Award-winning architecture with top-notch lighting design

On account of its resource-saving construction, the new building of the LVM insurance company has won the North Rhine-Westphalia award for architecture, residential construction and urban development on the subject of “Energy-efficient building for the future”. For the building, geothermal heating and – in summer – cooling is used, among other things; it is partly operated with solar energy, and its toilets are flushed with rainwater. The central point of the concept was to combine daylight and artificial lighting in a feasible manner. This is made possible by intelligent LUXMATE LITENET software: all the luminaires and blinds in the building are controlled by this lighting management system. In this way, artificial lighting is adjusted to the natural lighting conditions, which allows for energy savings of as much as 60 percent while providing perfect lighting quality.

The building is subdivided into several side arms branching off from a main corridor. Between these office blocks, there are glass-roofed inner courtyards, which are richly planted and serve as oases of calm. Thanks to the excellent lighting technology they incorporate, the COPA pendant luminaires mounted here provide elegant accent lighting for trees and shrubs. An architectural eye-catcher of the new building are the small multi-coloured panels incorporated into the glazed façade. For this purpose, small strips of film in different colours were applied to the high-insulation windows.

In compliance with the delicate building structure, the FREELINE direct/indirect luminaire easily blends into the office interiors. While precisely aligned direct light provides sufficient brightness in the task areas, indirect light reflected from the ceiling creates balanced shadow detail. The pendant luminaire features flexible illuminance. Fitted with a multi-watt electronic ballast, a higher-output 80 W fluorescent lamp can easily be fitted instead of a 49 W fluorescent lamp.

In the colourful cafeteria, a cosy feel-good atmosphere is created by PANOS downlights, which have been laterally recessed into the suspended ceilings, making the room appear higher and more pleasant.

Creativity meets technology

At the headquarters of the Grey creative agency, sophisticated design and functionality are tuned to the same wavelength. The office complex – former barracks protected as a historic monument – comprises a staff building and two smaller annexes which were elaborately refurbished and supplemented by a new building. The interior design is defined by the individual colours of only four materials: fibrated concrete, flashed steel, rubber and wool felt.

The old building's extremely deep rooms in particular need a lighting system that is both unobtrusive and efficient. In collaboration with Zumtobel, the two studio therefore developed, especially for this project, a luminaire intended to deliberately bridge the gap between technical task lighting and decorative room lighting: the result is the CLEARCELL pendant luminaire. In order to create a translucent effect, they have used the technology incorporated in the COPA high-bay reflector luminaire. The microcell louvre used consists of individual louvre modules made of aluminised, coated composite material. Its absolutely identical, precisely calculated louvre cells guarantee extremely uniform light distribution. The pendant luminaires are available as single-lamp and twin-lamp models with various power ratings. As a special design feature, the cover of the ballasts can be implemented in differently coloured plastic, for instance the colours of a company's CI.

A little later, in another project, precisely this CLEARCEL luminaire was again able to demonstrate its qualities. The Kontorhaus on Kaiserkai is situated in one of the most strongly exposed locations of Hamburg's HafenCity. In this building project, contemporary architecture and innovative building management are top priorities. In order to cut operating costs, concrete core cooling has been relied on deliberately, and a fully automatic system provides for optimum use of daylight and control of blinds. In order to achieve the flexibility required for an office building, the client opted for a mix of CLEARCELL pendant and free-standing luminaires. These luminaires create a pleasantly gentle lighting scene while providing an attractive architectural design feature. The lighting concept is rounded off by SOLAR spotlights that create emotional accents.

New look after successful facelift

Inside the historic walls of the 9,500 square metre administrative district office (Landratsamt) of Marktoberdorf, visitors are welcomed in modern rooms including open service areas. Light has played a major role in the office's refurbishment, and is now also a key factor in terms of creative design and commercial success. Compared to the former lighting system, energy consumption has been cut by 43 percent, while lighting quality has been increased at the same time. The building was successfully refurbished and extended by the architects' studio of Stadtmüller.Burkhard.Architekten, who claimed that “not only should old and new building components be sensitively combined, but the quality of work for staff members should be improved and the service character of the office should be made noticeable”.

All in all, almost 500 metres of the narrow SLOTLIGHT light lines provide a striking feature in the public areas and circulation zones. Installed flush in the ceiling, they produce uniform ambient brightness with light distribution barely interrupted by shadows. This is made possible by so-called Tetris technology incorporating overlapping T16 light sources and a separate reflector. This solution is impressive in terms of both lighting technology and design: thanks to PMMA luminaire diffusers, the light lines can be arranged in the room as required, independent of the position of the workstations, without producing reflections on computer displays.

