Lighting for the

Workplace
AWB_Workplace_Q_Produktb_UK.qxd 02.05.2005 10:35 Uhr Seite 3

CONTENTS 3

Foreword by Paul Morrell, 4–5

President of the British Council for Offices

INTRODUCTION 6–7

The Changing Corporate Perspective 6–7

WORKPLACE LIGHTING – PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE 8–51

Lighting Research versus the Codes 10–11

– The Lessons of Lighting Research 12–15
– Current Guidance and its Limitations 16–23

Key Issues in Workplace Lighting 24–29

Natural Light, Active Light & Balanced Light 30–37

Further Considerations in Workplace Lighting 38–47

Lighting Techniques – Comparing the Options 48–51

W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 52–97

Open Plan Offices 56–67

Cellular Offices 68–71

Dealer Rooms 72–75

Control Rooms 76–79

Call Centres 80–83

Communication Areas/Meeting Rooms 84–87

Break-Out Zones 88–91

Storage 92–93

Common Parts 94–97

WORKPLACE LIGHTING – LIGHTING DESIGN 98–135

Product Selector 100–133

Advisory Services 134–135

References & Useful Websites 135

IMPRINT

Publisher:
Zumtobel Staff GmbH, Dornbirn/A

Design:
Marketing Communication

Reprints, even in part, require the permission

of the publishers
© 2005 Zumtobel Staff GmbH, Dornbirn/A
Paul Morrell
President of the British Council for Offices (BCO)

London aims to continue being

Europe’s leading financial centre and
will need more, higher quality office
space in the future (photo: Piper’s
model of the future City of London,
shown at MIPIM 2005)
 FOREWORD 5

The UK office market, in particular in London, is changing, driven by a number of long-term trends in

international banking and finance. Informed forecasts, such as the recent Radley Report *, point, firstly,

to a shift towards our capital city, at the expense of Paris and Frankfurt, as Europe’s leading financial

centre, with a commensurate pressure on office space. Secondly, we can see a medium-to-long term

growth in the number of highly educated, mathematically literate graduates required to run these

complex, sophisticated financial operations. This shift from low skill to high skill staff puts a premium
Paul Morrell BSc FRICS
Hon FRIBA President on worker satisfaction, as they become ever more demanding of their company and working
of British Council for
Offices conditions. The lesson is clear – nothing is more important in a service economy like ours than the

efficiency of the working environment.

In today’s fast-moving marketplace, successful companies must invest in improved design and

specification, to attract and retain an increasingly valuable and demanding workforce. People, not

technology, must become the driving force of future office design. If one looks at the ratio of long-term

costs of any business, including building design, construction, maintenance and personnel, design is a

tiny fraction of the total – about 0.05 % of the cost of your workers. Yet that very small investment in

good design has been proven to have a huge impact on staff satisfaction, efficiency and profitability.

To put it another way, if a building can increase the productivity of its occupants by 10 per cent, you

essentially get it free.

For all these reasons, improved design and specification – and especially lighting, the subject of this

timely brochure from Zumtobel Staff Lighting – can make a significant contribution to long-term

success.

* The Outlook for Banks Operating in the City of London (Radley & Associates, March 2004)
People & The Workplace
As Organisations change, so does the Role of the Workplace

ources Mana
Historical Res ge
an m
en
Perspective um t
H
WORKFORCE
“the wages grow exponentially”

Lower qualified
Less Aspirational
Resistant to Change

Traditional division between Human Resources and Facilities Management

FM driven
Desk/task area focus
Functional

“a cost centre to be controlled”

WORKSTATION

Fa t
cil
ities m en
manage

ate Managem
Contemporary r por en
Co t
Best Practice wellness
war for talent
gymnasia
esprit de corps
brand in the workplace
very aspirational Productivity factors
management culture
influenced by lighting:
attraction, retention, motivation
Speed
WORKFORCE
Persistence
Living at Work
Accuracy
WORKPLACE
Attraction
lifestyle in the workplace Retention
added value Motivation
break out zones Satisfaction
open change agenda Happiness
common parts
differentiation Potential Untapped Lighting
flexiworking
Dividend
best practice lighting
The Untapped Lighting
Dividend

Single Path – Physiological

Generic practice Visual Task Conventional

lighting Capabilities Performance Productivity
(Louvred Downlights) Result

"Lighting and task

Best practice Visual Task conditions Enhanced
lighting Capabilities Performance
that improve visibility Productivity
(Direct/Indirect) lead to better task Dividend
performance"

Dual Path – Physiological & Psychological

Physiological Path

“Lighting and task

Visual Task conditions that improve
Capabilities Performance visibility lead to better task
performance”
Productivity factors
influenced by lighting:
“People with dimming
Personal Control control showed more Speed
Task sustained motivation, and
Performance Persistence
improved performance on
Motivation a measure of attention” Accuracy
Best practice
lighting Attraction
(Direct/Indirect and Retention
controls) “People with dimming con- Motivation
trol reported higher ratings
Personal Health & of lighting quality, overall
Satisfaction
Control Wellbeing environmental satisfaction, Happiness
and self-rated productivity”
The Untapped
“People who are more sat- Lighting Dividend
Appraisal isfied with their lighting, rate
Health & the space as more attrac-
Preference Wellbeing tive, are happier, and more
satisfied with their environ-
Mood ment and their work”
* ”This is the first time that this com-
Psychological Path* plete path has been demonstrated”
“Light is the key to well-being.”
– Le Corbusier
Constructing and operating a
building can cost a lot of money
– but not nearly as much as the
cost of the people who occupy
the building. In the same equa-
tion the cost of the lighting is
insignificant. Comparatively
small investment in better design
and better lighting can have a
huge, positive knock-on effect
for many years to come. Con-
versely bad design can push up
long-term costs – while hitting
the bottom line.
In a world where the pace of
change in work patterns, com-
pany practices and technology
is accelerating, we believe that
Integrated Model
of Lighting Quality*
– “Lighting is for more than
visibility”
– “Comfort is more than glare
control”
* Jennifer A. Veitch, Ph.D.
National Research Council of Canada
www.irc.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/ie/light
lighting design should be based
on the latest scientific research
into lighting and visual comfort –
most of which is ignored in
current advisory codes. As we
demonstrate on pages 12–15,
this research points towards a
number of significant conclu-
sions that are embodied in our
whole approach to workplace
lighting.
These pages illustrate how good
lighting can pay dividends. The
historical management perspec-
tive of the workplace – a cost to
be controlled – has lead to the
adoption of a standardised, and
flawed, lighting approach for
offices. But there are signs of
change. Exceptional businesses
are beginning to incorporate a
range of hygiene factors in their
ual We l l -
vid
d i
In
– visibility
– activity
– social & communication
– mood, comfort
– health & safety
– aesthetic judgement
The
Untapped
Lighting
Dividend
– installation
– maintenance
– operation
– energy
– environment
Eco
nomics
**
workplaces – gymnasia, break-
out zones, thoughtfully designed
common parts.
The advantages gained by such
hygiene factors are only just
beginning to be fully appreciated
– easier change management,
sense of belonging, mirroring
the employees own personal
aspirations – being just some.
So, far from being a cost to be
controlled, the workplace is
increasingly being viewed as an
asset to be managed. But all
the investment in hygiene fac-
tors and company culture can
be stifled if we follow the con-
ventional, flawed lighting design
path. As business management
changes so must lighting begin
to reap the untapped dividends
associated with the psychologi-
Be
in
g of job satisfaction, visual com-
– form
– composition
– style
– codes &
standards
A rc h i t ecture
cal, rather than purely visual,
aspects of lighting.
The leading financial houses in
the City of London and other
financial capitals have long
realised the importance of light-
ing – share dealer rooms, which
produce the most spectacular
profits, are always equipped
with state-of-the-art direct/indi-
rect lighting systems. Most have
sophisticated controls. Banks
and share traders know that
such systems create the most
stimulating and visually comfort-
able working environments.
However at Zumtobel Staff we
don’t believe that the best light-
ing should be confined only to
high profile bond traders and
the like – ordinary administrative
staff and other grades should
not have to compromise with
inferior, direct downlighter sys-
tems, which surveys show are
universally disliked. For the sake
fort and general well-being, they
also deserve the best lighting –
and that means direct/indirect
systems. These central princi-
ples, derived from the findings
of lighting science – direct/indi-
rect lighting and dynamic, vari-
able light levels – lie at the core
of this guide to office lighting. In
combination they correspond to
Zumtobel Staff’s central lighting
design philosophy, which can be
summed up in the phrase “light-
ing for people”.
** see Chart page 7
AWB_Workplace_Q_Produktb_UK.qxd 02.05.2005 10:37 Uhr Seite 7

Economics T H E C H A N G I N G C O R P O R AT E P E R S P E C T I V E 7

Photo: Allan Kell/Intelligent Buildings 2004

Extra for Best

Practice

Potential Lighting Cost M&E Fitout Shell & Core Rent 15 Years People Costs 15 Years
Untapped
Lighting
Dividend

Construction Costs Business Operating Costs

“I’m not saying you can
walk on light: it doesn’t
have structure, but it is
part of the structure of
the thinking of the archi-
tecture.”

Richard Meier
 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E 9

Workplace Lighting –
Past, Present and Future
Architect: Foster & Partners
Lighting Research
versus the Codes

“Light has a great influence on
human sensitivity. It reaches
the depths of one’s heart and
awakens something asleep
there.”
– Motoko Ishii
In 1992 Royal Life Holdings opened
their highly innovative new Head-
quarters in Peterborough in the UK,
designed by Arup Associates. There
was already recognition, re-inforced
by the success of this building, that
direct/indirect lighting provided a
preferable airy, attractive workplace.
Especially when considering the alter-
native gloom, so well illustrated here,
of the lower height spaces alongside,
fitted with the standard solution at
the time – Category 2 downlighters.
W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E
Office lighting design is in-
creasingly bound by a whole
raft of recommendations and
standards emanating from the
UK and the EC. A minority of
these standards and recommen-
dations are useful – others, as
we shall see, are either out-of-
date, due to the fast-moving
nature of office technology, or
run contrary to the findings of
the most recent lighting research
in both Europe and the USA.
Take the official codification of
“dark light” louvred downlights
in the 1980s, triggered by
increased VDT use in the work-
place. As a result of that single
recommendation, office lighting
undoubtedly went downhil, as
we were plunged into a new
“Dark Age”. The main problem
was the Code’s concentration
on luminaire selection in isola-
tion, rather than considering the
entire office environment in a
holistic way.
Unfortunately our misguided
codes have now come to pass
as good practice, because too
few skilled lighting designers
get the opportunity to design
genuinely creative workplace
lighting – as opposed to the
reception area, the boardroom
or the presentation suite, where
they are most often employed.
Developers don’t see good,
innovative office lighting as im-
portant, preferring instead to
allow non-lighting specialists to
design and install humdrum,
and even harmful, lighting,
according to a crude distillation
of the Codes – an approach we
sum up as “working inside the
box”. As the introduction to the
DIAL research (see page 13)
pessimistically reports, “good
lighting designs are rare”.
At Zumtobel Staff we question
this approach. We would argue
that research indicates that
11
lighting is a much more signifi-
cant factor in workplace health
and efficiency than is generally
recognised – and should be left
to the real lighting professionals.
The best, healthiest and most
effective lighting schemes result
from qualified, experienced
designers thinking “outside the
box” – basing their designs not
on outdated codes and recom-
mendations, but on the latest
findings of lighting science.
On pages 12–15 we summarise
the conclusions of the most
important pieces of recent
research in the area of work-
place lighting. Then on pages
16–23 we analyse current office
lighting standards and recom-
mendations, to see how they
measure up to these research
findings.
AWB_Workplace_Q_Produktb_UK.qxd
The Lessons
of Lighting Research
Light Right test site – In the most comprehensive study of its type researchers found overwhelming user preference for direct/indirect lighting systems.
1. Getting the
Light Right
The “Light Right” Consortium
is an independent authoritative
research body in the USA,
managed by the Pacific North-
west National Laboratory and
supported by the Illuminating
Engineering Society of North
America, the International Asso-
ciation of Lighting Designers,
the International Facility Man-
agers Association, the US
Department of Energy and the
US Environmental Protection
Agency, amongst others.
02.05.2005 10:39 Uhr
In probably the most compre-
hensive study of its type con-
ducted in Albany, New York,
researchers found that:
• Good lighting improves pro-
ductivity*
• 29–31 % of people under
downlight only systems rated
them as uncomfortable
• 91 % of people were comfort-
able with a system of direct/
indirect, wall washing and
dimming control
• Dimming control over work-
station lighting “increased
motivation” and allowed users
to “sustain their persistence
and vigilance over time”, and
be “more accurate”
• “People who are more satis-
fied with their lighting rate the
Seite 12
space as more attractive, are
happier, and are more com-
fortable and satisfied with their
environment and work.”
• “This is the first time that
this complete path has been
demonstrated”
To quote Ron Lewis, chairperson
of the Light Right Consortium,
“Lighting does matter. We have
sampled major US corporations
and found a strong connection
between lighting, productivity
and its overall value to busines-
ses.”
* The Light Right website
(www.lightright.org) reproduces the
research and results.
Co-author of the Light Right research:
J.A. Veitch. She is much respected for
this and other work done with the
Institute for Research in Construction,
Ottawa.
AWB_Workplace_Q_Produktb_UK.qxd 02.05.2005 10:39 Uhr Seite 13

W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E 13

DIAL research test site showing two examples below where accent lighting materially improved user perception of the space, compared with the conventional
scenarios above.

