Tapping daylighting’s potential for office buildings has been receiving renewed attention on both sides of the Atlantic. Part of the reason, of course, is the potential for energy savings. But much research has been done recently into the proper daylighting techniques for worker comfort and illuminating offices with VDTs. The potential for energy savings and increased office worker comfort can be impressive.

In a recent issue of the CADDET (Centre for the Analysis and Dissemination of Demonstrated Energy Technologies) Newsletter from The Netherlands, for example, Swiss researchers Juliette Fong and Miklos Kiss report that in some cases, simple systems can improve daylight lighting levels by a factor of three. The two suic rules asggest some bas to how this can be achieved:

* High windows

* No suspended ceilings

* Use of light colours

* No 100% covering of windows with glare control.

They add that to get the most out of natural light, correct use of shading (venetian blinds) and a daylight-dependent control of artificial lighting are essential. The Swiss Federal Office of Energy’s Daylighting Project has provided useful information on the implementation of daylighting strategies in office buildings, and on the mistakes all too often made.

During the project, which has been carried out as part of Switzerland’s Energy 2000 program, a number of daylighting implementations were observed, measured, analysed and assessed. Say Fong and Kiss: “The study showed that in daylighting practice, the same mistakes were often repeated, although they could have been easily avoided.

The study of various buildings, all with allegedly good daylight usage, uncovered many shortcomings in the use of natural and artificial lighting. Fortunately, though, remedies were at hand and were easily implemented.” The researchers point out that computer work stations have completely changed the office world, and that it is not surprising that visual discomfort such as glare and reflections are the complaints most commonly mentioned.

The solution is simple: where practical, the monitor should be placed so that the viewing direction is parallel to the window. In larger offices, however, the problem becomes more complicated. Often, when natural lighting is provided by large window surfaces and no room dividers are fitted, most of the office has to be shaded to cut out glare.

The result? Artificial lighting is often switched on, as the lighting level is insufficient. Where glare is a major problem, workers have reported that they erect cardboard barriers around the screen to reduce reflections. The authors suggest that, ideally, a separate blind, acting as a light diffuser, should be fitted along with sunblinds to protect the worker(s) not only from glare but from heat as well.

“Completely independent of the prevailing weather,” say Fong and Kiss, “artificial lighting was switched on in eight of the nine buildings studied, and was left on all day. Not exactly what one expects from daylighting projects!” Possible causes for this situation included:

* lights were switched on in the morning, when daylight was insufficient;

* lighting was not switched off later when enough daylight was available;

* during changeable weather, employees did not want to be constantly getting up to switch lights on and off.

For a balanced lighting situation in the office, the researchers say that, in an ideal case, a room where work is carried out should have general, homogenous lighting (natural or artificial) with additional point sources providing lighter and darker zones. The addition of task lighting and desk lamps was also noted at several work places.

Here are some tips for small, but effective, changes in the office that the authors suggested after their study:

* Place desks and work places near windows

* Place PC monitors parallel to windows

* Individual glare protection for monitors, or on windows in the field of view

* Place furniture and room dividers so that natural light is not blocked

* Use modular, individually combinable furniture instead of large, inflexible, angled desks

* Fit light-coloured blinds with automatic or manual control

* Automatic control of artificial lighting, switching at least the window zone

* Continuous control with lighting levels of 300 to 500 lux is ideal

* Installed power should be 6 to 12 watts per square meter

* Use light-coloured walls and smooth ceilings

In their conclusion, Fong and Kiss stated that trivial but often repeated mistakes hinder the sensible use of daylight. “One certain imperative is that, on a sunny day, the artificial lighting of work places near windows should be switched off. Also, on cloudy days, unnecessary glare protection and shading should not cause lighting levels to deteriorate.” In other words, good glare protection, good shading and sensible light control are integral parts of an optimal natural lighting system. Closer to home, a U.S. lighting consultant, writing in the February issue of Energy User News, states that “Modern electric lighting, cheap electricity, and the interest in fully conditioned environments are responsible for the transition to a situation where daylighting has often been ignored in contemporary (North American) building design.

“However,” continues John L. Fetters, principal of Effective Lighting Solutions Inc., “with recent advances in microelectronics, high-performance glazing, electrochromics and fabrics, there has been a renewed interest in active daylighting.” He warns, however, that daylighting is not a total substitute for electric lighting, which is needed at night and when daylight levels are too low to provide general ambient and task lighting. Geographic location and local conditions, he points out, determine the extent to which daylighting can be implemented.

Geographic considerations include proximity to the equator and the orientation of the building. “One of the challenges of a daylighting design,” he says, “is to provide a uniform distribution of light. Those closest to the daylight source may have adequate light, but people located in areas farther away may not.

