they name, what they will build to a drawing, and what figures they are willing to state in public.

This page reports what we found in aggregate, and gives you the questions that separate suppliers faster than a catalogue does. We have not named the other companies: comparative claims naming competitors are restricted under Turkish advertising rules, and the useful findings here are about the industry, not about any one firm.

Disclosure: this is published by Artay Lighting, one of the nine manufacturers reviewed. Where we are the wrong supplier for a job, we say so below.

What does “manufacturer” actually mean for a lighting pole?

This is the question almost nobody asks during tendering, and it is the one that explains why two quotes for the same pole can differ by weeks and by thousands of dollars.

A lighting pole passes through up to four processes. Casting melts metal into a mould to create a shape. Extrusion pushes aluminium through a die to form tube. Fabrication cuts, bends and welds steel sheet and tube. Finishing covers hot-dip galvanizing and powder coating. A company can accurately call itself a manufacturer while performing only one of these and buying in the rest.

Across the nine manufacturers we reviewed, the pattern was consistent. Five describe fabrication only — cutting, welding, turning, coating and assembly. Their poles begin as bought-in steel sheet and tube. That is real manufacturing and it is the right process for most road and highway poles. One publishes aluminium extrusion, forming and rolling extruded alloy tube. Two publish no process detail at all, describing themselves as manufacturers without saying what they make in-house. One publishes a die-casting foundry — that is us.

Our own position is a combination, and this article is about precision so we will be precise about it. We cast — aluminium and zinc alloy, in our own die-cast foundry in Istanbul, since 1999. We do not extrude. Like most of this market we buy in extruded aluminium profile and fabricate from it: pole bodies, luminaire housings, bollards and decorative products. Steel shafts are fabricated and hot-dip galvanized to EN ISO 1461. So we run one primary metal process in-house and buy the other in, and which one your project needs depends entirely on whether its shape requires a mould.

Two of the nine publish a specific finishing capability of their own rather than subcontracting it, which is worth asking about: a galvanized finish is one of the most common sources of dispute on delivered poles, and a supplier who controls the bath controls the outcome.

Why the distinction matters in practice: a fabricator can change a pole’s height, diameter and wall thickness, because those are cutting and rolling parameters. Changing its shape — a cast base carrying a municipality’s emblem, a housing profile matched to a facade detail — requires a mould. If your supplier does not cut moulds, that shape has to come from someone else’s catalogue.

Which standards do Turkish pole manufacturers actually name?

Naming a standard in text is a low bar, and most of the nine did not clear it. Four publish no identifiable standard at all — some post certificate images with no text naming what they certify, which cannot be checked and should not be relied on.

The relevant standard for lighting columns is the EN 40 series, which covers materials, dimensions, design and wind-load verification. Only three of the nine reference EN 40 or its Turkish adoption TS EN 40. Others publish general management-system certificates — ISO 9001, ISO 14001 — which say something about how a company is run and nothing about whether a pole will stand up in a storm. One publishes certificates citing superseded versions of those standards, which is a useful reminder to check dates.

For a Turkish municipal or TEDAS tender, TEDAS type-project approval is the document that will be asked for. For an export project or a private development, EN 40 and CE marking carry more weight.

Artay luminaires are CE marked, and our manufacturing is certified to TSE under TS EN 40 for lighting columns and to ISO 9001 for quality management. Ask us for the certificate itself, with its scope and expiry — and ask every other supplier the same. A logo on a website is not a certificate, and a certificate whose scope covers luminaires does not cover poles.

How much does a custom street lighting pole cost, and how long does it take?

Not one of the nine manufacturers we reviewed publishes a mould cost, a minimum order quantity or a lead time. Not one. That is the most consistent finding of the whole exercise, and it is why specifying a custom pole in Turkey usually begins with two weeks of emails before anyone can put a date in a programme.

So that at least one set of figures exists in public, here are ours. A new mould is a one-time cost of 4,000-50,000 USD depending on part size, and the tool stays reserved for the customer. Minimum order on a new mould is 1,000-2,000 units. Cutting the die takes 4-6 weeks, series production a further 3 weeks, so a first delivery lands 7-9 weeks after drawing approval. Every repeat order on that mould ships in 3 weeks, with no further mould charge and no minimum.