2. Accent pictures and also onto desks,

on Interest using spotlights or other point
sources, were preferred over
DIAL, the German Institute of all other scenarios. This finding
Applied Lighting, is an extremely fits well with one of the central
reputable and influential re- principles of Zumtobel Staff’s
search body, which also produ- approach – that the best results
ces DIALUX, one of the leading are obtained by a combination
lighting industry software pro- of different types of luminaire,
grammes. In 1999 it carried out which might include accent
research into user preferences lighting (see Products and
for a number of office lighting Resources).
scenarios, using a variety of
luminaire types (see photos).
Subjects’ assessments were
made in terms of functionality,
impression of brightness and
the overall attractiveness of
the space. One of the central
findings was that office scenes
which contained additional
accent lighting, particularly onto
The Lessons
of Lighting Research
The Fleischer research found that our preference for quantity and type of light
varies according to task.
3. Dynamic Lighting
for Stimulation
Susanne Fleischer is a promi-
nent German researcher who
until recently worked at the
Institute for Hygiene and Occu-
pational Physiology in Zurich.
She is the former head of the
“Lighting Harmony” research
project, which has found that
people’s mood, motivation, per-
formance and feelings of satis-
faction vary throughout the day,
depending on interior and ex-
terior light levels and their own
internal circadian rhythms. In
particular she found that people
preferred direct lighting when
the sky was overcast and indi-
rect lighting when the sky was
clear and sunny. She also found
that “cool” colour temperature
lighting was more stimulating
than “warm” colour tempera-
tures.
The implication is that a static
lighting scene throughout the
day, is not the best way to moti-
vate and enhance performance.
More desirable is a lighting sys-
tem that can vary not just the
level, but also the ratio of
uplight to downlight, as well as
varying the colour temperature.
These functions are possible
with Zumtobel Staff lighting
systems and are covered in
our pages on Active Light and
Balanced Light starting on
pages 34 and 35.
Fleischer found a clear relationship between lighting conditions outside and
inside. People prefer warm direct lighting when the sky is overcast, and in-
direct cool lighting when sunny.
Fleischer concludes: “… It is
possible to draw up variable
lighting situations … which pro-
vide an appropriate response
to the requirements for type of
activity, activation and well-
being”. And again “It is therefore
possible to create lighting scena-
rios for office applications which
are ergonomically appropriate
and, moreover, which have a
positive effect on people’s sub-
jective well-being.”
4. “Cool” Light
for the “Third Eye”
The final body of research with
important implications for office
lighting has recently emerged
from a number of research cen-
tres, including Brown University
in the USA. The main findings
are that, firstly, light does not
simply affect the human body
through our sense of vision. It
appears that we also possess a
so-called “third eye”, a unique
non-visual photo-receptor cell in
the retina directly linked to the
pineal gland, which in turn regu-
lates our bodily cycles.
What is particularly interesting is
that this cell is especially res-
ponsive to certain types of light,
 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E 15

Research shows that the “third eye” receptor is far more responsive to light at Levels of attentiveness vary over a 24 hour cycle.
the blue end of the spectrum as shown.

at the blue end of the spectrum York suggests that 18 lux of

(410–460 nm). Exposure to blue light is more effective at Where the Research • Should have forms of control

blue, or “cool” blue-tinted light, lowering melatonin levels than Takes Us that allow for varying light

seems to encourage the pineal 450 lux of white light. levels and distribution patterns

gland to suppress the produc- The implications of this body according to time of day and

tion of melatonin (which makes of research for office lighting outside conditions

us sleep) and therefore impro- design are clear: • A degree of local control is

ves alertness. And the light • Offices should ideally have desirable

doesn’t have to be very bright – direct/indirect lighting systems • “Cool” colour temperature

recent discoveries at the Light- and wall washing lamps are best for maintaining

ing Research Centre in New • Lighting should always be alertness and performance.
achieved with a mix of luminaires

visual pathway
(images)

photobiological
pathway

blue light (especially)

suppresses melatonin
Current Guidance
and its Limitations
Pentland International plc’s new North London headquarters – this 2003 British Council for Office’s Best of the Best Award winner features considerable lighting
ingenuity. Architect: GHM Rock Townsend, Building Services: Fulcrum
Unfortunately, as we will see,
most of the current codes
are either in conflict with one
another – or don’t measure
up to the findings of current
research, being founded more
on outdated prejudices and
half-understood ideas.
1. The BCO
Fit-Out Guide
The British Council for Offices
is a hugely influential body that
represents the main players in
office development. Its Fit-Out
Guide*, which is regularly up-
dated in the light of new evi-
dence and changing market
conditions, is written by people
who are both pragmatic and
market-led. Due to the growing
influence of the BCO, its guides
are rapidly pushing other
Codes, such as those generat-
ed by CIBSE, to the margins.
One of the important distinc-
tions the BCO makes in the
latest Fit-Out Guide (October
2003) is between Category A
(CAT A) and Category B (CAT B)
CAT A and CAT B
fit-outs for speculative office
buildings – a distinction we
Fit-outs Explained
refer to throughout this publica-
A CAT A fit-out is the most
tion. The box at right summaris-
basic fit-out (including floor
es this distinction. Lighting is
coverings, ceilings, floors,
included in the CAT A fit-out
M&E, WCs and most impor-
provision, as part of “basic
tantly, lighting) undertaken by
mechanical and electrical servi-
the developer and/or letting
ces”, despite the fact that it is
agent to sell the space in a
impossible to know the final
speculative development.
users’ needs and furniture confi-
It is based on an open-plan
guration at that stage. It is,
working scenario but is
however, again mentioned
usually potentially sub-di-
under CAT B as part of “Mecha-
visible, if necessary. As soon
nical and electrical services
as a client has been found,
tailoring and upgrades”.
he will take on the open-plan
specification – or will com-
* The BCO also publish a Best Practice
Guide, the 2005 edition to which mission a different fit-out.
Zumtobel Staff has contributed.
 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E 17

Wessex Water, near Bath, U.K. This building is one of very few ever to have achieved an “Excellent” rating under the BRE Environmental Assessment Method.
Wessex Water was the first ever to achieve the highest possible rating of 10. Architect: Bennetts Associates, Building Services: Buro Happold

In fact, as yet, lighting is not a no added value in appointing lighting schemes, to cope with
A CAT B fit-out is a bespoke
major priority for the BCO – specialist lighting designers for future change, with addressable
fit-out commissioned if the
there is no specific mention of the lighting fit-out of the areas lighting controls and modular
client comes on board at an
lighting on the Contents page of where most ordinary staff work lighting systems. In its summary
early stage – or after the CAT
the current Fit-Out Guide – it is for most of the day. When they of the different types of lighting
A fit-out has already been
instead lumped in with “Building do appoint them, they do so system available, it does give
installed. It may include a
Services”, so advice is difficult only for the specialist areas of suspended, or freestanding,
new lighting scheme, blinds,
to find. When you do find the the shell-and-core, such as the direct/indirect systems the high-
partitions, IT systems, tele-
small section on lighting, the entrance area and the atrium. est recommendation.
phones, wall finishes etc.
message is mixed, but it com-
Often, but not always, the
mences with the following For the rest the BCO Guide is Daylight use and control is
CAT A scheme, including the
important observation: the only UK advisory document briefly mentioned – and there is
lighting, will be ripped out
that refers to VDT screen testing an awareness of the issue of
and everything re-specified
“Design guidance is no longer and the recommendations of glare. The Guide states “use of
from scratch. For obvious
prescriptive and allows consider- EN29241-7 (see page 26). It blinds … should be considered
reasons, a CAT B fit-out will
able freedom for a suitably quali- also proposes varied lighting early on in the design process”.
usually cost more than a
fied and experienced designer levels between 500 and 300 lux Zumtobel Staff would take this
CAT A scheme.
to produce certified, compliant with provision for task lighting further – in fact, on page 32 we
schemes of the quality required.” for the visually impaired and make a strong case for blinds
energy use targets for lighting in being included as part of the
Unfortunately, as we have alrea- CAT A fit-outs of 12 W/m2. CAT A fit-out.
dy discussed, developers see There is an emphasis on flexible
Current Guidance
and its Limitations

Part L encourages the use of direct-indirect luminaires. The BRE “Ideal office” is their own signature office and makes full use of indi-
Video Arts. Building Services: Downie Consulting rect-direct lighting, even being incorporated under the downstand areas. The
wave-form ceiling provides a very even fall-off of ceiling luminance.

2. Building Regulations
(Part L)
for Commercial Buildings
The Building Regulations (Part L)
for Commercial Buildings, 2001,
as applied to lighting, are the
British government’s latest rather
blunt instrument for cutting
energy use in buildings, to com-
ply with the Kyoto agreement on
climate change. In summary, for
commercial buildings (with some
minor exceptions) Part L speci-
fies a maximum energy use of
40 luminaire lumens per watt
averaged across the entire buil-
ding (and according to recent
government statements, this
may be increased by 25 % in
the near future).
The first thing to say is that the
advent of Part L has made
many professionals concentrate
exclusively on designing for
energy savings at the expense
of other criteria. Lighting design
driven solely by energy use is
not necessarily good design.
For example a scheme using
only direct downlighters may
well comply with Part L, but it
will not create visually comfor-
table working conditions for
people who work there. Good
lighting design is lighting desig-
ned for people, who in the long
term are much more important
than energy savings – but there
is no reason why good, visually
comfortable lighting designs
can’t easily comply with Part L.
3. BRE
Environmental Assessment
Method (BREEAM)
For over a decade, the BRE’s
Environmental Assessment
Method (BREEAM) has been
used to assess the environ-
mental performance of both
new and existing buildings. It is
regarded by the UK’s construc-
tion and property sectors as
the measure of best practice
in environmental design and
management. The building
types covered by BREEAM are
offices, homes, industrial units
and retail units and the pro-
gramme’s main criteria concern
energy use and health and well-
being, amongst other things.
Credits are awarded against the
criteria and an overall score
rates the building as “Pass”,
“Good”, “Very Good” and
“Excellent”. On the BREEAM
for offices checklist, the salient
criteria related to workplace
lighting and visual conditions are
included in the section “Health
and Well-being”. Some of these
are already standard practice,
but some are not so well known:
• At least 80 % of the net lett-
able floor area should be ade-
quately daylit.
• There should be an occupant-
controlled system of glare
control (e.g. internal or exter-
nal blinds).
• High frequency ballasts should
be installed in office luminaires.

This European installation would undoubtedly score “very good” or better
under the BREEAM rating system.
• Maintained lighting levels
should be between 350–400 lux
and the louvre design should
comply with the LG3 Adden-
dum 2001.
• Control systems for lighting in
open-plan office spaces,
where there is circulation
space and daylighting, should
be zoned into groups, with
any one lighting group cover-
ing no more than four work-
places.
• All workstations should have
a view outside (open air or
atrium) with a maximum dis-
tance of seven metres (approxi-
mately two office desk spaces)
to the nearest window.
W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E
Under the Energy section, there
is no specific reference to the
traditional measure of power
usage (W/m2) nor to Part L’s term,
Luminaire Lumens per Circuit
Watt. Rather, BREEAM predicts
energy use and measures these
in CO 2 emissions (see page 45).
BREEAM’s programme is an
important and worthy initiative
in the push to improve our
commercial building stock.
However, if BREEAM is indeed
promoting Best Practice, it
should incorporate the following
design measures in its checklist:
• The installation of blinds as
part of the Cat A fit out,
because they are expensive
additions at the Cat B stage.
19
Photo: RT Rafn Sigur∂sson
The LIGHT FIELDS suspended direct/indirect range incorporates the MPO
(micro-pyramidal optic) to ensure glare-free lighting whilst having a very high
LOR (up to 86 %).
• The provision of high frequency
dimming ballasts as a mini-
mum in perimeter zones.
• Localised task area lighting
instead of uniform lighting.
• Mandatory daylight dimming
controls where the Daylight
Factor exceeds 2 %.
• Lighting systems that have
gained high user preference in
recent research surveys.
• Amendment of the emphasis
on louvre fittings, which
seems to mitigate against
other lighting solutions, such
as direct/indirect systems,
which the BRE has installed in
its own signature building! In
any case LG3 expressly exclu-
des compliance by luminaire
selection only.
Current Guidance
and its Limitations

Building Services: Jones King

The latest generation of MELLOW LIGHT (IV) showing excellent wall and ceil- This Highly Commended installation was designed by Pinniger & Partners in
ing luminance. 1993, predating the LG3 Addendum by 8 years. This is simply a Category 3 lumi-
naire modified by a dropped defractor to put light on walls and ceilings.