The design should either light the space evenly or compensate through shading devices or controlled electrical lighting.” Turning to these controls, Fetters explains that “active daylighting” is the term applied to the control of electric lighting to supplement daylight. The goal of active daylighting, he says, is to couple photosensors to luminaires in ways that will reduce energy use while optimizing illumination levels for worker comfort. New technologies have emerged in recent years that increase the opportunities to apply daylighting techniques cost-effectively, the author states. New sensors and electronic dimming ballasts provide distributed control that operates independently to detect conditions in small areas and controls the light from a small number of luminaires in that area. For example, in an active daylighting design for fluorescent lighting, a photosensor reads the ambient light.

If the daylight is sufficient to light the space, the connected electronic dimming ballast is signalled to reduce light output to its minimum value. As sky conditions change, the photosensor output will signal the dimming ballasts to increase the light output of their associated luminaires to supplement the daylight. Silicon photosensors are analog devices in which output signals vary in proportion to the amount of incident light, he goes on.

A fade feature is needed to ensure that lighting is not changed too abruptly. The fade control originally was provided by an interface circuit, but now can be integrated in the sensor. Multiple dimming ballasts with low-voltage control leads connect directly to each sensor. The dimming ballasts can dim down to 10 per cent. In many cases, the hardware for these systems is modular, allowing them to be plug and play. The low-voltage control leads can be plugged together in daisy-chain fashion.

“This flexibility allows control zones that are independent of the restrictions of the power zones. The keys to the effectiveness of daylighting controls are the careful placement of photosensors and proper calibration of controls during the commissioning phase of the installation.” A well-designed daylighting application may optimistically realize annual energy cost savings of 20 to 30 per cent, he concludes, compared to buildings without daylight design or controls.

Electrical energy used for lighting systems can be reduced as much as 70 per cent during peak natural light periods. “Predicting the economic effects of daylighting systems is difficult because of the many assumptions involved. According to the Lighting Research Center at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY, a sample calculation shows that energy costs saved per year can be approximately 25 cents (U.S.) per square foot of daylighted floor area. This assumes that there are 260 working days per year, electricity costs 10 cents per kilowatt hour, the daylighting system turns off the lights five hours per day, and the connected lighting load is two watts per square foot.

Many installations will have a lower lighting load or a lower electrical rate. The calculation also assumes that there are no cloudy days or holidays. “With the initial cost of a new daylighting system and the energy cost savings, even these broad assumptions result in a longer payback period than many businesses seek.” Meanwhile, here at home, researchers at the National Research Council’s Institute for Research in Construction (IRC) in Ottawa are currently involved in assessing modelling tools that can help engineers, architects and lighting designers predict indoor illuminance from daylighting and assess the impact of daylight-linked control systems on energy consumption in buildings.

According to Dr. Morad Atif at IRC, daylighting is a preferred source of light that can be exploited in building design. The use of computer programs for the design and analysis of daylighting systems, he says, is becoming the preferred method, as this approach is faster and much less expensive than experimental testing. “However, despite the fact that there are several computer programs that can simulate daylighting, most of them have limitations that restrict their ability to replicate the complexity of daylight distribution in actual buildings.” This is where the IRC comes in.

Through its involvement in the International Energy Agency’s Task 21: Daylight in Buildings, IRC has undertaken the modelling of an existing daylit building using a computer package developed as part of this task group’s work. This work, which is supported by the Buildings Group, Natural Resources Canada, will not only determine the accuracy of the software, but also provide Canadian building designers with examples of how to achieve retrofits that conserve energy by using daylighting. IRC researchers monitored the daylight parameters in a building and used the data to create a computer model to simulate the impact of outdoor conditions on the building. They then compared the measured data with the results of the computer simulations in order to verify the accuracy of the computer program. Finally, they evaluated the energy savings achieved by using different daylighting design options (such as lighting control systems) or retrofit measures with the help of the computer model that they developed. “From a survey of the available daylighting software, only one program was found to have the capability to analyse the effects of replacing electric lighting with daylighting on the total energy balance of a building,” says Dr.Atif. “Although this program too had some limitations, by making a few adjustments IRC researchers were able to validate the model according to measurements and study energy-conserving retrofits for a real-life daylit building.” The results from this research will help building designers, not only in Canada but throughout the world, to optimize the potential of using daylight – both as a source of light and as a means of saving energy (and money).

Music 1Like virtually all of the engineering and design solutions at EMP, the lighting solutions had to be flexible and pioneering. According to Tim Guion, Associate Regional Manager for ETC West, “From the beginning we knew this was going to be some sort of three-processor networked system. We knew that a structure like EMP would require some sort of building-wide control, which is typical for large architectural systems that have more dimmers than one processor can handle. So we prepared a system with network-ready components.”