Those figures apply to cast parts only. Products built from extruded aluminium profile — a large share of our poles, luminaire bodies and bollards — carry no mould cost and no minimum order, because no die has to be cut. If the form you need can be achieved in profile rather than casting, that is the faster and cheaper route, and we will tell you so rather than sell you a mould.

Those numbers are specific to die-casting, and they cut both ways. A fabricated steel pole needs no mould at all, so for a standard galvanized road pole a fabricator will almost always beat us on both price and lead time. That is not a weakness we are hiding — it is how the two technologies differ, and sending a standard road pole to a foundry is the wrong tool for the job.

Which kind of manufacturer is right for your project?

Standard galvanized steel road and highway poles, in volume. This is fabrication work and a fabricator is the right call. Ask for tonnage capacity per year, maximum single-piece pole length, and whether static calculations cover the foundation anchors as well as the pole. Where the galvanized finish is the risk, ask whether galvanizing is in-house or subcontracted, and if in-house, ask for the bath dimensions — that number tells you the longest section they can dip in one piece.

Turkish municipal and TEDAS tenders. Ask first for TEDAS type-project approval and confirm the approval covers the pole type you are specifying, not a different one in the same catalogue.

Architectural aluminium poles for large or international projects. Ask for EN 40 design compliance and photometric data, and ask whether testing is done in-house in an accredited laboratory or sent out. An accredited in-house laboratory is rare in this market and it shortens the approval cycle considerably.

Aluminium poles, luminaire bodies and bollards in established forms. These are built from extruded profile and need no mould, so there is no tooling charge and no minimum order, and lead times are short. We produce this way too — it is a large share of what leaves our factory. For these products the questions that matter are alloy grade, wall thickness, coating film thickness and coating warranty, not foundry capability.

A pole or luminaire whose shape does not exist in any catalogue. This is where casting matters and it is where we would put ourselves. Artay casts aluminium and zinc alloy in its own die-cast foundry in Basaksehir, Istanbul, and has since 1999 — the company began as a die-casting manufacturer and moved into LED lighting in 2005. Housings and cast pole components are produced from EN AC-46000 (AlSi9Cu3) alloy in-house; steel shafts are fabricated and hot-dip galvanized to EN ISO 1461. Send a drawing, a 3D model or a photograph of a reference form and we will cut the die. Note the trade-off stated above: a mould cost and a minimum order come with it.

Five questions worth asking every supplier

1. Which of these do you perform yourself: casting, extrusion, fabrication, galvanizing? Ask for the list, not the word “manufacturer”. Every company we reviewed calls itself a manufacturer, and they mean four different things by it.
2. Send me the certificate, with its scope and expiry. Check that the scope names lighting columns and that the standard version is current.
3. What is the mould cost and the minimum order for this shape? If nobody will answer before a drawing exists, ask for the range. A supplier who cannot give a range has probably not done it recently.
4. What is the lead time for the first delivery, and for a repeat order? The gap between those two numbers tells you what your second project will look like.
5. Who performs the wind-load calculation, and to which standard? EN 40-3-1 and EN 40-3-3 cover this. If the answer is vague, the calculation may not exist.

Specification guides

If you are still deciding on pole type, height or material, these guides cover the detail behind the questions above:

• What drives the cost of a lighting pole — what moves the price and how to compare two quotations.
• OEM and private label manufacturing — mould cost, minimum order and repeat-order lead times.
• Street lighting poles — types, heights, galvanized steel, and what a custom pole costs.
• Modern outdoor lighting poles — LED-ready designs for streets, parks and new developments.
• Outdoor lighting poles — types, heights and materials for any outdoor project.
• Decorative lighting poles — styles and materials for parks, plazas and pedestrian zones.
• Modern lighting poles — design and material choices for public spaces.
• Lighting pole standards by country — eight export markets side by side: what each tender cites, where it is published and what crosses the border.
• EN 40 lighting column standards — what each part of the series actually covers.
• Aluminium or galvanized steel — which one belongs in your specification, decided by corrosivity and height.
• Coastal lighting poles — chloride, chromate pre-treatment and what changes in a seaside specification.

Specifying bollards? Bollard lights: how to choose and specify them — why they are aluminium and not galvanized steel, glare control at eye level, and which standard actually applies.