The formerly dark corridors are brightened up by fresh, lively colours and contemporary luminaires: on every floor, LINARIA batten luminaires make it easy for people to find their way and ensure pleasant lighting conditions. As a prerequisite of energy-efficient operation, all luminaires are dimmable and fitted with presence detectors. To illuminate the office workstations, the electrical consultants opted for a direct/indirect luminaire. With light output ratio levels of up to 93 percent, the Claris II pendant luminaire meets the high requirements placed on energy-efficient solutions providing first-rate visual comfort. This solution perfectly combines a pleasant room ambience ensuring a good working atmosphere and energy-saving building operation.

In the trend of the times

The renovation of the Angel Building in the North of London, which included an extension by 9,300 m2, is impressive both from an architectural and an energetic point of view. Low energy requirements and high quality lighting were central conditions specified for this major renovation that transformed a six-storey 1980s office building into a BREEAM recognised ‚Green Building‘. Producing a high standard working environment with low energy consumption was difficult in the sense that the designers had to come to terms with the restrictions of the original building: the location of the building in the corner of the plot means that one of its facades is curved, so that lighting fixtures with special lengths had to be used. At the same time, the lighting was required to fulfil high quality standards with regard to efficiency and similarity to daylight. The work places in the building are therefore illuminated with a dynamic lighting system – using DALI controlled direct/indirect luminaires in two colour temperatures (3000 K and 4000 K) supplied by Zumtobel.

Intelligent building management creates added value

The headquarters of Deutsche Bank presents itself as an absolute treasure. From the outside, one would hardly recognise that the two 155 m towers built in 1984 have been completely refurbished. The inner values of the two towers – commonly called “Debit” and “Credit” – are, however, amazing. The US Green Building Council's Platinum LEED Award and a Gold certificate from the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB) pay eloquent tribute to the integrative approach adopted for all building management services and the large number of trendsetting project-specific solutions that were implemented. Besides efficient use of resources and energy, this ensures a pleasant working environment for nearly 3,000 employees.

Energy requirements were cut by half, water consumption was reduced by over 70% and CO2 emissions by almost 90%. Floors made of natural stone, black waxed iron for space-defining centre-stage settings, stucco encausto for the walls, and frosted glass backlit by LEDs – all that stands for authenticity and sustainability.

For the new foyer, the basement was opened and the two towers were extended to reach ground level. The towers' silhouette can be seen through a skylight 18 m in diameter, through which the room is flooded with daylight. Construed as an external area, the extended tower façade is made of glass modules in a sandwich design and backlit by cool white LEDs. This makes the entrance area seem higher, brighter and more transparent.

According to architect Mario Bellini, the virtual centre of the building is the “sphere” highlighted by directional light. To him, the globe-shaped sculpture made of unfinished special-steel bands, which hovers above the foyer, reflects the past, present and future of a trusted, solid organisation. The sculpture is penetrated by two backlit connecting bridges. However, as this is allocated to the interior, an intermediate white light colour prevails here, which is very different from the cool impression created by the façade. Consistently throughout the building complex, we find a dramatic lighting concept using a variety of light colours to create an urban setting inside. Here, based on a proper mix of daylight and artificial lighting, light is a vital creative design tool.

This is also demonstrated by the outstanding lighting solution implemented on the office floors. Combined with an intelligent building management system, the blade-shaped luminaires developed especially for this project help to reduce the building's energy consumption. The luminaires have been installed on the ceiling boxes in the building axes' grid, and, given the complex ground plan with unconventional spatial relations, provide benefits compared to a conventional solution. Fitted with a 35 W T16 fluorescent lamp, the luminaire has a minimum installed load while achieving an efficiency level of 82 percent. Zonal lighting control, plus daylight sensors and presence detectors, ensure illumination of the office floors according to users' needs. The custom luminaire is a model in terms of lighting quality as well. The MPO+ micropyramidal optic providing excellent glare control ensures ergonomically sound conditions at the DSE workstations. The blade-shaped luminaire is a charming feature, also as a pendant version. The workstations in the basement, for instance, are illuminated by luminaires with lamps fitted on both sides.

The conference rooms in the executive suite, too, have been fitted with exceptional lighting solutions. Ceiling-mounted sails designed to match the conference tables and the rooms' geometry create a very special appearance due to SLOTLIGHT II LED lighting channels installed according to an orderly chaotic system. Here, the seamless butt joints at the junctions presented a special challenge. 1.2 W LEDs with a colour temperature of 3000 K and wide-angle distribution, combined with an opal PMMA diffuser, ensure a uniform appearance. Moreover, the LEDs fitted and the luminaires' efficiency level of 73 percent are exemplary in terms of energy efficiency and LEED criteria.