One major lighting challenge at EMP involved the museum’s unique interactive sculpture “Roots and Branches,” a large ‘tree’ made of guitars, organs and other instruments. Users interact with the information kiosks scattered around the sculpture that play videos or soundbytes of information about various guitars. Lights pick out and isolate individual instruments as users activate the kiosk controls. Guion explains the ETC system’s complexity: “The control system running the video needs to be able to tell the lighting system, ‘Make it purple now; make it green now; make it red; change the colour according to the video.’ Fortunately we already had the infrastructure in place for them. We had the correct ETC Unison Processor that would accept the RS232 or the serial port (because we had decided the system needed network-ready processors that gave them a serial port). What we wound up with is a system that has three levels of control. First is a direct user interface, where you can go plug in a portable LCD station and turn on lights in a given area. Second, Unison that can call up presets on a timeclock basis. And the third is the Roots and Branches sculpture that is behaving as its own sub-lighting system. We have many facets of control, which would be unusual for a traditional museum…but this is no traditional museum.”

Music 2ETC lighting creativity is evident throughout EMP. Says Guion, “We have chases built in so that the control system is actually morphing the lights with the music in certain galleries, so that somebody can walk into one of the galleries, and the lights are changing colour.” Unison runs the morphing presets that control colour LEDs by Color Kinetics. “This is not just a simple lights-on, lights-off proposition.”

The radically sculptural architecture of EMP dictates radical lighting control. A massive structure with very few windows in its design, EMP cannot harness the benefits of natural light. Every light in the structure is controlled by one of the lighting control panels. This goes far beyond the traditional tracklights-over-the-exhibit design employed by many museums. According to Guion, “In a sense, we are responsible for everything being seen. That means, more dimmers, more processors and more reliability in networking. If you are able to see an object on display, it’s because the system is functioning.”

These networked systems also offer the unique integration of architectural and theatrical lighting systems. Under ordinary daily circumstances the lighting control in the EMP Café’s performance space is run by the ETC Unison architectural system. The Unison system plays presets, and the lights perform scheduled functions. At anytime however, an Express console or any kind of DMX console can be directly plugged into the wall to instantly take control over the lights in that area, allowing EMP to do performance-style lighting in the café and the lobby of the place. That would include control over the HID spotlights that illuminate the space. The café uses the new architecturally-minded spotllights to gain theatrical lighting punch with the longevity-minded long-life HID lamp. The sleek aluminized (custom silver-coloured) Source Four HID’s save EMP personnel time on lamp changing and maintenance. And In EMP’s high, contorted sculptural spaces, the less time spent getting up on lifts to change out lamps the better.

Besides building-wide lighting control, there are standalone systems in other units of EMP, one of them in the SkyChurch, EMP’s soaring 85-foot high secular rock cathedral, featuring — instead of stained glass windows, perhaps — the world’s largest video screen (40 feet by 70 feet). The lighting installation there was done by Candela Controls and Bill Ellis, using all ETC dimming with Unison architectural control and ETC Expression Lighting Playback Controllers (LPCs) for special events control. ETC dimming also serves the lighting on interactive, multimedia ride “The Artists Journey.”

The lighting solutions provided to EMP follow in growing line of systems done with a similar specially developed topology: Disney Quest (Orlando and California), Legoland, Carlsbad, California; the MGM Conference Center, The Venetian, and The Paris, in Las Vegas.

Famous Players Movie Theatres in Canada is making sure that that experience doesn’t necessarily start when the reel begins to roll, but the moment you walk through the door – and even before that. As Famous Players themselves say, “Famous Players Theatres are movie palaces of the future, totally immersing today’s audiences in the cinematic experience, and restoring for them the glamour, excitement and fun evoked by those buildings of the past.

“Our aim is to provide guests with an environment that is unsurpassed in movie theatres around the world.

Martin Professional’s Canadian distributor, Martin Canada, is supplying Famous Players Theatres with a full array of automated lighting equipment for 18 of its 108 theaters across Canada. In the middle of a $500 million expansion program, the 80 year old cinema company is creating a full sensory theatre experience for moviegoers, an atmosphere of excitement and anticipation before the movie even starts.

Unique interior design using automated lighting.

A large part of the mix are the creation of themed lobbies and the use of automated luminaries. Communication Arts, a design firm out of Boulder, Colorado and commissioned by Famous Players to design the look of Famous Player Movie Theatres, developed a unique interior design concept for a movie theatre complex, Famous Player “Coliseum” in Kirkland, Quebec. .Famous Players has been using Martin RoboScan Pro 918 and RoboScan Pro 518 scanners to accentuate their lobbies for several years.

For the Coliseum project however the budget was considerably larger, approximately 500,000 USD, which gave Communication Arts the chance to establish a lighting environment that is the main focus of the theatre. Many of the features of the interior were designed specifically to take full advantage of the lighting gear. The idea was to completely surround the guest in an ever-changing light show, a facility that never stops moving.
FP 3 Constantly moving light show

The Kirkland Coliseum cinema is a 12 screen, 3,800 seat state-of-the-art complex. A large circular interior atrium, approximately 280′ in diameter and 60′ in height, is filled with a constantly moving light show and synched with an hour-long custom audio track.