Steel or aluminium? Lighting pole materials: galvanized steel or aluminium — coastal performance, chromate pre-treatment, and what happens at the joint where the two metals meet.

Not sure which type you need? Street lighting pole types: how to choose the right one — steel, extruded aluminium, die-cast and bollards compared on height, corrosion environment, EN 40 standards and what changes when the form is made to your own drawing.

How this comparison was made

Nine Turkish manufacturers of street and decorative lighting poles were reviewed in August 2026, using only what each company publishes on its own website, with directory and trade-press sources used to corroborate. Counts above describe what companies publish, not what they are capable of: a company that does not mention a foundry may still have one, and we have been careful not to claim otherwise.

We have deliberately not ranked anyone. A pole is a structural component chosen against a specification, and the right supplier for a 12 m galvanized highway pole is the wrong supplier for a cast decorative bollard. Questions, or a drawing to quote against: info@artaylighting.com.

Published by Artay Lighting, Istanbul. Last checked: August 2026.

Artay Lighting manufactures street lighting poles in Istanbul, Turkey, casting housings and pole components in its own die-cast foundry since 1999. That means a project-specific pole is not a special favour here: when a municipality, contractor or distributor needs a form that does not exist in any catalogue, we cut the die and produce it. First delivery runs 7-9 weeks from drawing approval. Once the mould exists, repeat orders ship in 3 weeks. Artay exports poles and luminaires to more than 33 countries.

This guide covers the most common street pole types, recommended height ranges, the specifications worth checking, and what a custom pole actually costs.

How much does a custom street lighting pole cost, and how long does it take?

A new mould is a one-time cost of 4,000-50,000 USD depending on part size, and the tool stays reserved for the customer. Minimum order on a new mould is 1,000-2,000 units, again depending on part size. Repeat orders on an existing mould carry no further mould cost and no minimum.

Timing breaks down in two stages. Cutting the die takes 4-6 weeks from drawing approval. Series production takes a further 3 weeks. So a first delivery lands 7-9 weeks after you approve the drawing, and every order after that ships in 3 weeks.

Unit price depends on height, material, finish and quantity. Send a drawing, a 3D file or a photograph of a reference form to info@artaylighting.com and we return a technical drawing with a wind-load calculation and a quotation.

Figures reflect Artay production data at our Basaksehir foundry, August 2026.

Which standards do Artay street lighting poles comply with?

Artay luminaires are CE marked, and our manufacturing is certified to TSE under TS EN 40 for lighting columns, and to ISO 9001 for quality management. Die-cast components are produced from EN AC-46000 (AlSi9Cu3) aluminium alloy; steel shafts are hot-dip galvanized. For every project we confirm in writing, before production starts, which standards and which TEDAS specifications the delivered poles are built to.

What are street lighting poles used for?

Street poles are designed for vehicle-focused lighting, visibility, and road safety across different road classes:

• Residential streets and local roads
• Main roads and boulevards
• Medians and divided highways (project dependent)
• Intersections, roundabouts, and critical junctions
• Industrial roads and logistics access routes

Types of street lighting poles

The correct type depends on road width, lighting layout, luminaire weight, and wind exposure.

1) Single-arm street lighting poles

• Most common solution for standard streets
• Clean appearance and easier maintenance
• Arm outreach must match photometrics (avoid guessing)

2) Double-arm street lighting poles

• Used for wider roads, medians, and boulevards
• Can improve coverage symmetry when designed properly
• Requires stronger foundation and wind verification

3) Tapered conical vs. octagonal poles

• Tapered conical: minimal silhouette, strong wind behavior, very popular
• Octagonal: sharper architectural look, common in modern streetscapes

4) Smart-ready street poles

• Supports smart controllers, sensors, cameras, banners (project dependent)
• Cleaner wiring paths and service access become critical

Recommended heights for street lighting poles

Use these ranges as a starting point. Final heights should follow spacing and luminaire photometrics:

• 6–8 m: residential streets, local roads
• 9–10 m: main roads and wider streets
• 12 m: boulevards and large open road sections

Height choice is never “only aesthetic.” It controls spacing, uniformity, glare, and overall road visibility.