Interdisciplinary work inside a building that saves resources

At the headquarters of the VHV Group in Hanover, the office of the future has already become reality. The massive building accommodating up to 1,500 workstations has skilfully been divided into three structures; the individual sections and floors of the building are linked by footbridges and staircases with transparent balustrades. “Seamless light lines on the visible undersides emphasize the net of vertical and horizontal lines, highlighting the pathways” – this is how Wolfgang Bliefert from the Lumen3 studio explains the lighting concept, which was developed jointly with BKSP architects. By using LINARIA batten luminaires – both the surface-mounted and the pendant model – fitted with the new, innovative Seamless light source, the designers have achieved the effect of uninterrupted lines.

The combined energy and façade concept is also trendsetting. Owing to the use of triple glazing and highly heat-insulating façade components, the total energy requirement is significantly reduced; the energy needed is provided by earth probes, heat pumps and district heating (as a supplement). The lighting as well as the slatted blinds with light control function can be controlled centrally and energy-efficiently via the LUXMATE Litenet flexis lighting management system developed by Zumtobel, without any compromise in terms of convenience for individual staff members.

Ambient lighting of the team offices is provided by the TECTON continuous-row lighting system with decorative Slimline optics. Supplementing daylight, LIGHT FIELDS direct/indirect free-standing luminaires provide glare-free light for the workstations near the windows. Upon starting work, employees switch on both luminaires using the main switch next to the door; the free-standing luminaire then switches to a basic illuminance level of 300 lx. Via a presence detector, the intelligent luminaire recognises employees sitting down at their desk, adjusting illuminance to 500 lx. As soon as employees leave their desk, the luminaire responds accordingly. This means that the task areas are provided with optimum lighting intensity at all times, which helps to prevent fatigue while saving energy.

Dynamic office landscape

With flowing rooms and gentle curves, Italy's Yellow Pages rely on the dynamism of architecture and light. Already when entering the new head office of Seat Pagine Gialle, it becomes clear to visitors that inside the former railway factory they will not find what is suggested from the outside. Like a spacecraft, the glass portal with its futuristic projecting roof protrudes on the pavement. The transparent gate forms a link between the historic façade of the industrial landmark and the modern office world inside the building, uniting history and the present.

According to Massimo Iosa Ghini, the interior design aimed at “providing functional offices also meeting the users' requirements in terms of well-being and comfort”. Above all, the 1200 staff members of the former public enterprise wanted more light. Light ribbons installed underneath the suspended ceilings provide pleasant indirect light enhancing the lines of the corridors, acting as a shining leitmotif in an office landscape both playful and futuristic. The darker areas in the ramified corridor are illuminated by recessed light fields blending almost invisibly into suspended ceiling panels.

Curved glass walls displaying satellite images of historic Turin separate the offices situated along both sides of the corridor. In this way, the city and its history become a both separating and connecting element that does not interfere either with the architectural dynamism or with the flow of natural light and artificial lighting. Coloured walls create a special atmosphere around the workstations, which are illuminated by low-profile lighting units in a purist design. Indirect/direct light provided by VAERO enhances the clear colours in the offices, while allowing office users to work at the computer undistracted by shadows.

In the corridors and the central auditorium, too, the Solar II spotlight designed by Iosa Ghini himself, with its expressive stylistic idiom and soft lines, blends into the futuristic interior. Depending on the occasion, the lighting scene in the auditorium seating 100 persons can be set to intermediate white or to a colourful, almost lounge-style atmosphere.

A gentle welcome to London

On account of its dimensions alone, the 10.5 m high foyer of the new Ropemaker Place office tower located on the outskirts of London compels people to enter the building, stop and look around. Without fail, their eyes will be caught by the huge windows, the cosy seating area, the walls covered with walnut panels and, eventually, the ceiling. Gently curved like a wave, the ceiling is a truly spectacular structure. From here, the spacious lobby and the area extending to the porch are conspicuously flooded with pleasant light.

The three-dimensional, wave-shaped ceiling system has been developed jointly by Zumtobel and Arup Associates. The ceiling's illuminated, wave-shaped curves are made of white micro-perforated PPC sheet steel with an integrated acoustic pad. A transparent acrylic diffuser conceals individually controllable fluorescent lamps serving as direct/indirect sources of light. In addition, waveguide technology has been used to ensure very good glare control, providing balanced lighting with brilliant lighting quality.