Ten projection panels line the perimeter, arching inward towards the centre, each screen three meters wide at the base, four meters wide at the top and 14 meters tall.

In the centre, atop the concession, is a 24′ pipe-framed “Globe” painted in “Wildfire Blue” UV paint. Around the globe is a 44′ diameter circular truss. Some 30 MAC 300 and 10 MAC 250 moving heads are placed inside a valance below each projection screen and never stop moving. They are used to provide texture and movement upon the screens.

MAC’s used to create themes and project custom logos

An accompanying sound track was written specifically for the facility and consists of three “Main Events” which are repeated every 16 minutes. Between “events” a sound track plays one of three themes – Space, Time and Nature (A full hour of sound and lighting is time-coded to the music track). Each light show during the 16-minute segment reflects the appropriate theme, and also allows the projection fixtures to display custom gobo advertisements from the concession vendors.

The show is continuous throughout business hours, approximately 14 hours a day. Ten MAC 500′s, eight MAC 300′s and six MAC 250′s are placed on the circular truss that ring the “Globe”. They are used for a variety of effects around the floor area of the concession area, and during the “Main Event” are projected toward the centre to draw attention to the “Globe” at certain points.

The MAC 500′s are fitted with four full colour custom gobos (featuring concession vendor logos) that are projected onto the projection screens at various times during the ambient (16 minute segment) music.
FP 2 Entrance foyer washed in ever-changing space theme

A large entrance foyer reflects a “space theme” that is in constant flux. Six MAC 600′s continuously wash the entire foyer in an ever-changing colour wash of light while three PAL 1200 moving mirror spots provide consistently changing images of space, for example ever-changing and ever-moving nebulas and galaxies. Apollo Gobo provided gobos for the Pal 1200′s, MAC 500′s and MAC 250′s. Four Jem Stage Hazers are fitted into the walls to provide a consistent haze throughout the day and night.

Exterior 600′s and MAC 500′s introduce themed environment outside

The exterior is a reflection of what is happening in the interior foyer itself. Six Exterior 600′s, an automated colour changing Fresnel washlight designed for fixed outdoor installations, and four MAC 500′s in MAC Domes, allows luminaries to be used outdoors, yet remain in a protected environment (IP Rating: IP44), provide the nebulas and galaxies with saturated washes of colour. As the interior foyer lighting changes, so does the exterior entrance lighting, and as you drive down the main highway toward the complex, you can see the exterior show as far as a mile away. Lighting Programmer Paul Pelletier from Martin Canada spent seven days programming the show. Lighting design is by Clifton Rhodes of Design Solutions Ltd.

The entire system is controlled by a Martin Case Pro II, capable of controlling up to 700 fixtures and 2028 DMX channels – fast and direct access to all fixtures and functions at all times, with four links of DMX with a CD player. The sound track is run directly from the Case and triggers all of the events. The system also has two 3-watt YAG lasers, which are located in the centre of the “Globe” and are controlled by the Case as well. The lasers produce a total of 56 beams, all bounced off of 56 bounce mirrors located under each scrim and at the entrance doors in the foyer. All beams are directed to the top of the atrium with the exception of 8 beams that are directed toward the doors. The beams terminate into the hood of a Pal located over the ticket counter.

Famous Players Theatres are insuring that a night out at the movies is a complete entertainment experience.

I have observed differences between the Lighting Communities of the East and West, which I would like to share with the readers of Lighting Magazine so we can learn from each other. The Canadian Lighting Community should partake in the excitement of interesting projects that have recently been completed, under construction or are in the design stage.

One of the most significant projects completed in 1996 was the new Vancouver International Terminal Building (ITB). Designed by Architectura, one of the best-known architectural firms in Vancouver.

It was built in less than two years, slightly under budget. Both the ITB and the control Tower were built for approximately $265,000,000 The buildings are seismically designed. The Control Tower is built to withstand an earthquake rated 6 on the Richter Scale and be operational after everything else is destroyed.

The ITB has a distinctly West Coast Canadian character with its many First Nations artifacts strategically located throughout the Terminal and culminating in a magnificent “Haida Gwaii” sculpture by renowned artist Bill Reid. At the same time the building is very modern and functional.

A multitude of restaurants, stores and services designed by different architectural, interior design and in some instances theatre stage design firms add excitement and fun, as in the Pacific Market Restaurant located in the departure level, that mimics the carnival mood of the famous Granville Market in Vancouver.

The Lighting system in the airport was designed by Mr. Larry French of Auerbach and Associates from San Francisco and employed many types of materials and techniques. A large portion of the building is designed with either fully indirect or direct/indirect fluorescent.