Materials: why galvanized steel dominates street projects

Hot-dip galvanized steel

• Strong, durable, and cost-effective for road infrastructure
• Excellent corrosion resistance when galvanizing is done correctly
• Compatible with powder coating for premium finishes

Aluminum (when it makes sense)

• Lightweight handling advantages
• Naturally corrosion resistant
• Often selected for premium or special-case installations

Important: long-term performance depends on manufacturing quality, coating system, and correct foundation detail—not only the metal type.

Coatings & finishes for street environments

Street poles face UV, rain, dust, and abrasion. Choose a finish system based on climate and expectations:

• Hot-dip galvanizing: base corrosion protection
• Powder coating: appearance + extra protection
• Multi-layer systems: recommended for harsh climates (coastal/industrial)

Specify clearly:

• Color (RAL code)
• Texture (matte / satin)
• UV resistance expectations
• Maintenance/touch-up approach

Key specifications to check before ordering

1) Wind load and structural compliance

Wind exposure increases with height and bracket outreach. Confirm structural calculations suitable for the project location.

2) Bracket/arm outreach

• Outreach affects beam distribution and glare control
• Match arm selection to luminaire photometrics

3) Base plate, anchor bolts, and foundation detail

• Foundation must match wind + height + luminaire weight
• Ask for anchor bolt pattern and base dimensions

4) Access door, wiring, and grounding

• Serviceability matters for maintenance teams
• Ensure safe cable routing and grounding provision

5) Luminaire compatibility

• Spigot/top diameter compatibility
• Mounting method and tilt adjustability if needed

How to choose street lighting poles (simple checklist)

1. Define road type and width (residential, main road, boulevard)
2. Select target height range based on coverage and spacing
3. Choose single or double-arm configuration
4. Pick material + coating system for the climate
5. Confirm wind load and foundation requirements
6. Lock luminaire compatibility and service access
7. Standardize pole families for consistent streetscapes

Browse street lighting models

Explore models and options in our Street Lighting category and select a pole family based on your target heights and bracket type.

Related pole guides

• What drives the cost of a lighting pole — what moves the price, what a quotation leaves out, and how to compare two of them.
• Coastal lighting poles — chloride, chromate pre-treatment and what changes in a seaside specification.
• Modern outdoor lighting poles — LED-ready pole designs and materials for streets, parks and new developments.
• Outdoor lighting poles — types, heights and materials for any outdoor project.
• Decorative lighting poles — styles and materials for parks, plazas and pedestrian zones.
• Modern lighting poles — design and material choices for public spaces, cast to drawing in our own foundry.

Specifying bollards? Bollard lights: how to choose and specify them — why they are aluminium and not galvanized steel, glare control at eye level, and which standard actually applies.

Steel or aluminium? Lighting pole materials: galvanized steel or aluminium — coastal performance, chromate pre-treatment, and what happens at the joint where the two metals meet.

Not sure which type you need? Street lighting pole types: how to choose the right one — steel, extruded aluminium, die-cast and bollards compared on height, corrosion environment, EN 40 standards and what changes when the form is made to your own drawing.

Choosing a supplier? Street lighting pole manufacturers in Turkey: how to compare them — what nine Turkish manufacturers publish about casting, standards, certificates and lead times, and the five questions worth asking every supplier.

All of these poles are produced by the same manufacturer: Artay casts housings and pole components in its own die-cast foundry in Istanbul, which is why a form that exists in no catalogue can still be produced. See the LED lighting fixtures manufacturer in Istanbul behind these guides, or browse the full outdoor and street lighting product range.

Need help selecting street lighting poles?

Share your project location, target heights, road width, and luminaire model. We can recommend a pole family and coating system designed for long-term street performance.

Related guides

• Lighting pole standards by country — eight export markets side by side: what each tender cites, where it is published and what crosses the border.
• EN 40 lighting column standards — what each part of the series actually covers.
• Lighting pole materials — galvanized steel or aluminium, and what happens where they meet.
• Aluminium or galvanized steel — which one belongs in your specification, decided by corrosivity and height.
• What a lighting pole costs — mould economics, minimum orders and lead times in full.
• Garden and landscape lighting — mounting heights, EN 13201 P classes and the obtrusive light zones that decide a park scheme.