Lighting in Design Q3 2021

spec, or worse, replace the system. With smart control solutions, programming and personalisation can be as simple as calling up an app on a smart device. It is frictionless and easy to use regardless of who is responsible for adjusting the lighting. Wireless solutions also enable the opportunity to scale up, pare down, or reconfigure the workspace lighting simply without pulling wire or doing major renovations. Lighting for wellbeing: Optimise the user experience and enhance the total environment Just as the recent pandemic sped up the adoption of more wide-spread work-from-home policies, it also amplified an already growing trend towards wellbeing in the workplace, and the benefits of human centric design. New frameworks for human centric design foster a culture of health and wellbeing, and may even help employers attract and retain high-calibre talent with offices where employees want to be, and where they feel comfortable, productive, and energised. Access to daylight and views for example, has been shown to be a highly desirable amenity, suggesting that a workplace that embraces daylight will be more attractive to tenants, and more valuable to the owner. Networked systems that use dynamic dayl ight management to integrate automated shades and electric lighting will enhance the experience of the space by balancing daylight, promoting views, reducing glare, and ensuring thermal comfort. Natural dayl ight can be augmented and enhanced inside with tunable white, or natural-light technologies. Architects and lighting designers are increasingly looking beyond static white control to dynamic control, and many manufacturers are paying close attention to ongoing, academic research into the power of tunable white lighting and its potential benefits. These advanced lighting technologies can even offer full-spectrum colour capabilities that can be used as a visual cue to indicate whether a space is ‘green’ and ready for occupancy, or ‘red’ and occupied or needing to be sanitised. Full spectrum and tunable white solutions ensure adaptable, flexible lighting that can quickly and easily adjust

to accommodate changes to layout, furnishings, or other materials, ultimately becoming essential to a designer’s toolkit and to the overall comfort of the space. Reducing touches to support a healthier workplace Touchless control can help minimise the spread of germs, contributing to wellbeing initiatives, and potentially lowering the cost of doing business by keeping employees healthier. Sensors, typically thought of as code-compliant devices, can be used in creative, new ways to reduce the need to touch keypads. Add a fewmore sensors to control smaller zones in open areas, making them more hands-free. But a completely touchless environment may be unrealistic. In addition to sensors, systems can offer wireless remote controls that give employees personal access to adjust lighting in their own areas without impacting other workspaces or creating opportunity for spreading germs. To reduce human contact with surfaces, touchless controls will be expected in more offices. There is an added benefit to wireless remotes, which is the ability to easily move them around, simplifying the process of adding points of control. If you are creating a conference room amid open office space, for example, the lights can be easily reassigned, and wireless sensors and remotes can be added and programmed in just minutes. The same principle applies to the home office – increase the functionality of that one dimmer on the wall with a wireless sensor, or a wireless remote at the desk. That is the kind of flexibility tomorrow’s workplaces will demand. Smart, dynamic lighting elevates the indoor environment, and adds value to your space Lighting is functional and necessary. It is ubiquitous in any indoor space, but lighting also has the power to be comforting, artistic, emotional, and to create a connection to nature. As the workplace changes and evolves, look for smart lighting solutions that help rebuild confidence in and enjoyment of the workplace. www.lutron.com

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LiD Q3 - 2021