4. SLL (CIBSE) 5. SLL (CIBSE) Lighting
Code for Lighting Guide 3 (LG3) –
The Visual Environment for
The CIBSE SLL Code for Light- Display Screen Use
ing is one of the best, most
comprehensive textbooks avail- LG3 is probably the most used
able on the lighting of interiors. document over the last decade
It includes not only detailed in terms of lighting specification
schedules of illuminance for for offices. The document com-
different types of space, it offers prises an erudite dissertation on
a welter of good lighting design the issues, problems and solu-
advice, a survey of various tions of lighting spaces for
visual effects and an extensive VDTs. The document has, how-
glossary of terms. ever, been generally misapplied
in that users ignored the objec-
tives of lighting the room but
rather defaulted to compliance
by luminaire selection only.
To counter this problem the SLL
issued an Addendum in 2001
that dropped the “Category”
rating system for luminaires and
instead introduced a “Certificate
of Conformity”, which addressed
all the relevant issues, and requi-
red the room, not the lighting
equipment, to Comply with LG3.
While retaining some of the use-
ful design tenets of the earlier
LG3, including the need to put
light onto walls and ceilings, the
Addendum adopted very odd
criteria for ceiling lighting – and
missed an opportunity to up-
date its advice on VDT screens:
A. The latest LG3 puts too
much emphasis on lighting the
walls by prescribing a task/wall/
ceiling illuminance ratio of
100/50/30. However, wall illumi-
nance really only has significance

Arup Associates own offices illustrate the benefit of direct-indirect lighting
despite the low ceiling height.
for the visual appearance of
cellular offices (where much of
the wall area is likely to be gl-
azed in any case). In the vast
majority of offices, which are
open-plan, the walls are gene-
rally too far away to make much
of a contribution to the visual
scene.
We would argue that in terms of
the visual appearance of most
office spaces, getting light onto
the ceiling is far more important
as the large area of the ceiling
dominates the peripheral vision.
However, ceiling brightness is a
luminance issue, not a question
of illuminance (is LG3 compliance
really going to be tested by
engineers standing on desks,
holding their illuminance meters
W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E
up to the ceiling?). And the best
way to ensure a bright ceiling is
by using direct/indirect lighting
systems. Situations where a
direct/indirect approach is not
possible, due to low ceiling
heights, are discussed on page
50–51.
B. More importantly, LG3 is
still fixated on lighting for VDT
screens rather than people,
whereas recent advances in flat
screen VDT technology threaten
to make this issue a dead duck
within two years. Most modern
positive (black on white) flat
screen VDT terminals are not
susceptible to luminaire reflec-
tions – but in any case they can
be easily tested to determine
their actual susceptibility.
21
With no view to the exterior this training centre is saved by the direct-indirect
lighting solution.
As long ago as 1997 BS
EN 29241-7 (Ergonomic Requi-
rements for Office Work with
Visual Display Terminals) recom-
mended screen testing, to dis-
cover the actual glare limits of
individual types of screen, but
LG3, written four years later,
does not recommend this course
of action – instead it has arbi-
trarily chosen a fixed upper
luminance limit on fittings of
1500 cd/m2. This figure was not
chosen on the basis of any
genuine research and is already
massively out-of-date, as the
real figures for different VDT
screens in the Table on page 25
show. Some modern screens
can now tolerate luminances
above 5000 cd/m 2 without cau-
sing visual discomfort.
Current Guidance
and its Limitations

To avoid gloom, increase the percentage of light on the ceiling far beyond the Pillars and air-conditioning are two more considerations when designing “task
recommended levels. area” lighting.

6. SLL (CIBSE) Lighting
Guide 7
(LG7) Office Lighting Guide
The draft copy of this document
is fairly extensive, but few people
will find the document of great
interest. In fact it is unclear why
it has been produced at all,
except as a fund-raising mea-
sure. LG7 has all the hallmarks
of being written by a committee
over an extensive period of time
– for example, all the criteria
relating to VDT lighting remain
the same as LG3 Addendum
2001. However, there is no
mention of EN 12464-1 or
EN 29241 and most of the com-
mentary is very basic and ele-
mentary. Most worryingly, it
makes a recommendation, that
the illuminance ratio of the
ceiling to the working plane
should be 20 % – another 10 %
lower than even LG3 and the
BCO Guide – which would
de-prioritise the lighting of the
ceiling even further.
7. BS EN 12464-1
BS EN 12464-1 has recently
been published as a British
Standard in an endeavour to
harmonise lighting standards in
Europe – an effort that has
taken many years. EN 12464
does not give detailed design
advice and in this regard the
SLL Code for Lighting (see
page 22) seems set to remain
the “bible” of applied interior
lighting.
task
area
height =
0.75 m
use
r flo
or-a
rea
1.00 m
One major development embo-
died in BS EN 12464-1 is that
the concept of “maintained illu-
minance” and the UGR glare
index system have been intro-
duced to Europe for the first
time, although the UK has been
familiar with these for years.
EN 12464-1 also contains an
extremely low (1000 Cd/m2) VDT
luminance limit which is clearly
nonsensical today, but probably
reflects the time the document
took to prepare and produce.

Lighting for People: MELLOW LIGHT IV Balanced offers the opportunity to alter the colour temperature throughout the day in response to user preference.
BS EN 12464-1 strongly encou-
rages designers to adopt “task
area” lighting (known in the UK
as localised lighting) which is the While it is not possible to dis-
positioning of luminaires over, or cuss all the measures pertaining
close to, the main working area.
This is defined as the desk area, vironment embodied in this Act,
plus the notional chair zone, as
depicted in the diagram oppo-
site. It proposes lighting to
500 lux within the task zone,
reducing to 300 lux elsewhere.
Localised lighting systems have
long been considered in the UK.
Reduced power density and
energy usage make them attrac-
tive but they do require the
designers to know the space-
planning at early concept stage.
This is not likely in the specula-
tive developer led UK market.
W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E 23
8. The Disability
9. Conclusion the findings of the most advan-
Discrimination Act
ced lighting research offer a
Many of the current lighting more solid starting point for
codes and recommendations, lighting excellence, than out-of-
most notably LG3, LG7 and date codes and confused and
to lighting and the interior en-
Part L, are way behind con- contradictory recommendations.
temporary lighting research – In the following Section, we out-
we firmly believe that lighting
and on the whole, do not offer line our distinctive approach to
that has been well designed,
effective guidance to produc- some of the central issues.
according to the approach spelt
ing quality lighting design for
out in this brochure, should
the workplace. Others, such
meet all the necessary require-
as the BCO Fit-out Guide and
ments. However, it should be
the BREEAM proposals, are
stressed that designers should
flawed but also have much to
take cognisance of the Act,
commend them.
and the needs of the visually
impaired, when proposing a re-
On the whole, Zumtobel Staff
duction in workplace light levels,
prefers to base its approach to
for energy-saving or other pur-
lighting design on the principle
poses.
of lighting for people and their
visual comfort. We believe that
Key Issues
in Workplace Lighting
 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E 25

“We find beauty not in the thing
itself but in the patterns of
shadows, the light and the
darkness, that one thing
against another creates.”
– Jun’ichiro Tanizaki, In Praise
of Shadows
When thinking about office light-
ing design, there are a number
of key issues that need to be
considered. In this section we
look at these issues in the light
of the most recent research out-
lined above – and put forward
our considered design recom-
mendations and solutions. By
designing “outside the box”,
rather than within the confines
of the orthodox, but misguided,
recommendations embodied in
the codes, we will demonstrate
that more pleasant, visually
comfortable and stimulating
office spaces can be created as
a result, while at the same time
achieving a Certificate of Con-
formity.

Blurred Lmax (cd/m 2) Type Make and Model Date of Class Luminaire types with
Image positive manufacture enhanced brightness

9500 CRT LG Flatron 915 FT Plus Dec-02 I

4900 FPD Nokia 500Xa 15" FPD Jun-99 I
4400 FPD Compaq TFT 5005 15" FPD Oct-00 I
3800 FPD LG Flatron LCD 575 MS 15" FPD Nov-00 I
3700 FPD NEC Multisync LCD1760NX Apr-03 I
3700 CRT Samsung Syncmaster 700 IFT 17" CRT Nov-99 I
3500 FPD NEC Multisync 1810X Nov-01 I
3500 FPD Nokia Pro 800+ 18" FPD Oct-99 I
3200 FPD Dell Ultrashop 1504FP Nov-02 I
3100 CRT Ilyama LS902UT Visionmaster 1451 Feb-02 I
3000 FPD NEC 208UX+ Nov-03 I Brighter luminaires =
Increasing tolerance to
Light, airy, upbeat
reflections
2700 FPD Ilyama TXA 3813MT 15" FPD Not Known I environment
2500 FPD NEC 1980X Jan-04 I
Darker luminaires =
Reducing tolerance to 2200 CRT Compaq 7500 PE1163T Feb-02 I Gloomy, oppressive
reflections 2000 FPD LG 560LS Jun-01 I downbeat environment
2000 LAPTOP Toshiba Tecra 8000 LAPTOP Jun-98 I
1900 FPD Samsung Syncmaster 700 TFT 17" FPD Not Known I
1800 FPD LG Studioworks 500 LC 15" FPD Feb-99 I
1700 FPD LG 1510S Aug-02 I
1700 FPD Samsung 15" FPD Not Known I
LG3:2001 B2.1 1500 cd/m2 limit
1400 FPD LG Studioworks 880 LC 18" FPD Dec-99 I
1400 CRT Dell D828L 14" CRT Dec-97 II
1300 CRT Samsung Syncmaster 753s Oct-01 I
1200 CRT Samsung Syncmaster 550s 15" CRT Not Known I

Sharp LG3:2001 B2.1 1000 cd/m2 limit Typical “Cat 2”

Image 900 CRT AOC 4NLR 14" CRT Jan-95 I modular downlight

Please visit our website for further details: http://www.zumtobelstaff.co.uk/screentesting

“Standards and Regulations
are out of step with Current
Research”
– Bob Venning, Director of Arup The luminance limitations given
Lighting, LEN April 2004
1. Taking the Screen
Test Results
in LG3 are not emphatically
derived and bear no resem-
blance to actual fact.
Above is a table of actual mea-
sured data for many types of
screen. The screens were origi-
nally tested following Lloyd,
Mizukami, Boyce, A preliminary
model of lighting display interac-
tion 1995 and more recently BS
EN 29241-7. Ergonomic requi-
rements for office work with
visual display terminals.
Key Issues
in Workplace Lighting
Layout of Zumtobel Staff’s screen test laboratory.
1. Taking the
Screen Test – Conclusion
As we have already demonstrat-
ed, the correct procedure for
determining the glare limits of
VDT screens is not to set an
arbitrary figure but actually to
test them, as recommended in
BS EN 29241-7 Ergonomic
Requirements for Office Work
with Visual Display Terminals,
1997. Some of the latest results
for modern screens are shown
in the table on page 25. In fact
in the UK only Zumtobel Staff
currently undertakes screen
brightness tests, according
to the recommendations of
BS EN 29241-7. We believe this
is the correct course of action,
rather than designing the entire
office lighting scheme around
mere supposition. So we offer a
service to all our clients to have
a sample VDT screen tested at
our state-of-the-art facility.
More recently ISO BS EN 13406:
2002 entitled Ergonomic requi-
rements for visual display units
based on flat panels has been
introduced. BS EN 13406:2002
is based on the same basic prin-
ciples as BS EN 29241 but with
additional measurements and cal-
culations required. These are
included in the Zumtobel Staff
testing of such screens.
Contact our Technical Depart-
ment for more details.
www.zumtobelstaff.co.uk/
screentesting
Since time immemorial luminaires with a sidelight component (opal diffusers in
this case) have contributed to the appearance of ceiling brightness.
2. Putting Light
on the Ceiling
On previous pages we discussed
the importance of putting light
on the ceiling, in terms of the
overall visual brightness of the
space. This is best done with
direct/indirect luminaires, offering
variable ratios of lighting distri-
bution, which can be digitally
controlled for different condi-
tions and times of day.
However, as we have already
discussed, this is not always
possible, due to low ceiling
heights or the requirement to
maintain an existing grid of
recessed luminaires. Here we
recommend an alternative
design approach which we call
“Ceiling Brightness Impression”
or CBI for short, which takes
into account the visual bright-
ness of the fittings themselves
as contributors to the overall
brightness of the ceiling.
Erroneously, this is something
that CIBSE and SLL have pre-
cluded in LG3.
So let’s examine a user’s real
visual impression of two office
spaces. In this visual test, there
are two vistas of the same office
equipped, firstly, with recessed
louvre light fittings and, secondly,
with recessed dual component
fittings, both seen from normal
viewing angles. It is quite clear
that the ceiling in the second
installation appears considerably
brighter, even though the illumi-

