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Low power consumption lighting does not have to mean sacrificing design or brightness |
08/07/2006 - Nestling amongst anonymous doorways in the heart of London's historic Soho is number 41 – 44 Great Windmill Street. From the street it is hard to appreciate the scale of what lies behind the glass doors of what was once a small doorway and a dowdy sandwich bar. This has now been replaced by a stunning five storey office space, complete with a full–height glazed internal atrium, offering the occupant's views right across London's West End.
PublicScreen and Lightsystem were asked to exercise its specialised lighting knowledge and recommend the LED fixtures most suitable for meeting the client's expectations and ensuring that the contemporary design was not compromised in any way.
LED lighting project
This takes the form of eight panels of laminated glass; each panel is fitted with 80 white LEDs which are bonded into the panel with out wires, to give the effect that the small points of light are suspended in mid-air.
Over the course of our two year involvement in this project, we developed a close working relationship with both the architect and the electrical contractor. One benefit of this came when it was discovered that there was potentially a shortage of mains power available for the project. Requesting a second supply anywhere in central London is always very expensive, so PublicScreen was asked to help. By applying our knowledge of low power consumption lighting, we were still able to provide the complete lighting package for the atrium and access areas.
The project also benefited from the use of Surface Mount design LED units installed in the walls to provide low level accent lighting on the stair landings. Five, 70watt metal halide narrow beam spots illuminating the back wall behind the reception desk. Powerglass has been suspended in the atrium and in the entrance lobby. A number of adjustable three head white Luxeon units have been used to illuminate the external entrance, first floor landing and pictures on the entrance walls. In addition to this, the wall mounted illumination, was provided by a combination of square and oblong fluorescent units some of which were custom made to provide the emergency back-up systems required.
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