In many cases, patterns of luminaries replicate the “Log Jam” pattern of the carpet in both paint colour and its orientation. In the waiting areas, 6″ diameter fluorescent tubular luminaries with louvered downlight components are used and “Log Jam” becomes 3 dimensional as well as controversial, as opinions of the design community are split. Other areas employ surface cylinders with glowing domes mounted to the space frame.

Metal halide post top decorative luminaries, mounted on the hinged poles (for ease of relamping and maintenance), are used at the stairs and escalators. Theatre projectors illuminate works of art. It is worth mentioning how the tendering and purchasing process was implemented.

Purchase of all luminaires was tendered by the Airport. A “Not to exceed” item price was included in the invitation for tender for each luminaire along with specifications. All luminaires were purchased by the Airport and then handed over to the electrical contractor for the installation.

Total cost of the lighting component on the project, excluding theatre projectors and parkade lighting was close to $3.5 million. Rumour has it, that by employing this tender strategy, the Airport was able to save at least 5% of the costs. Now that the construction of the International Terminal Building is complete, the design has started on the renovation of the Domestic Terminal Building.

Kasian Kennedy Design Partners is the Interior Design and Prime Consultant while MCW Consultants Ltd. is the mechanical, electrical and lighting design consultant. I hope this gives you a brief appreciation of some of the design work being carried out here on the West Coast. “Street Lighting Controversy – Western Style” will be next. Galina Zbrizher is a lighting designer with MCW Consultants Ltd., Vancouver.

Lazord, a 350 square metre (3776 square foot) site, was to be developed as a unique speciality store devoted to perfumes, cosmetics and small accessories. Located in an upscale shopping centre in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, the client asked us to develop a strong design and merchandising concept which would clearly differentiate Lazord from the several other perfumeries in Dubai and which would appeal to the increasingly sophisticated customer base.

Lazord represents an advanced stage of the evolution of the open concept our firm originated in the late 1980s. For many years, I have observed the relationship between customers and sales consultants, and the environmental barriers to it. To encourage interaction, no counters or fixed display cases separate the shoppers from the products or staff. Shoppers can wander easily from display to display, trying products and making selections.

The spacious plan provides barrier-free access to the products, so that people with disabilities may enjoy the shopping experience as well. Cosmetic and perfume firms invest much time and money in the design of their product containers – their shapes, materials, finishes and graphics – and in the colours and textures of the products themselves.

Lazord’s design permits customers to appreciate their efforts fully. The large open store front leads to a dramatically lit, dynamic space focused entirely on the merchandising units. The circular plan is centered on the fragrance exhibit, where items are displayed on open, back-lit, stepped shelves at eye level. Adjacent testers encourage customers to experiment with products and purchase more items from within, or across, manufacturers’ lines.

The radiating accessories and gifts are merchandised in free-standing, individually lit display “satellites” which ring the fragrance unit.

Lighting Concepts lazordLighting was “brought” to the displays and the products. For example, an innovative mix of low voltage and compact fluorescent was placed in the same reflector within the display cases; suspended luminaires with adjustable heads ring the cosmetic centres and accentuate the visually stimulating fragrance unit.

Compact low voltage fixtures are implanted under pull-out cabinets to cast light on the counters. Custom-fitted light at the “satellite” tables enhance the displayed products, and custom-made compact fluorescent holders placed at each level of the fragrance stepped shelves create a feeling of airiness.

To reduce heat build-up from the light affecting the products, all ballasts were placed in remote areas, away from the products, each with its own ventilation system. Small ventilators placed in all the display fixtures ensure that the sensitive products are constantly cooled.

To accentuate this dramatic design, neon lighting and custom-designed ceiling-recessed triangular fixtures cast light beams in several colours. The main lighting suppliers for the project were I. Guzzini and Reggiani, both of Italy, Ardee Light from the U.S., and Eureka Lighting from Montreal.

The design facilitates speedy customer service and efficient inventory management. Most inventory is stored in pull-out drawers below the display shelves, with more fast moving items contained in eye level pull-out cabinets faced with mirrors for makeup application. The cabinets are also adorned with colourful hand-blown glass baubles.

Back-up stock is concealed, as is the cash and wrap station, within the fragrance centre. Within the store, specially formulated iridescent paints appear to change colour subtly. Unusual hardware details, including custom-designed stainless steel refuse bins, add to a shopping environment that is as elegant as it is functional. Lazord has met with enthusiastic response from the shopping centre management, the retailer’s suppliers and, most importantly, the customers.

By: Patricia McClintock

A new Canadian Pacific Hotel built in the Laurentians is the last “chateau” of this century Patricia McClintock & Associes Inc., a hospitality interior design firm based in Montreal, was given the challenge of planning and designing all the interiors of the new 317 room Chateau Mont-Tremblant, built by Intrawest and operated by Canadian Pacific Hotels and Resorts.