Dark louvred fittings give an impression of a dark ceiling while self-luminous luminaires quite evidently make the ceiling appear brighter.
nance of the ceiling surfaces is
the same.
The only conclusion is that the
brightness of the luminaires
themselves makes a real contri-
bution to the ceiling’s overall
brightness, because the eye
combines the different bright-
ness contrasts within the field
of view. This is the principle of
the term Ceiling Brightness
Impression (CBI). The use of
self-luminous, dual component
fittings can be seen to have a
positive effect on how the en-
vironment appears – and, at the
same time, dark, non-self-lumi-
nous luminaires can have a
negative effect on CBI.
W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E
To demonstrate further the
importance of CBI, Zumtobel
Staff has developed special
software based on the repu-
table, well-established CIE Glare
Algorithm, to enable accurate
calculations to be made of the
exact additional brightness
gained from the use of self-lumi-
nous, dual component fittings.
The results come in the form of
a table of CBI values for lumi-
naires viewed both crosswise
and endwise, which can then be
added to the existing percen-
tage of task illuminance on the
ceiling, to derive the total ceiling
brightness (see website for
more details).
In conclusion, dual component
luminaires, such as MELLOW
27
LIGHT or SYNTO, make a Guide) “the creation of a com-
strong contribution to the CBI fortable, stimulating visual en-
of a space, whereas non-self- vironment by careful control of
luminous luminaires (such as surface brightness and contrast
standard “dark light” louvres) ratios”, how can CBI not be
have a negative effect on CBI. taken into account?
In both cases the CBI effect
must be taken into account, For further information about
because brightness contrasts CBI or information on our CBI
strongly influence the cognitive calculation software, go to our
experience of a space and a website:
users’ appreciation of its visual www.zumtobelstaff.co.uk/CBI
quality.
There is no logic to CIBSE and
SLL’s refusal to allow luminaire
brightness to be considered as
an important, contributory factor
in the apparent brightness of
the ceiling. If the overall objec-
tive of any lighting design is (in
the words of the BCO Fit-out
Key Issues
in Workplace
Lighting
AWB_Workplace_Q_Produktb_UK.qxd 03.05.2005 11:20 Uhr Seite 29
W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E
3. Walls in the
Cellular Office
The lighting of walls becomes a
major issue in cellular offices,
which tend to be the premium
office spaces arranged around
the perimeter of the building.
Most often two of the four walls
will comprise windows and
glazed interior partitions. The
window wall will require effec-
tive, light-coloured blinds for
solar control by day and to aid
the lit effect after dark, when
they serve to reflect light back
into the room, rather than the
window appearing as an unlit
dark hole.
We would generally recommend
multi-component luminaires for
such spaces to increase the
degree of ceiling brightness –
these could be direct/indirect
systems or dual component fit-
tings (see page 50). Where
downlighters are used, it is
important to select one of the
interior walls and make sure
that it is well lit, through the
use of additional perimeter wall
washers.
Without windows, providing
good illuminance on some
walls makes all the difference.
4. Guaranteeing
Conformity
The concept of the Declaration
of Conformity, to be signed by
designers at the end of a light-
ing project, to guarantee its
compliance with codes on ergo-
nomics, health and energy use,
was proposed in the latest LG3
document – probably in too
hurried a fashion, without suffi-
cient consultation. As a result
take-up has been patchy, partly
because it is not a legal obliga-
tion and designers are worried
about it affecting their professio-
nal indemnity. The main drivers
of the Declaration of Conformity
are Zumtobel Staff and the
BCO, whose Fit-Out Guide calls
for the artificial lighting to be
“provided with a Certificate of
Conformity to LG3 and Part L”.
Society of Light International Association
and Lighting of Lighting Designers
LG3 2001: Certificate of Conformity
29
We feel that the Declaration
of Conformity is a useful vehicle
for allowing and encouraging
good designers the freedom to
work “outside the box”, to pro-
duce creative, visually interest-
ing lighting schemes. In such
cases, only trained, experienced
members of the CIBSE Society
of Light & Lighting (SLL), the
International Association of
Lighting Designers (IALD) and
the European Lighting Design-
ers’ Association (ELDA) should
be given the responsibility for
issuing a Declaration of Confor-
mity to LG3 or Part L.
European Lighting
Designers’ Association
Natural Light, Active Light
& Balanced Light

“Surfaces define the shape of
our world; light allows us to
see them.”
– George M Whiteside, On the
Surface of Things
W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E
1. Working
with Daylight
While artificial lighting has be-
come increasingly sophisticated
in recent years, it can’t compare
with our greatest light source –
daylight. Daylight and sunlight is
free, unlimited, non-polluting
and full of variety – and research
shows that access to daylit
views is seen as highly desirable
by office users.
So on visual comfort and energy-
saving grounds, any modern
workplace must recognise the
presence and desirability of day-
light – and should be designed
to make best use of it, in a fully
integrated manner.
However, natural daylight pro-
vides both a threat and an
opportunity. Direct sunlight can
create uncomfortable visual
conditions – excessive illumi-
nance, discomfort and disability
glare, screen reflections, and
sometimes constant, rapid
change – as well as thermal dis-
comfort. Brightness contrasts
within a space can be consider-
able for people moving in and
out of a direct sunlit area.
Diffuse daylight from an over-
cast, but possibly still quite
bright, sky solves many of the
problems associated with direc-
tional sunlight. The light quality
is generally diffuse with slow
rates of change and reduced
contrasts.
Despite the contribution daylight
can make, modern artificial
lighting is nearly always planned
with the “worst case” scenario
in mind – i.e. that it is completely
dark outside. Many buildings
employ conventional switching
techniques which often mean
that all the light fixtures remain
switched on, irrespective of the
daylight state. More sophisti-
cated buildings often employ
various forms of photocell-based
lighting control system, which
are, on the whole, usually speci-
fied to achieve one purpose
alone – energy savings. This
usually means that as daylight
increases, artificial lighting is
dimmed; and when daylight
reaches a sufficient level, it is
eventually switched off.
While the energy savings accrued
by such a system are signifi-
cant, little account is taken
31
during this process, of lighting
quality. This is because lighting
control system sellers are, in the
main, electrically biased, rather
than qualified in lighting. They
tend to consider energy as the
number one, easily quantifiable
target, while issues such as
glare, contrast and the psychol-
ogy of the lit space, do not im-
pinge on their thinking. Zumtobel
Staff believes that simply dim-
ming down or switching off
artificial lighting, as daylight
increases, is an over-simplified
approach – in fact, in many
situations it may be desirable
to increase the light output of
artificial lighting as daylight
increases.
Natural Light, Active Light
& Balanced Light

The highly sophisticated blinds used here turn conventional wisdom on its When the blinds are fully closed the view out is partially preserved and the
head. When fully open they allow an unrestricted exterior view but with possi- glare threat eliminated. However, contrary to conventional thinking, ceiling illu-
ble glare issues. The compensation for this are the bright interior surfaces. minance is increased because the blinds are designed as “sun scoops”.

We also believe that the provi-
sion of blinds should be part of
the fundamental lighting design
package for any building. While
blinds are conventionally seen
as part of the architectural de-
sign, their relevance to lighting
should not be under-estimated.
During the day properly desig-
ned, light coloured blinds can
be used to maximise the advan-
tages of daylight, while avoiding
the downside of glare – and
at the same time, they can pre-
serve important exterior views
from inside the building. Particu-
larly in small cellular offices,
they also have a vital role to
play at night, by acting as light
reflectors on one, or occasio-
nally, two window walls, which
has a huge influence on the
lit effect within the space. provided in the basic Cat A fit-
Without blinds, the windows out for office developments (see
become “black holes” after page 16–17). Instead, they tend
dark, allowing a great deal of to be provided as part of a Cat
wasted light to exit the building. B, tenant fit-out after the light-
ing design and installation has
Manually controlled blinds are long been completed. A sub-
the norm but experience shows standard, uncoordinated result
that user positioning invariably is almost inevitable.
leads to a chaotic and messy
appearance. Electrically operat-
ed, automatically controlled
blinds are normally outside the
scope of ordinary control sys-
tems that typically use internal,
room photocells which cannot
cope with sophisticated require-
ments. The provision of blinds,
preferably properly automated
and controlled, is a fundamental
factor in the visual comfort of an
interior. Yet they are seldom

These 2 photographs are of the same office but inside and outside the perimeter zone. The areas are functionally similar but are fundamentally different in their
access to daylight and therefore require different but complimentary lighting approaches.
2. Lighting for the
Perimeter Zone
Moving into the building away
from the windows, we come
across the “transition zone” or
“perimeter zone” between natu-
rally lit and wholly artificially lit
interiors. This often neglected
area is critically important in
determining the appearance,
feel and balance of the entire
space. For a start, the contribu-
tion of daylight can, depending
on the window design, remain
significant even considerable
distances into the space. For
example, while high levels of
daylight within the perimeter
areas tend to create bright,
upbeat environments, those
workers who are positioned
W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E
closer to the centre of the
building may experience the en-
vironment as gloomy and poorly
lit, due to the contrast of their
space with the perimeter.
In this situation there is a strong
argument for different lighting
systems to be used in perimeter
and deeper plan areas, to ease
the transition from daylight to
artificial light. However, the
standard solution has been to
apply a uniform, regular array
across both these areas, ignor-
ing that they are completely
different (except at night). Alter-
natively there is a strong ten-
dency to put circular recessed
downlights along the window
wall, for no rational reason
other than the fact that ceiling
sections here tend to be solid,
so precluding rows of recessed
downlight troughs.
Where possible, Zumtobel Staff
advocates designing specific
and different lighting layouts and
33
Slaughter & May, London
types for the daylight and deep
plan zones. Either area could
use Combination lighting or
Balanced lighting, both of which
could also be Active Light sys-
tems.
Full height windows
allow high levels of day-
light but the extreme
risk of glare makes
blinds essential. The
choice of blinds in this
situation follows good
practice – they are light
in colour and preserve
a view. The artificial
lighting illuminates all
surfaces providing a
good balance of bright-
nesses.
Natural Light, Active Light
& Balanced Light
These two scenes show how, by using the LA TRAVE direct/indirect lighting system, the lighting ambience can be changed dynamically across the day to suit
different conditions.
3. Active Light
Daylight changes constantly in
quantity, directional characteris-
tics and colour. The Active Light
concept, pioneered by Zumtobel
Staff, is an attempt to introduce
an element of change into artifi-
cial lighting in order to mimic
the patterns of daylight. Surveys
show that people prefer the
dynamic, constantly changing
character of natural lighting and
the objective of artificial lighting
ought to come as close as pos-
sible to this ideal.
The best Active Light systems carefully designed lighting
allow: scenarios, based on the kind of
• Changing intensity of light research outlined on pages
• Changing direction of light 12–16, can both enhance and
• Changing colour of light echo exterior illumination – and
• Changing patterns of daylight enhance people’s motivation
through blind control and willingness to perform.
At the same time, by taking
into account our “circadian
rhythms”, which are determined
by our biological clock and
synchronised by daylight, it is
possible to influence human
physiology and psychology, and
thus increase motivation and
performance. From an ergono-
mic point of view, it is desirable
that the working environment
changes over the course of the
day, in order to enhance the
attention of staff. A series of

A balanced light installation which also uses most of the principles of
Active Light.
4. Balanced Light
The most important aspect of
the Balanced Light concept
is that it offers variable Flux
Fraction Ratios (FFR), which is
to say the potential to vary the
upward and downward lighting
components. This can be achie-
ved using a single luminaire,
such as the Zumtobel Staff La
Trave fitting, equipped with sep-
arately controllable lamps for
direct or indirect lighting. This
allows almost infinite variation in
the character of the lighting.
Alternatively, Balanced Lighting
might be achieved by a combi-
nation of two luminaire types,
such as a downlight and a free-
standing uplight.
W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E
Dimming the two light sources
(or components within a single
fitting) gives access to quantity
variations, while the separate,
selective control of the direct
and indirect lighting compo-
nents can be used to alter
fundamentally the directional
character of the light. Equipping
the luminaires with mixed colour
temperature light sources also
allows fundamental colour tem-
perature changes, making it
possible to balance the colour
characteristics of the lighting
from warm and homely through
to cool and businesslike.
35
A combination of recessed dual component luminaires and perimeter down-
lights. A new standard at Canary Wharf.
5. Combination Lighting
Combination Lighting is a rather
simpler lighting set-up which
involves two or more types of
luminaire to achieve any lighting
effect – for example a simple
LUXMATE EMOTION Workspace
downlight, combined with a peri- combines intuitive control and
meter wallwasher. In its simplest extremely professional use of
DALI technology without actua-
form, Combination Lighting tors and dimmers; a specific
could be just bulk switched ACTIVE LIGHT script based on
scientific and ergonomic know-
on/off, or separately switched, how can be prepared for office
or dimmed – and the FFR lighting.
needn’t necessarily change.
Natural Light, Active Light
& Balanced Light

This novel “partial” blind system is automatically activated at night and at cer- Here the blinds are lowered sufficiently to filter out glare at high angles but
tain times of the day. The suspended LIGHTFIELD luminaires create very even allow sunlight to penetrate at low levels, preserving the wonderful patterns
lighting to the ceiling, walls and closed blinds. and shadows of daylight.

6. Controls
The BCO Fit-out Guide states
that lighting controls are a fun-
damental part of lighting design.
The simplest controls provide
energy savings and flexibility
but more sophisticated systems
can be used to integrate day-
light in a more genuine way.
Measuring incoming daylight
and adjusting artificial lighting
levels accordingly seems like a
simple method of integrating
artificial and natural light. Yet
user acceptance of this simple
technique can be very low
unless lighting controls are
carefully designed. Most sys-
tems employ ceiling-mounted
sensors, which measure inci-
dent light in the room – but they
can be easily “fooled”, since
they measure a combination of
natural and artificial light.
While changing light levels are
desirable, the illogical fluctuation
of illuminance resulting from
poorly designed sensors is one
of the main reasons why day-
light control systems are often
sabotaged by users. By con-
trast, Luxmate Professional*
daylight systems use a roof-
mounted sensor which measur-
es the quantity of light, its
direction and overall sky bright-
ness, in order to register accu-
rate changes in the amount and
quantity of daylight and adjust
the lighting and blinds automati-
cally.
Even Zumtobel Staff Basic day-
light systems use sensors which
are aimed out of a window
in order to register accurate
changes in natural lighting,
rather than measuring a mis-
leading combination of daylight
and artificial light.
The Basic daylight module then
allows three separate groups of
luminaires to respond differently
to daylight. So, for example,
a row of perimeter luminaires
illuminating the wall sections
between the windows, or the
window mullions, could be
programmed to dim up as day-
light increases. This will reduce
the contrast between wall and/
or mullions and the windows
themselves.
Any artificial lighting deserves
the use of lighting controls, the
most sophisticated of which
offer control of individual lumi-
naires, or even the individual
lamps within those luminaires.
The controls software should
permit a variety of scenes to be
pre-programmed and called up
at any time. For Active Light
situations, specific Active Light
software, which is easy-to-use
yet highly sophisticated, is
essential.
* www.luxmate.co.uk

These two photos show how scene-setting controls can create a totally different ambience and lighting balance within a space.
7. Scene Setting
The value of scene setting as
a lighting control technique
has largely been lost in recent
years. Over-complicated con-
trols, which force the end user
to default to factory pre-sets,
coupled with poor understand-
ing by controls professionals
of lighting issues, means that
balanced and easy-to-use
scene-set systems are few and
far between.
Scene setting is often misunder-
stood as being the ability to
preset several different lighting
levels of one luminaire type in
a given room. Its real value
involves the ability to choose
different lit effects in a room,
W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E 37
which infers there should be Scene setting can even
be applied to circulatory
several luminaire types, each areas.
performing a different function.
In this way users can generate
their own “stage sets” to create
different lighting moods within
the space, for different activities.
Realistically, such scene settings
can only be orchestrated when
the space planning and function
of the room is known, and the
interplay of blind control for
daylight is integrated into the
various scenes.
Further Considerations
in Workplace Lighting

Photo: RT Rafn Sigur∂sson


“More and more, so it seems to
me, light is the beautifier of the
building.”
– Frank Lloyd Wright
MPO technology incorporated
into the LIGHTFIELDS range
overcomes the lamp glare of
even the latest light sources,
with little effect on the LOR.
W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E
1. Lamp
Brightness
It is an unfortunate fact that as
modern lamp sources get small-
er and more efficient, their sur-
face brightness increases – this
can be a problem with open
light fixtures in an office, where
a small, but very bright light
source can create visual distrac-
tion in the field of view. Even in
luminaires with vertical louvres,
which reduce the sideways visi-
bility of the lamp, the view
directly upwards into the fitting
can be visually uncomfortable
and can often be peripherally
glimpsed as a distracting area
of brightness – what has been
dubbed “eyebrow glare”. This
issue of lamp brightness is
much more significant in interior
spaces, where people are
working over a full working day,
than in a circulation space or a
sales area.
Luminance of
Fluorescent Lamps
The chart below demonstrates
the current range of T16, T26
and compact fluorescent lamps
with their recommended bright-
ness threshold zones. If these
lamps are used in open fixtures,
one should always consider
some form of lamp obscuration.
In general the brightness of
High Efficiency (HE) T16 flu-
orescent lamps at 15,000–
17,000 cd/m 2 are within tolera-
ble limits for direct viewing – but
High Output (HO) lamps at
between 25,000–32,000 cd/m2
exceed these limits, while TC-L,
TC-D and TC-T lamps are even
brighter, at 30,000 cd/m2 up
to a massive 70,000 cd/m , 2
depending on wattage.
Of course, many of the latest
luminaire concepts have human
visual comfort as the highest
priority – and therefore have
some form of integral lamp
obscuration device. Examples
39
from Zumtobel Staff include the
Aero fitting, with the Eldacon
Panel which uses a technique of
“distributed” lamp image, and the
Mellowlight range, where the lamp
is diffused by a Gridmesh optic.
Several other Zumtobel Staff pro-
ducts have refractor accessories
that can be added to mitigate the
problem of using HE T16 lamps.
For this reason we would unequi-
vocally recommend specifying an
HE lamp, rather than its HO equi-
valent, in any luminaire offering a
direct view of an unshielded lamp
from any position in the work-
place. In 600 mm modular lumi-
naires this is always an option. In
addition, there are energy saving
benefits – as their name suggests,
HE lamps trade lower light output
for higher energy efficiency (in
fact, energy efficiency is about
15 % greater for these lamps).
However this is not always possi-
ble – see page 41.
Further Considerations
in Workplace Lighting
Optimum light output for T26 and T16 lamps is achieved at 25 °C and 35 °C
respectively.
2. Lamp Operating
Temperatures
Another important consideration
in choosing lamps is the issue
of operating temperature. In
former times fluorescent lamps
lost efficiency when used within
enclosed luminaires – and lamp
efficiency was improved by
forced ventilation of the fitting,
for example by the return air
from the air conditioning sys-
tem. However T16 lamps are
designed to operate at higher
temperatures and are therefore
most efficient within enclosed
luminaires (see graph above).
Most importantly, they cannot
be used in the return air stream
of air handling luminaires – see
3. Air Handling Most contem-
porary office fittings are not only
small in scale, commensurate
with the T16 lamp itself, but
their operating efficiencies are of
significantly higher order than
T26 or most TC-L lamp options.
Bypass air handling in the MELLOW LIGHT IV, with either TC-L or T16 lamp
options, avoids any cooling of the lamp.
3. Air Handling with mum air volumes for generic
T16 and TC-L Lamps luminaire types are readily avail-
able.
The issue of air return lumi-
naires, still a popular option with Please contact the Zumtobel
M&E consultants, is another Staff Technical Office for
important consideration. advice
Modern T16 lamps are designed
for maximum efficiency at high
temperature, so to draw chilled
air across the lamps is likely to
reduce operating efficiency by
as much as 25 %. Supply air can
also be a problem when dischar-
ged in close proximity to a T16
luminaire. The diagram above
shows a solution to the return
air path that bypasses the lamp
compartment altogether. Maxi-
AWB_Workplace_Q_Produktb_UK.qxd
4. Ceilings and their
Influence
on Lamp Choice
In an ideal world, lighting which
incurs an ongoing revenue cost
in a building, should dictate the
choice of ceiling. However for
good reasons to do with lettable
space, there is a growing trend
for 500 mm as the base building
module, which gives 1500 mm
multiples for partition choice.
A 500 mm square luminaire
size is not a good choice with
respect to lamp choice, because
it narrows the options to TC-L
and TC-D lamps which have the
relative high brightness and are
less efficient than current best
practice T16 lamps.
02.05.2005 10:42 Uhr Seite 41
W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E 41
If a designer is faced with such
a ceiling grid, our advice is to
change to 750 mm luminaire
size which can either fit into a
750 mm square ceiling grid, or
into a 1500 mm square tartan
grid ceiling.
The 750 mm square luminaire
uses 600 mm T16 lamps in a
luminaire variant that has extend-
ed flanges as shown in the pic-
ture above.
A fully updated matrix of these
various options is available from
our Technical Department.
Contact us on:
enquiries@uk.zumtobelstaff.co.at
AWB_Workplace_Q_Produktb_UK.qxd
Further Considerations
in Workplace Lighting
2700 K
5. Colour in the
Workplace
The issues of colour and colour
temperature in the modern
workplace are increasingly
important to consider, as the
technologies for achieving
such effects proliferate almost
daily. Below we assess the
most common techniques and
their associated problems and
opportunities.
• Lamp Colour Temperature
The issue of lamp colour tem-
perature is a perennial issue
in office lighting design. In
bygone days the usual choice
was a lamp with an “interme-
diate” colour temperature of
around 4,000 K. However, the
03.05.2005 11:22 Uhr Seite 42
6500 K
situation is now more compli-
cated as a result of three main
shifts in technology and re-
search data:
Firstly, premium offices will
more often than not have a
dimming facility, at least within
the daylight zone. In the quest
to match more closely the arti-
ficial lighting with daylight
within those zones, there is
now a wider acceptance of
“cooler” colour temperatures.
Secondly suspended fixtures
with variable flux fraction ratio
MELLOW LIGHT IV Balanced
Surface-mounted luminaire
(FFR), such as Zumtobel Staff’s
LA TRAVE fitting, are gaining
greater acceptability. Here it is
possible to use a different
(usually “cooler”) colour tem-
perature lamp for the upward
component, and a “warmer”
colour temperature for down-
ward focal glow (see page 35).
Thirdly, as explained on page
15 there is much evidence
from the so-called “third eye”
research to support the use of
extra high colour temperature
lamps with a high blue con-
tent, in 24-hour workplace
Recessed luminaire
facilities, to help maintain sus-
tained alertness.
• Secondary Lamp Systems
The latest version of the
acclaimed, and much-copied,
MELLOW LIGHT system –
MELLOW LIGHT IV – has the
potential to incorporate sepa-
rate colour lamps, which can
be used to create distinct
areas of colour, in addition to
white light (above and below).
These might be used to add
coloured highlights within an
otherwise bland space.

Balanced colour luminaires used in a refectory.
• Coloured Tints for Mood and
Identity
While intense areas of satu-
rated colour, which can be
visually distracting, are not
advisable for office spaces,
Zumtobel Staff does offer an
option for coloured additive
tints inside some luminaires,
such as MELLOW LIGHT
and PERLUCE. These can be
used to add visual interest,
to create distinctive moods
within the space – or to desig-
nate specific zones or work
functions, to aid team cohe-
sion and/or orientation in large
buildings.
W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E
• Working with Self-Illuminat-
ing Surfaces
ACTIVE LIGHT WALL systems
or internally illuminated screens
hiding RGB colour changers,
are the latest methods for
adding colour to vertical sur-
faces, such as walls. By using
RGB colour mixing, a huge
palette of colours can be cre-
ated and distributed over even
large surface areas. These can
range from subtle pastels to
intense, saturated hues. The
use of intense coloured effects
could be most effective in pro-
viding focus and impact in
meeting spaces, break-out
zones or common parts. Or
alternatively colour could be
used to mimic windows in day-
light-starved, deep-plan spaces.
43
Colour changing: morning, noon and night
6. Discomfort Glare used where the “side view”,
(UGR) which is the brightest aspect
of the luminaire, exceeds the
Within the UK, the concept of recommended glare limit for
glare limits has been around offices of UGR 19. If alternate
since 1961. However during the luminaires are set endwise and
era of “low brightness” VDT crosswise, very often the UGR
louvre products, with very low will be compliant.
UGRs, the subject was very
rarely addressed. Now with the Please contact the Zumtobel
growing prevalence of so-called Staff Technical Office for more
“dual component” fixtures, information.
glare calculations are again
necessary.
The latest Dialux design soft-
ware offers a Glare calculation
module which is very useful.
One aspect of this programme
is a new ability to calculate
UGRs from an array of counter-
rotated luminaires. This can be
Further Considerations
in Workplace Lighting

CO2 EMISSIONS –
a comparison

1 quantity 54 W T16
fluorescent lamp –
62.6 kg/annum*

One large office building

(1m sq. ft) –
1,000,000 kg/annum*

One 747 return flight

London to Singapore –
1,000,000 kg per return flight**

* “Calculated on the projected fuel mix for the grid 1998–2000. Actual figures may vary from the projections, but DEFRA (Department of the Environment, Food and
Rural Affairs) plan to use a constant value until 2010.”
** See the UK’s 2002 National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory (NAEI) www.naei.org.uk for long haul flights