Complementing the hotel is a large and magnificent conference centre, as well as a beautifully designed retail area. Exactly one hundred years after the well-known Chateau Frontenac opened its doors to the public, a new chateau hotel has been built in Quebec’s Laurentian Mountains. It was a most exciting and challenging project. Legends of Quebec

The theme developed for the interior design was based on the Legends of Quebec, of both French and Indian origin. It is an old Indian legend that gave the mountain its name, Mont Tremblant — the trembling mountain. The Indians called it Manitou-Ewitchi-Saga, the god of the wilderness.

When our firm was commissioned to design the interiors of this new hotel, it was on the premise of this intriguing story that we decided to further develop the Legend theme. The Algonquin Indians, the first to settle in the area, were also the first to form alliances with the French who were referred to at that time as the “coureur des bois”. These people transmitted their history and their knowledge of nature in the form of oral recitation.

These were the legends that dealt with human activities associated with magico-religious phenomena. The legends of the wilderness and the mythical stories were passed on, and later mingled with those of the “habitants”, the first French Canadians to colonize the Laurentians around 1850.

At that time, the government developed the road north to the Laurentians in an attempt to stop French Canadian migration to the U.S. The local legends explained a philosophy of the life that followed.

In the early part of the 20th century, it was the turn of the Americans to develop the area. Families came to the region to further develop the existing marvellous natural resources for recreational purposes.

More recently, in the last seven years, Intrawest — a Vancouver-based corporation — took over the task of continuing in these families’ traditions and are presently creating a ski and golf resort destined for an international reputation.

The hotel Chateau Mont-Tremblant in the overall development of the resort is a central and focal point acting as a catalyst for the village. It attracts guests and tourists, it markets the name of the village while fuelling many other commercial activities, and as such has had a strong impact on the local economy.

Design theme

The legends, which are mystical and magical fables, explain a way of living, nurturing nature and set the tone of a regional culture very unique to the Province of Quebec.
The reasons that led us to select these icons of French Canadian culture as the basis of our design theme were numerous.

We wanted to develop a theme that befitted a world class destination resort in the nineties, while integrating with the beauty and the magnificence of the wilderness. We also wanted to give to the interior spaces of this new hotel an atmosphere, a mood and a tone which would differentiate the interiors of the Chateau from that of other well-known resort hotels.

An important source of imagery stems from the local legends and stories. Many have humour, are whimsical, and most of all could integrate well with the interior architecture of this relatively modern building. We wished to achieve an interior environment that intrigued, that captivated, that would awake the interest and curiosity of guests, that would educate visitors about the area, and that would give their stay at Mont-Tremblant a very special meaning.

The spiritual and mystical contents of the legends were a natural conductor of artistic creativity. The legends became the basis of numerous and varied artistic and decorative expressions found in local folk art, in native paintings and sculptures, in crafts, in songs, in poems, in textile design, and finally in lighting and decorative light fixtures. Nature, with its mountains, forests, lakes and river, its flora and fauna, are elements that are depicted in these stories. Complex project

In all aspects of our design concept many challenges had to be faced. The hotel is a 350,000 square foot project, combining 317 guestrooms, a large conference centre, and an upscale retail area. It was a complex project, that while imparting a feeling of warmth, of welcome and of subdued luxury, also had to address from the outset the functional requirements necessary to operate such a hotel and the economic constraints existing in the construction of such a property.
Lighting was a big concern, as it is a very important aspect of the success of the project. There are a number of spaces that serve multiple uses and need different types of lighting for the purpose of these different activities. We also knew that to express the theme developed for the interior design, we had to custom design all decorative light fixtures.

Ideas were flowing, but we quickly realized that we needed the input of a lighting consultant. We called on Ron Tremblay of Lumitech in Montreal, and asked him to work with us on a team basis for the duration of the project.

Ron welcomed the invitation and assisted us throughout the entire assignment, first in introducing us to the various lighting manufacturers in Montreal, and acting as a liaison between these manufacturers and our design team. He also provided ongoing support and continued service to us and to all parties involved in the lighting aspect of the project, which continued well after the opening of the hotel in January 1997 to the public.

The services he offered and the ongoing assistance he provided throughout the project were strong contributing factors leading to the successful final installation.

Lighting design

We designed chandeliers for the main lobby, the lobby lounge, the dining room, the conference centre and the skiers’ entrance. All these reflected the various themes developed for these spaces. Ideas led to sketches and drawings, but these had to be translated into products. We needed to find the proper manufacturer to produce these items.

On the recommendation of our lighting consultant, we worked with Unilight of Montreal. Unilight is a well known chandelier manufacturer that already had an established reputation as a manufacturer of decorative light fixtures for hospitality projects.