7. Energy
The measurement of energy
use is a crucial issue in today’s
post-Kyoto world. However, the
various methods and formulae
for measuring energy use in
relation to lighting are both
confusing and in some cases,
incompatible. In this section we
chart the variety of techniques
of assessing energy/power
loading in relation to lighting,
and unravel their advantages
and disadvantages.
Watts per Square Metre (W/m 2)
Historically, energy use has
been erroneously measured via
installed power loading, calcu-
lated in watts/m2. Unfortunately
this crude method does not
account for the efficiency of the
luminaire or the length of time
they are switched on. And pre-
scribed targets vary enormously
– e.g. those in the CIBSE/SLL
Code for Lighting, for commer-
cial spaces vary from 7 W/m 2
for fluorescent lighting offering
300 lux at the working plane up
to 18 W/m for HID lighting sys-
2
tems producing 500 lux – with
many other levels in between.
Perhaps significantly, the BCO
Fit-out Guide for Cat A schemes
indicates a figure almost
mid-way between these two
extremes, at 12 W/m2
With the advent of lower cost
controls and dimming, not to
mention scene-setting and com-
bination lighting schemes, a
more sophisticated approach
to predicting energy use is
necessary:
W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E 45
Watts per Square Metre per relaxation of 20 % if the lumi- The Kyoto Protocol, which be-
100 lux (W/m2/100 lux) naires are “controlled”. came legally binding in Feb. 2005,
We believe that this slightly aims to curb and reduce the
more refined measure would be Kgs of CO2 per Square Metre emission of greenhouse gases,
a better yardstick to use, as it Per Year (Kg/CO 2/m2/Year) particularly CO2, in an attempt to
starts to take into consideration BREEAM has its own measure, control global warming. In
the efficacy of the luminaire it- Kg/CO 2/m2/Year, which predicts Europe (inc.the UK) the govern-
self. Using this measure: true energy use in terms of the ments are taking the expedient
production of carbon dioxide option by imposing energy restric-
• A figure of 2.5 W/m 2/100 lux (CO2). There is no direct refe- tions on buildings and a Climate
would be good practice for rence to limits on lighting, but Change Levy on businesses,
uniform lighting. credit points are awarded accord- whilst avoiding the more difficult
• A figure of 2.0 W/m2/100 lux ing to a scale of overall CO 2 issues of e.g. banning fuel hun-
for uniform lighting would be production. A mid-range score gry cars, or taxing aviation fuel.
indicative of “high output” T16 would be 60 kg/CO2/m2/Year. It
lamps used in very efficient is interesting to note that to However important energy
luminaires, with a high direct achieve 500 lux at typical spac- issues are, consideration for the
component. These would ing, a 54 W lamp would gener- employees in the buildings
actually result in poor visual ate 10.9 kg/CO2/m /Year – in
2
should take precedence. Fortu-
conditions without some sup- the UK a 54 W lamp burning for nately visual quality need not be
plementary lighting. 2,500 hours produces around compromised for the sake of
• A figure below 2.0 W/m /100 lux
2
62.6 kg of CO 2 (some electricity energy efficiency.
would be possible only with is not fossil fuel generated).
localised and task lighting –
this combination can easily Global Carbon Imbalance
achieve <1.5 W/m2/100 lux. Predicting the Growth of CO2
Luminaire Lumens per Circuit
Watt (LL/W)
Part L2 of the Approved Build-
ing Regulations (April 2002)
pioneered this term – a novel
concept that does take into
consideration the photometric
efficiency of the luminaire.
However, it does not necessarily
measure the efficiency of the
luminaire in putting light on the
task – or allow for the mainte-
nance factor.
For offices the prescribed limit
is 40 LL/W. In practical terms
this means using a combination
of lamps in the building that
have an aggregate efficacy
above 75 lm/W. Part L offers a
Further Considerations
in Workplace Lighting
This emergency sign may not be positioned most appropriately, but it does
nevertheless provide effective orientation and re-assurance in the event of an
emergency.
8. Emergency Lighting
and Safety Liability
Employers are liable for the
safety of their employees. They
are required to carry out regular
assessments to identify areas of
risk – and most are required to
document areas of concern and
ways of rectifying the problem.
Part of this Risk Assessment
process covers the suitability
and sufficiency of the emergency
lighting system; it must also
specify procedures to ensure
continual testing, recording and
maintenance of the system.
In the past, perhaps through
ignorance, emergency lighting
has often been treated as a “fit-
and-forget” system but today
this attitude could potentially
threaten the very survival of a
business. Take the example of a
local area network power failure,
which is an increasingly com-
mon occurrence. If a defective,
self-contained emergency lumi-
naire, producing inadequate
escape route illumination, was
responsible for an injury during
evacuation, litigation could
result.
If the responsible party could
show that necessary Risk
Assessments had been con-
ducted and that a proper testing
and maintenance regime was in
place, then the business could
claim any legal costs on insur-
ance. However, if an adequate
audit trail of assessment, testing
and maintenance could not be
Clear, unambiguous signing of the major escape routes is mandatory in any
working building.
provided, then the insurance www.zumtobelstaff.com/onlite
company would be well within
its rights not to settle the claim.
Newer types of emergency light-
ing systems have eased the
burden on the shoulders of dili-
gent employers. Self-test, or
preferably centrally addressable
systems, can radically reduce
the through life testing costs
of emergency luminaires, but
this still leaves the maintenance
headache of self-contained
batteries. Alternative technology
solutions, based on decen-
tralised local battery systems
(Low Power Systems or LPS)
with automatic monitoring and
testing, may well begin to re-
place self-contained batteries
as the number one choice.
 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E 47

These two photos show an office building before and after a mains failure. This demonstrates how, in a genuine emergency, suitable and sufficient escape
lighting and signage is critical.

ONLITE Local:
Self-contained
This emergency lighting solution
from Zumtobel Staff involves little • Functional testing of battery
installation effort and relies on
Self Contained energy supply.
Performance Characteristics:
• Recommended for 25 to 50
emergency and escape sign
luminaires, with a maximum of
256 luminaires
• Offers a fixed emergency light
output
• The service life for an indivi-
dual battery is three to four
years – shorter with high ceil-
ing temperatures
and emergency fitting using
DALI system.
ONLITE Section
Central: Distributed
Central Battery System
This emergency lighting solution
relies on dividing the system into
several self-contained circuits.
Performance Characteristics/
Requirements:
• Recommended for 50 to 500
luminaires
• Stairway function plus night-
time and security patrol
switching
• Offers individual setting of
emergency light output from
5–70 %
• Straightforward scalability with
no need for technical equip-
ment rooms
• The service life of the group
battery is extended, with an
option of five or ten years, due
to it being installed outside
potentially high temperature
areas.
• Functional testing by DALI/
Powerline.

Safety Safety
Investment costs Investment costs
Maintenance costs Maintenance costs
Flexibility Flexibility
Lighting
Techniques –
Comparing the
Options

“It is with light that we can
bring soul and spirit back into
architecture and perhaps find
our own soul in the process.”
– Arthur Erickson
W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E
1. Uniform Lighting
Uniform lighting is the easiest,
most routine, lighting technique
to be applied to the office en-
vironment. It is most often pro-
duced by lazy contractors or
engineers, using basic design
software, without ever visiting
the space in question. It can
be easily created by a regular,
repetitive array of ceiling-mount-
ed luminaires, most often down-
lights. Such an approach is no
longer prescribed by the regula-
tions (see p. 16–23) and neither
is it advisable, creating as it
does, a very homogenous and
visually uninteresting lighting
scheme, without highlights or
any degree of shadow. It is also
wasteful of energy, as not all
areas within an office need to
be lit to the same level.
2. Task Area Lighting
Recommended in EN 12464,
the concept of task area lighting
is fundamentally in conflict
with the older uniform lighting
approach – and offers many
advantages over it. TASK AREA
lighting allows lighting levels to
be higher at the task area (typi-
cally, 500 lux) where visual tasks
are performed, while keeping
light levels lower in the surround-
ing spaces (300 lux). Compared
with a uniform array scheme,
such an approach offers the
freedom to utilise additional
accent lighting and wall-wash-
ers, which can give added visual
interest, by creating a multi-
49
dimensional visual quality to For these reasons, well-desig-
space. And by reducing overall ned free-standing uplights, with
illuminance levels within the a well-controlled downward task
facility, energy and maintenance component, such as FLEXOS,
costs can also be reduced too. LANOS or LIGHTFIELDS – or ver-
sions in which the fitting is fixed
to the edge of the desk or inte-
3. Task Localised grated into screens – can pro-
Lighting vide a much better solution.
Switchable and/or dimmable In addition free-standing uplights
local task lighting on or at the are now available as standard
desk is an increasingly popular with SensControl incorporating
option in many offices, as a way a daylight sensor and presence
of boosting light levels at the detector to ensure ease of oper-
precise point where higher levels ation, reduced energy consum-
are needed – and giving staff ption, and a “constant” level of
some degree of local control in illuminance pre-selected by the
the process. Such lighting can user themselves.
be very useful for more elderly
staff who, research shows,
require much higher levels of
illuminance than younger staff
for visual tasks such as reading.
Although task lights involve
additional capital investment,
they can reduce energy costs by
permitting lower overall lighting
levels in the task area. However
task lighting is sometimes seen
as a stop-gap solution – it
should never be supplied as an
alternative to a well-designed
office lighting system.
There are a number of down-
sides to desk-mounted task
lights: if incorrectly angled, they
can appear as glare sources to
neighbouring staff; they take up
considerable desk space; and in
many offices, they can create a
significant cable management
problem, if added afterwards
and powered from wall-mounted
sockets.
Lighting Techniques –
Comparing the Options
More London Bridge
4. Direct Downlighting
In all the research, direct down-
lighting solutions, using ceiling-
mounted or recessed luminaires,
have been shown to have the
lowest user acceptance of all
lighting systems. Used on their
own direct downlighters create a
very dark, oppressive visual am-
bience, with brightly lit horizontal
surfaces and underlit walls and
ceiling – an ambience which has
been dubbed the “dark cave”
effect. In fact, downlighting as a
sole lighting technique cannot
even meet the latest LG3 regula-
tions, which requires a scheme
to achieve 50 % of task surface
illuminance on the walls and
30 % on the ceiling. Therefore to
comply, downlighters must be
supplemented by other light
sources, such as uplighters and
wall-washers, which completely
negates any energy efficiency
and cost advantages which such
a system might have claimed in
less enlightened times.
Zumtobel Staff research has
established that downlighters
with louvres, which were original-
ly intended to prevent glare on
VDT screens, can still create
significant disability glare on key-
boards located below the fit-
tings, which can obscure the
letters/numbers on the keys.
This is a particular problem with
black keyboards which are cur-
rently very fashionable (beige
and grey is much less suscepti-
ble to the problem).
Audit Commission Project: Friarsgate, Solihull; Occupier: Audit Commission;
Architect: BGP McConaghy Architects; Lighting Designer: Andrew Wilkes
Management; Contractor: Genus; Photo Credit: Martine Hamilton Knight
5. Dual Component louvre. The secondary compo-
Fixtures nent is indirect, via a white, matte
reflector or secondary opalised
Pioneered by Zumtobel Staff’s chamber. Some versions are
MELLOW LIGHT concept, dual mounted flush with the ceiling
component luminaires are fast but others protrude below the
becoming a standard office light- soffit, or are surface-mounted,
ing solution. They have a primary to increase illumination of the
direct lighting component that ceiling. These luminaires are par-
can be created by a perforated ticularly recommended for situa-
basket or Gridmesh, to shield tions where the ceiling is less
and diffuse the lamp – or alter- than 2.6 metres and direct/indi-
natively there may be an open rect lighting cannot be installed.

An exemplary direct/indirect scheme – preferred by users.
6. Direct/Indirect
Lighting
In earlier chapters we have
summarised extensive research
showing that direct/indirect
lighting systems have massive
user support, in terms of visual
preference. Such systems com-
bine the advantages of direct
work station lighting and indirect
room illumination. The resultant
light distribution creates a pleas-
ant room atmosphere, noted for
its vertical illuminance levels,
good modelling and efficient
lighting of the task area. In
open-plan offices, generously
proportioned, bright ceiling
areas enhance the feeling of
well-being and an indirect light
component of greater than
W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – P A S T, P R E S E N T A N D F U T U R E
60 % also allows for flexible
arrangements of individual work
stations.
However, against all convention-
al wisdom, which assumes that
direct/indirect lighting tech-
niques are expensive or ineffi-
cient, they can actually turn out
to be cheaper than downlighting
solutions, which now require
additional luminaires to conform
to current codes. One main rea-
son is that direct/indirect fittings
can be located at much wider
spacings than other types of
lighting, while achieving similar
illuminances.
51
MPO in action in the form of flush-mounted LIGHTFIELDS luminaires.
7. Micropyramidal Optic
(MPO) Luminaires
MPO is a new technology in-
volving an innovative lens sys-
tem to obscure the lamp image
and limit the luminance of the
fitting to 1000 cd/m2 at relevant
angles. Because these are en-
closed T16 luminaires, they are
very efficient – and the concept
can be applied to flush-recessed,
surface-mounted or suspended
luminaires, as in the Zumtobel
Staff Lightfields range. The
recessed version is very well
suited to low ceiling heights,
where an open louvre fitting
would be visually oppressive.
 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 53

Workplace Lighting –
Application Areas

“To shift the paradigm of

lighting specification
and installation in com-
mon practice towards
ergonomically designed
lighting solutions.”

Mission statement of the

Light Right Consortium,
USA (2001–2004)
Workplace Lighting –
Application Area Case Studies

“It’s about attracting and retain-
ing the best people. We’re in
the war for talent. The building
inspires – that’s what makes it
special.”
– Andy Rubin, PENTLAND
(2003 BCO “Best of the Best”
Award winner)
This section offers an easy-to-
understand, illustrated guide to
the ideas and lighting solutions
discussed in the rest of the
brochure, using photos of light-
ing schemes, from exemplary to
poor, for the major types of
EMI HQ, 27 Wright’s Lane
BCO Awards 2004 Refurbished/Recycled – National (and London) Winner
Architect: MoreySmith
W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 55
work space in a modern com-
mercial building. Each photo
has a short detailed commen-
tary – and where necessary, is
cross-referenced to lighting
issues and product information
in other parts of the brochure.
 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 57

Open Plan Offices

The Audit Commission require pre-

mium working conditions to recruit
the right calibre of personnel.
MELLOW LIGHT IV was chosen here
as part of an expressive interior
design scheme that is contemporary,
without being over elaborate.
Notice the light and airy appearance
achieved without daylight.
Colour tints, available as accessories,
are used to delineate different depart-
ments and circulation areas.

Photo courtesy – Andrew Wilkes

Management

This installation at a major Canary

Wharf bank is state-of-the-art in ener-
gy-saving terms, achieving less than
2 W/m2/100 lux – but that doesn’t
guarantee good lighting.
The luminaires are a variant of the
MIREL fitting with a semi-specular
louvre mounted in a “service tile”
within a “tartan grid” ceiling, much
favoured in the premium office market.
The lit effect is typical of offices with
deep floor plates, where most staff
are distanced from daylight.
The characteristic scollops on the
walls and shadowing at desk dividers
is evident.
This photo also shows the dominating
vista of the underlit ceiling.

Developer – Argent Estates Ltd.

Architect – Lifschutz Davidson
Building Services Engineer – Roger
Preston Associates

This office with above average floor-

to-ceiling heights, is well suited to
lighting with the suspended direct/
indirect CLARIS luminaire.
The luminaires run perpendicular to
the main fenestration and to the cen-
tral atrium.
They are dimmed in response to day-
light levels (effect over-ridden for this
photo).

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 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 59

Open Plan Offices

Forbury Square, with lighting design

by Roger Preston and Partners,
has full height glazing and a central
atrium.
The potential for energy savings
is met by the SYNTO luminaires
installed in a regular array. Each lumi-
naire is dimmable and has the ability
to pre-set maximum light levels
according to the function or decor of
the space.
From the pre-set value the fixture will
dim down to balance with daylight
levels – or dim down to zero if trig-
gered by the inbuilt absence sensor.

Lighting design – Roger Preston and

Partners

The electric lighting at North Lanark-

shire Council’s office is shown with
the daylight excluded.
The surface-mounted MELLOW
LIGHT IV with “gridmesh” diffuser
scores very highly in lamp obscura-
tion.
However, the ceilings, walls and other
vertical surfaces are still well illumi-
nated, despite a very dark carpet.

User and Consultant – North Lanark-

shire Council

Offices at Diageo’s world HQ in West

London, with lighting design by Indigo
Light Planning, has a staggered
array of dual component luminaires,
equipped with a louvre for the princi-
pal downlight element.
The space has manual blinds both
into the atrium and the exterior and
the effect also works well at night.
Note the very high reflectivity from
the carpet and desks and the small
but influential colour accents.

www.zumtobelstaff.com/ml
 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 61

Open Plan Offices

Developers Peel Holdings built this premium office space in Trafford Park, Manchester.
Commendably, the Cat A fit out took a Cat B approach and included MELLOW LIGHT lumi-
naires and the blue carpet (but not the blinds).
Note the faces of the occupants and the other vertical surfaces are well-illuminated due to
the soft polar curve of the fitting.
The hue of the carpet and the nightscape of the Trafford Centre through the window is
reflected in the ceiling.
Occupier – Peel Holdings - Speculative Offices
Developer – Peel Holdings
Architect – Chapman Taylor Architects Manchester
Building Services Engineer (Electrical Consultant) – WSP
Lighting Designer – Zumtobel Staff/WSP
This refurbished office space at Arup Associates has restricted
ceiling height.
However the very shallow LIGHTFIELDS system can still be used
successfully.
At first sight there appears to be too much uncontrolled daylight
(despite the blinds) – but note how effectively LIGHTFIELDS illu-
minates the internal mullion walls, thereby reducing contrast.
The 1000 cd/m2 luminance limit of LIGHTFIELDS suits the older
type screens in use.
Occupier – Arup Associates
Architect & Engineer – Arup Associates
Building Services Engineer (Electrical Consultant) – Arup Associ-
ates
Lighting Designer – Arup Associates

Pentlands European HQ, designed by allied with an unusually high reflect-

architects GHM Rock Townsend, was
the BCO Best of Best Award winner
in 2003 and not unnaturally there is a
strongly co-ordinated design influence
throughout the building.
This is well demonstrated in the open-
plan offices which are illuminated
by MELLOW LIGHT III, with its diffuser
basket dropped below ceiling level,
offering lamp shielding for comfort.
There is considerable daylighting
ance floor covering, while the stimul-
ating colour accents on the columns
signals the company’s commitment to
a strong team culture (MELLOW
LIGHT III has since been superceded
by the innovative MELLOW LIGHT IV
range).
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 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 63

Open Plan Offices

An interesting re-modelling of this

space by OMI Architects employs
suspended, direct/indirect CLARIS
luminaires, despite a fairly low
ceiling.
The walls appear quite dark due to
their distance from the luminaires,
but this is strongly mitigated by the
system’s high uplight component.
This area would have been a visual
disaster area if illuminated only by
louvred downlights.

Occupier – OMI Architects

Architect – OMI Architects

This very successful combination

lighting scheme by Atco Consultants,
uses both suspended and wall-
mounted versions of the OREA
direct/indirect luminaire. The fittings
are equipped with SLC (side light
coupler) Waveguide optics to reduce
the luminance levels of the fittings
above 65°.
The end result makes for a very
successful, visually comfortable
workspace, despite the lack of day-
light.

An interesting ceiling design and asso-

ciated lighting solution at Lincoln Uni-
versity.
The continuous runs of CLARIS direct/
indirect luminaires are suspended hori-
zontally from a sloping ceiling which
breaks out into a skylight.
The overall effect is very pleasing
despite the close offset “hot spot” on
the ceiling at its lowest point.

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 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 65

Open Plan Offices

This minimally styled CAD-intensive

designers’ studio, at Arup Associates,
has been appropriately fitted out with
long, continuous runs of the OREA
direct/indirect luminaires.
The fittings express excellent design
synergy with the interior architecture,
echoing the square columns and
dropped, linear ceiling section.
The light distribution on the ceiling
has good diffusion, with a gradual
change of luminance, to avoid
disrupting the visual calm of the
space.

Buro Happold’s own offices exhibit

considerable design ingenuity and
make use of the ultimate office lumi-
naire on the market – AERO with an
Eldacon Waveguide® panel, which
works to distribute the lamp image,
in order to minimise glare.
As a result the interior is bright, airy
and visually stimulating, despite the
dark floor.

User and Consultant – Buro Happold

It is rare to find any single project in which a wide

range of lighting design approaches can be used.
Here is the office mezzanine floor, with a central
atrium, at Buro Happold’s offices, which is treated
in a very interesting manner.
While extensive daylighting is central to the
scheme, here it is supplemented, unusually, by
COPA high-bay fittings suspended above the
double-height zone.

User and Consultant – Buro Happold

This high-ceilinged space with plenty However, over extensive periods

of daylight, at Imperial College,
London, is equipped with suspended
SPHEROS direct/indirect luminaires.
Even at night these accentuate the
spaciousness of this office, despite
low floor reflectance and extremely
dark overdesk storage dividers.
of work, these dark dividers could
cause eye strain, due to the constant
adaptation the eye will have to make
between task and background.
Royal School of Mines, Imperial College www.zumtobelstaff.com/spheros
Architect: Sheppard Robson www.zumtobelstaff.com/copa
Consultant: Norman Disney Young www.zumtobelstaff.com/waveguide
 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 67

Open Plan Offices

Faces, walls, ceilings, columns are all well lit – the Not a Premium Grade specification for an office but it certainly looks it. The MELLOW LIGHT IV Q luminaire
key to successful office lighting. works so well in its empathy with daylight, putting light on the walls, columns, and ceiling: Brightness
Management at its best.
Interestingly there is a beige keyboard which is
hugely better than black, for veiling reflections, yet
the telecom cradle is not only black and has an
LCD display, but it is near optimal in angle for
offending veiling reflections from the overhead
lighting. Fortunately MELLOW LIGHT IV Gridmesh
greatly mitigates this likely problem.

This company (SSL International)

clearly has comfort in the workplace
high on the agenda as demonstrated
by the chair and MELLOW LIGHT IV
installed as base-build in this Pre-
mium Development.

Unusually, using laptops with their

own LCD screens, which have lower
luminance levels than most stand
alone screens, would mean preference
for lower illuminance to compensate.
The LCD telecom cradle at near verti-
cal inclination would have had much
complaint from overhead open lou-
vres, as would the black keyboards.
MELLOW LIGHT IV Gridmesh solves
these problems.

www.zumtobelstaff.com/ml
 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 69

Cellular Offices

This meeting room is lit with suspend-

ed AERO luminaires offering good
illumination of the main interior sur-
faces.
However, one interesting feature is
the glazed partitioning, where the
middle section provides both a degree
of privacy and also a surface to pro-
vide important vertical luminance.

The legal profession has a high

demand for private offices, of which
this scheme at Slaughter & May, is
typical.
It is located on an atrium perimeter
wall with glazed partition to the corri-
dor.
Despite the flush-mounted MELLOW
LIGHT luminaires, there is plenty of
light on the crucial wall, facing the
user’s desk position.
Due to the diffuse nature of the illu-
mination, there are no harsh shadows
on the desk from the overhead storage
shelves.
Here the staggered lighting array works in favour of
illuminating the right wall.
The unseen left wall is only lit by one luminaire.
The shadows in this view show the strong
directionality of the downlighting.
The photo also demonstrates that ceiling illumin-
ance in small rooms is important – the walls facing
the user are, however, crucial.
Note the semi-translucent blind quite commonly
used to mitigate sky glare whilst maintaining a view
to the exterior.
Used at night the blind kills the harshness of the
oppressive dark glazing but it contributes little to
the brightness within the room.
However had the blind been white, it would not
have afforded a view.
The best kind of blind to use might have been
light-coloured and perforated.

Developer – Helical Bar

Architect – Sheppard Robson

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 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 71

Cellular Offices

This glazed office again provides

some view to the outside – and the
free-standing LIGHTFIELDS combines
good ceiling lighting with a degree of
lighting to the task.
Fitted with an occupancy detector, it
switches off automatically when the
space is empty.

The apparent width of this narrow

cellular office is increased by using
MELLOW LIGHT luminaires surface-
mounted crossways.
The good lighting of ceiling and wall
surfaces increases the apparent room
size and blends well with daylight.
Note the external blinds which are
popular in continental Europe.

Driven by BREEAM, the BCO and

others, the quest to provide a view to
the exterior has led to an enormous
amount of glazing in contemporary
cellular offices, in order to make them
transparent.
However, as can be seen at Pentland’s
HQ, there are still some solid vertical
surfaces which should be well lit.
The MELLOW LIGHT fittings achieve
this task well.

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 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 73

Dealer Rooms

This view of Lehman Brothers’

dealing rooms show the extraordinary
density of screens – both desk-
mounted monitors and large suspend-
ed data screens.
The quality of lighting in such a space
is critical.

Architects – Cesar Pelli & Assoc.,

Swanke Hayden Connell
Consultant – Hilson Moran Partner-
ship

Lehman Brothers’ dealer rooms at

Canary Wharf, London use the ultimate
optic for a dealer room – the AERO
luminaire with Eldacon® Waveguide
panel, mounted in continuous rows up
to 70 metres long.
There is little daylight penetration into this space Again, this space at the Bank of Nova Scotia
The ceiling brightness is kept suffic-
at the Bank of Nova Scotia, yet the MELLOW shows effective lighting of all the main interior sur-
iently high throughout this deep-plan
LIGHT luminaires do a good job of lighting the faces, including the light-coloured blind.
area and the column heads are also
internal surfaces. In this night time shot, the blind becomes another
well lit.
However, note the potentially distracting luminaire bright vertical surface, rather than a black hole
The AERO luminaires are controlled by
image reflected in the specular metal ceiling – a created by an unshielded window.
the main LUXMATE building lighting
good example of how the lighting and interior de- Note the brightness-robbing effect of the extensive
control system, which allows the whole
sign might have been better integrated. black IT hardware.
floor to be pre-set to a chosen light
level.
They can be daylight-linked, if necess-
ary.

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 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 75

Dealer Rooms

This mid-‘90s dealer room at Barings ING shows the now obsolete ID-VM luminaire,
which was by far the most advanced office lighting system of its type.
The conventional way to light these spaces at the time was with “dark light” down-
lighters, due to the industry’s obsession with preventing reflections in display screens.
This highly successful installation proved that excellent lighting for VDTs need not
result in “cave-like” environments.
This novel approach to lighting a dealing space at
UBS Warburg works admirably, with all the surfaces
well lit, including the upper walls.
This was achieved using the QUARTOS square down-
lighter luminaire with a suspended circular deflector
to divert a proportion of light output back up into the
coffer. The energy penalty was negligible when com-
pared to the user benefits.

This office at Reuters is not a dealer

room but its intensive high-tech
nature presents many of the same
issues.
The lighting is provided by MELLOW
LIGHT III luminaires with a dropped
diffuser basket and despite the blinds
being closed, this intrinsically dark
space, with even darker IT hardware,
looks bright, spacious and comfort-
able. Note particularly the well-lit far
walls and ceiling.

Lighting design: PME

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Architect & Building Services: BDP, Manchester
Lighting Design: BDP & Zumtobel Lighting
 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 77

Control Rooms

The layout of suspended luminaires in

this building services control room at
Heathrow Airport reflects its name –
the Star Centre.
The ceiling layout means that the
spacing between luminaires varies
enormously, yet there is no hint of
this in the lit effect due to the soft-
edged light distribution.