They made all the chandeliers, the wall sconces and the bathroom decorative light fixtures. Each one of the designs developed presented challenges of styles, budgets, codes and of short manufacturing delays. Each of these challenges had to be addressed. For the wall sconces, various prototypes were developed and individually analyzed. For the chandeliers, we worked exclusively from shop drawings. The quality of their work, as well as their service, lasting well after the project had opened to the public, is to be commended.

The decorative fixtures were interpretive of our concept. The lighting is mostly with incandescent bulbs, with the exception of the decorative light fixtures found in the typical guestroom corridors and the bathrooms. These were made to accept energy saving compact fluorescent bulbs. In addition, in the corridors, our design had to meet ADA constraints.

Unilight, with each decorative light fixture, met the various challenges and produced exquisite products.

In the guestrooms, all free standing light fixtures, floor, table and desk units were manufactured by Gent-Lite, another well known and established Montreal lighting manufacturer. They too met our challenge and delivered on time and within budget, fixtures fitted with compact fluorescents. They also produced prototypes and offered excellent service.

Throughout the project, we created many different methods of lighting. We find incandescent lighting and cove lighting, equipped with dimmers, to address the various lighting levels wanted. We find laser cutouts, depicting the flora and fauna of Mont-Tremblant around the domed ceiling of the foyer of the conference centre and around the elevator cab ceilings. The lighting of these cutouts, also made by Unilight, has been accented by hidden halogen light strips behind the cutouts. The effect created is very dramatic.

The overall lighting installed on the ceiling of the public area of the property was produced by Capri. As mentioned, Ron Tremblay acted as a liaison between ourselves and these manufacturers.

There were two very important requirements put forward before selecting a manufacturer of decorative light fixtures. First, they had to understand and work with the design concept developed, and they had to interpret these concepts in the execution of the final product. Secondly, it was also important for us and our client that these be manufactured in Quebec. I knew we had in Quebec the manufacturing capabilities, but Ron Tremblay introduced us to the ones who could and would understand our challenge, and who would also work with us on a team basis.

Our wish was to achieve an interior environment that was luxurious in a typically subdued Canadian way — cosy and welcoming yet functional and appealing to an international clientele. At the same time we felt it was important to acknowledge the icons of the Province of Quebec, and we wanted the project to reflect accurately the folkloric background of Quebec’s history.

The various elements such as materials, objects, furniture, furnishings and decorative lighting fixtures used in this project had to be true to the region.

The newly built 16,000 square metre Campus Centre of the British Columbia Institute of Technology (architect: Architectura, Waisman, Dewar, Grout, Carter Inc.; electrical consultant: M.D. Stanley Engineering) is an eight-storey building that consists of street level retail, a conference/seminar centre, offices, and over 40 classrooms and teaching spaces, including state-of-the-art laboratory facilities.

The lighting system complements the modern glass and steel architectural elements (see photo) and provides the comfortable visual environment required for the educational facility.

One of the key components of the building’s lighting is daylight. The design team developed strategies for the daylighting/artificial lighting integrated systems to ensure balanced light distribution across the building.

The building envelope has shading devices to reduce solar gain and at the same time to allow desired visible light transmission and penetration. The project architect Reiner Fessler and project electrical engineers Harry Dowhan and Dean Kaardal collaborated in solving interaction of the electrical and the daylight.

To identify the best combination of the daylighting/electrical lighting package, a research study made possible by an Energy Efficiency Incentive Program offered by the Power Smart Division of BC Hydro was conducted at the Lighting Design Lab in Seattle, Washington. The study used computer modelling and simulated daylight testing on a reduced scale model of a typical classroom.

For classrooms facing southeast and southwest, side lighting is used. The study identified the benefits of using interior light shelves and suggested the best dimensions, position and orientation for these, thus increasing the quantity of usable daylight.

The simulation showed that, without the light shelves, the sunlight would penetrate directly into the classroom and light one-third of the room to an illuminance level of about 700 lux, while further into the room the illuminance levels would decrease dramatically. The interior light shelves were designed to redirect the sunlight on the ceiling and into the space so that luminance is better balanced and the illuminance is levelled to about 300 lux throughout the room.

The study concluded also that while sunlight glare exposure can be dramatically reduced by exterior architectural glass fins, direct sunlight entering the upper glazing and bypassing the light shelf can be controlled by vertical louvered blinds.
bc campus In the early stage of the electrical lighting design, it was predicted that three evenly spaced, continuous rows of indirect luminaires would be required to provide control flexibility and a maintained illuminance level of 600 lux in the classroom. The study suggested that the luminaires would perform better if placed parallel to the glazing and calculated the best mounting height and location considering the daylighting aspect. To provide task lighting, the closest segment in each indirect lighting row is controlled separately.

The study outlined that by using a combination of daylight photo sensors and occupancy sensors, increased flexibility and energy savings could be obtained by utilizing dimming control rather than controlling the lighting system with switches.

In addition, the study also showed that, due to the particular orientation of the building, it would be more effective to use one daylight photo sensor for the luminaire row adjacent to the window and another sensor for the remaining two luminaire rows, rather than using one sensor per row.

The installed indirect lighting system provides well balanced luminance and illuminance on the space and work surfaces. The system is both cost effective and flexible enough to accommodate every eventuality concerning the instructions that are presented either on task illuminated blackboards or by the overhead projector.

Use of the daylight control system, controls such as occupancy sensors, preset dimmers and use of energy efficient light sources dramatically reduced maintenance costs and exceeded requirements set by the IES/ASHRAE 90.1 standard.

The BCIT Downtown Campus Centre exemplifies human creativity sustained by the computer resources and modelling techniques, and is in perfect harmony with the character of the building.

When you’ve earned a reputation as an industry leader, you work hard to keep it. If you’re a utility, that reputation is built on low-cost, high-output generation and transmission of power.

Now translate that into an office retrofit. If you’re Utilicorp Networks Canada, you want the most energy-efficient lighting system available.

Utilicorp The utility’s retrofit of its Calgary office is the first major project in Canada to use a new state-of-the-art technology that provides the most energy-efficient linear fluorescent lighting system currently available for high-tech office environments.

The design utilizes the Sylvania PENTRON T5-HO fluorescent lamp and QUICKTRONIC electronic ballast system in a totally indirect light fixture from Linear Lighting (represented in Alberta by Richard McDonald & Associates).

The lighting system, designed by Brent W. Maitson of Calgary-based Cochrane Engineering Ltd., produces excellent general illumination for reading and manual tasks while maintaining a perfect environment for working on computer CRT displays. But here’s the other half of the story: the unprecedented efficiency of the general lighting system produces an average of 450-Lux using a miserly 0.75 watts of electrical power per square foot of floor area.

Where to buy an energy-efficient ambient lighting system that is a key mandate for this high profile, four-floor, 8,000 square metre retrofit. The CRT intensive environment and low ceilings (2.64 metres) suggested a 100 percent indirect lighting design.

The limitations of conventional light sources also created a challenge.

The concept

Stringent design and performance criteria — in addition to maximum energy efficiency – included – compatibility with the office’s refined architectural features, and – low glare and veiling reflection minimization.

Utilicorp 2 A low profile luminary was chosen to compliment the refined architectural features. In a first for any major project in Canada, a luminary with a single T5 HO lamp, matched electronic ballast and advanced optical system was used.

The luminary’s unique lines and perceived dimensions enhance the office architecture. Its colour blends neutrally into this semi-virtual environment. The illumination produced brings out the rich architectural accents and fulfils the client’s technical colour identification requirements.

An aesthetically pleasing luminary alignment was achieved despite – a ceiling grid 45 degrees to the major building axis – a variety of areas including cubicles, modular and fixed meeting rooms, and boardroom – curved interior demising walls, and – an ultra modern open-concept plan.

The performance outcome of Energy Efficient Lighting

The selected system, installed on time and on budget, generated the following results: – 450 lux horizontal average maintained – 5:1 ceiling to floor uniformity on vertical surfaces – 6:1 ceiling uniformity – 2.15 meters fixture bottom to finished floor, and – energy effectiveness of 7.5 watts per m²(~0.75w/ft²)

As for maintenance, the lamps and ballasts have a two- and five-year warranty, respectively, and are stepladder accessible, and the reflector/ballast cover is removable with two screws.

The project was so successful that Brent Maitson earned two local IIDA awards for interior lighting design and energy efficiency. Furthermore, the project has been nominated for regional and possible international recognition.

Prescolite has released Phos/VSL, a new category of surface downlights. Phos/VSL mounts on the surface of a ceiling like a canopy-mount track fixture, but provides glare-free general area lighting by means of recessed downlight optics.

The product is comprised of a thermoplastic, injection-molded housing with a patented Prescolite Virtual Source reflector optic. The spun aluminum reflector exterior is completely visible and forms an integral part of design.

Ballasts are patented Prescolite Intellectplus electronic ballasts designed with end of life protection and exclusive surge-resistant low in-rush current. A unique lamp socket allows both triple and quad compact fluorescent lamps to be accommodated by Phos/VSL, in both single and two lamp combinations spanning 26, 32 and 42 watts.

The optical system is easily rotated inside the vandal resistant aluminum housing allowing for the adjustment of cutoff over a range from 70° through 86° above nadir. Paracyl’s versatility accommodates a broad range of site proportions and lighting requirements, allowing users to customize illumination for a wide variety of applications, even after the luminaries have been installed.

The housing and door frame assembly feature heavy-duty aluminium construction, a tough polycarbonate lens and stainless steel door hinges and fasteners. Suggested typical applications include industrial, institutional and commercial settings.