This highly unusual space, with slop-

ing windows and exposed services,
has been equipped with suspended
direct/Indirect CLARIS luminaires.
These illuminate all the surfaces,
which is essential in a space that
could so easily have become cold
and grey.

The NATS Air Traffic Control Centre

near Southampton is perhaps the
most critical visual environment imag-
inable – lives could be at risk if the
screens are not fully visible.
The custom-designed direct/indirect
lighting system demonstrates the
type of lighting chosen by a team of
designers to create an ideal visual
environment without any compro-
mises.

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 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 79

Control Rooms

This space has a low ceiling height

and is lit entirely with circular down-
lights, with predictable results.
However, an otherwise dark ceiling
takes on some brightness, due to the
reflected image of the large data
screen on the metal ceiling, and the
light coloured desking.

The lighting at this installation is de-
signed to create good illumination to
the work surface, using suspended
RTX louvres, while avoiding spill light
onto the wall-mounted display
screens.
The hidden cove lighting, which sur-
rounds the display screen panel,
creates good background illuminance
while leaving the screen surrounds
relatively dark.
This shipping control centre at Harwich equipped The artificial lighting in this space is not clearly evi-
with Category downlights-exhibits high horizontal dent – however without careful design and effective
illuminance and strong shadowing. window blinds, there could be occasions when the
In this instance a 24-hour view out of the windows multi-panelled displays positioned against the win-
was essential, which precluded direct/indirect lu- dows will be impossible to read.
minaires and all-round interior brightness (the
LUXMATE dimming-system allowed dimming down
to 3 % in order to mitigate against disabling reflec-
tions off the glass at night).

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 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 81

Call Centres

This call centre at Careers, Scotland, benefits enormously from intense

coloured highlights and the use of suspended OREA luminaires, which offer
good illuminance on all the main room surfaces.

Consultants – DMP Consulting

Wessex Water (left and above),

designed by Bennetts Associates,
won the highest BREEAM accolade of
“Excellent”.
Seen at dusk, the interior lighting com-
prises a series of special CLARIS
direct/indirect luminaires, designed to
fit into the structural linear coffer.
As there is no ceiling to baffle the
sound, the luminaire has perforated
wings which are filled with acoustic
dampening material.
Also included are presence detectors
and call indicators.

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 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 83

Call Centres

This installation at London Bridge has

interesting scalloping in the recess,
additional wall washing and very light
coloured surfaces.
In combination these features save
what could easily have become an
oppressive space, particularly with
the lack of any daylight.

This large call centre for MISCO pre-

sented a range of challenges for the
lighting designer but the end result is
quite superb. MIROS (free-standing
uplights and) spotlights mounted at
an accessible height, direct light at
the suspended mirrors. The resultant
re-directed light enters the central
area when daylight is insufficient. The
perimeter workstations are well lit by
indirect/direct LA TRAVE luminaires to
emulate the daylit areas.

Consultants – Rolton Services

This Category louvre installation des-

perately needs some auxiliary lighting,
to mitigate the bright desk surfaces lit
to over 600 lux – note the dark verti-
cal surfaces in the foreground.
The narrow window mullions are un-
evenly illuminated and the planting
This space at the Orange call centre could also have benefited from de-
would have been unbearably gloomy dicated accent lighting.
if fitted out with louvred downlights.
The black and orange house colours
used in the interior design come out
quite well from the column-mounted
uplights and the recessed MELLOW
LIGHT IV gridmesh luminaires. The
latter include an orange filter within
the left/right secondary light chamber
to emphasise the circulation areas.

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 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 85

Communication Areas/Meeting Rooms

In this space at the RIBA building in

London designed by Visual Energy,
suspended direct/indirect AERO lumi-
naires, combined with surface mount-
ed LIGHTFIELDS in the lower ceiling
areas, create a light, airy and cheerful
character to facilitate open discussion
and exchange of ideas.

TIF-Daten von Martin bearbeiten lassen

This diverse, multi-functional meeting

space at Rolls Royce has dramatic
visual appeal, with its combination of
ambient and accent light sources.
However, the lighting was designed
for circular meeting tables, which was
subsequently changed, which high-
lights the need for good co-ordination
between the lighting designer and
interior designer.

Feindaten sind o.k.

Here a combination of softer direct/

indirect lighting and directional down-
lighting creates a space with good
task lighting features, while retaining
an element of drama. This is a good
example of how the lighting in a
multi-use space for face-to-face
meetings, projections, presentations
and so on, can be modified to suit all
needs.

This adventurous Danish meeting room

cantilevered over the atrium benefits
from huge amounts of daylight – but is
not recommended for those suffering
from vertigo.
Feindaten sind o.k.
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www.zumtobelstaff.com/lighttools
www.zumtobelstaff.com/lightfields
 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 87

Communication Areas/Meeting Rooms

This meeting room is treated with a

simple, suspended AERO solution,
which balances well with the daylight
flooding in from the left.

This meeting and training space with

central room divider, requires maxi-
mum flexibility.
The suspended CLARIS fittings
offer nicely balanced illumination of
the main room surfaces – and are
arranged to work equally well when
the room is split into two.

A multi-media room that would be

excellent for video-conferencing,
offering, as it does, good facial
modelling of the people around the
table, through the use of OREA sus-
pended luminaires.
Note too the blinds for daylight ex-
clusion and privacy.
This feels like the sort of space where
important decisions are made.
Clusters of LIGHTFIELDS luminaires,
ceiling recessed downlights, sill-re-
cessed uplights and integrated blinds
(both to the internal and external
spaces), all contribute to the creative
corporate ambience.

www.zumtobelstaff.com/lightfields
www.zumtobelstaff.com/waveguide
www.zumtobelstaff.com/claris
 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 89

Break Out Zones

Three views of different break-out

zones in the same offices belonging
to McCann Ericksson.
An almost identical lighting concept
has been used in each space, but
the designer’s careful selection of fur-
nishings has created spaces ranging
from relaxed to funky.

Occupier – McCann Ericksson

Architect – Bowker Sadler Partnership
Building Services Engineer – Hoare
Lea Associates
Lighting Designer – Bowker Sadler
Partnership

A classy break-out zone at Slaughter &

May. One of many situated right at the
heart of the building, they signal their
presence by the use of strong primary
colours and clean, bright lighting.

www.zumtobelstaff.com/panos
www.zumtobelstaff.com/waveguide
 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 91

Break Out Zones

Perhaps more of a tran-

sient service facility
than a break-out zone,
this space uses identical
lighting to the offices.

This break-out zone at the Audit
Commission is situated in the middle
of the work zone but is visually demar-
cated from it by the careful use of
screening, furnishings, colour and
lighting.
www.zumtobelstaff.com/ml
www.zumtobelstaff.com/miral
www.zumtobelstaff.com/miros
This “break-out” zone at Orange is situated on the This media suite at Diageo has been given an
periphery of an open-plan space, next to a photo- unconventional high-tech lighting scheme used to
copier, and has identical lighting to the rest of the reflect and underline its futuristic function and
space. image.
It is debatable whether brightly coloured chairs and
a colourful, curved partition would be sufficient to
allow workers to distance themselves, even for a
few minutes, from routine tasks.
Differentiated lighting could have made all the
difference.
 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 93

Storage

These functional file

storage systems have
been equipped with a
simple and logical light-
ing solution – a line of
cantilevered fluorescent
wall-washers which
wash light down the
vertical stacks offering
maximum visibility.

This basement library area, deprived of light, has been equipped Sadly, this kind of installation is all too frequent.
with LIGHTFIELDS for maximum brightness and good vertical Some of these storage cabinets must be almost
illuminance. unusable due to the poorly positioned and wholly
inappropriate lighting.

Effective lighting of office storage

involves lighting the verticals and the
best solutions provide high levels of
uniform lighting from top to bottom.
This example from retail, where lighting
quality has a direct bearing on com-
mercial success, shows highly uniform
(VPI 1) wall-washing onto merchandise
and perhaps shows how designers of
office spaces could learn from their
retail counterparts.

www.zumtobelstaff.com/miral
www.zumtobelstaff.com/lightfields
 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 95

Common Parts Stairs/Lift Lobbies/Atria/Entrance

Entrance lobbies can This plain, simple stair-

play several roles – in well could so easily
addition to projecting have attracted a run-of-
the corporate image, the-mill utility lighting
they may also have scheme. Instead, the
more functional uses, lighting design, even in
such as security, so in this back-of-office area,
addition to decorative helps to differentiate
lighting, effective task this workplace from
lighting may also be others.
important.

Large reception and

entrance spaces such as
this succeed with the
clever use of different
materials, and a wide vari-
ety of luminaire types and
lighting techniques. The
primary, secondary, and
tertiary areas of importance
are all instantly obvious in
this space. As is the pro-
jection of the corporate
image.

Client – British Land

Architect and Building
Services – Arup Associates

The atrium is a favoured way of

bringing light into the centre of a build-
ing, but it can also make a strong
corporate statement by displaying the
company’s offices and meeting rooms
to the visitor in a dramatic way.
Good office and meeting room light-
ing can make a major contribution to
creating a favourable impression.

www.zumtobelstaff.com/ml
www.zumtobelstaff.com/slotlight
www.zumtobelstaff.com/panos
Sophos, Abingdon
Architect: Bennetts Associates
 W O R K P L A C E L I G H T I N G – A P P L I C AT I O N A R E A S 97

Common Parts Stairs/Lift/Lobbies/Atria/Entrance

These two variations on the central

atrium/circulation space both require
well-designed artificial lighting.
The minimal space on the left has a
series of shadowed overhangs, parti-
cularly on the ground floor, which
demand good auxiliary lighting to bal-
ance with the daylight; the example
below, at Pentland’s HQ, incorporates
large projectors within the central
space, to stand in for daylight after
dark – plus good soffit-mounted
illumination of the perimeter walk-
ways at each level.
Each floor represents a different
Pentland brand and a lot of effort has
gone into the interior and lighting
design to differentiate them.

www.zumtobelstaff.com/spheros
www.zumtobelstaff.com/miros
www.zumtobelstaff.com/copa
www.zumtobelstaff.com/panos
www.zumtobelstaff.com/ml
“Glare is not an unavoid-
able curse in lighting: it is
merely a side effect of
incompetence.”

Jules Horton Lighting the

Inner Spaces
 WORKPLACE LIGHTING – LIGHTING DESIGN 99

Workplace lighting –
Products and Resources

This final section of the brochure offers a concise

survey of the main products in the Zumtobel Staff
portfolio that could be used (either singly or in
combination) for achieving the optimum lighting
results discussed in Sections 1, 2 and 3. In addi-
tion we offer information on our various support
services, including technical backup and lighting
calculation and visualisation packages, as well as
supplying a number of useful addresses and
references that the reader may want to follow up.
 Direct-Indirect Lighting Systems
AERO/OREA
“Best Practice in Dealer Room and Office Lighting”
AERO
Designed by leading Italian de-
signers, Sottsass Associati, the
suspended AERO direct/indirect
lighting system embodies a new
interpretation of lightness and
elegance in its impressively
shallow form, while combining
the latest light control techno-
logy, the Eldacon® Waveguide
system.
The patented micro-prism
structure gathers the light from
its T16 lamps and spreads
and directs it downwards in a
low-glare, batwing pattern
(<1000 cd/m 2 at 65°) creating
comfortable, high efficiency
lighting which is perfect for
* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/waveguide
computer work-stations, lap-
tops and notebooks, irrespec-
tive of the angle of the screen.
Waveguide involves no conven-
tional reflectors or louvres but
its innovative micro-prism ma-
terial totally obscures the bright
lamp image while transmitting
the light with an efficiency of
70 %. AERO puts 76 % up-
wards onto the ceiling in a
broad distribution pattern, to
ensure uniform illumination of
the ceiling, with a low-glare
direct component of 24 %.
The main advantage of the
AERO system is that the lumi-
naires can be viewed from any
angle, with no distracting reflec-
AERO Eldacon® double waveguide
Options
Softline
Geometric
• Single or double Waveguide
* ELDACON® is a registered trademark of Siteco • SLC alternative Waveguide
Beleuchtungstechnik GmbH.
• Cord or pendant suspension
• Titanium colour
• Continuous-row option
• Transparent cable feed
• Dimmable DALI
Distributed lamp image via microprisms.
Typical Cat. no: 40 968 437 USN-ID 2/54 W*
tions on screens and displays,
which permits unrestricted
arrangements of lighting units
within the space. AERO lumi-
naires come in two designs –
the Softline version, with round-
ed details, and the hard-edged
Geometric version – each of
which is available with single or
double Waveguide panels and a
range of lamp wattages.
Design: Sottsass Associati

“The flying wings bring visual lightness to the space”
OREA
OREA offers a further variation
on the suspended direct/indirect
lighting system, using the SLC®
Waveguide system in an elegant
ensemble. The luminaire uses
twin T16 lamps housed in the
central body – the light from
these is diffused out along two
tapered outer wings made from
SLC Waveguide, a patented
®
linear, micro-prismatic material.
The innovative SLC Waveguide
material totally obscures the
bright lamp image while trans-
mitting the light with an efficien-
cy of 70 % creating comfort-
able, high efficiency lighting
which is perfect for computer
WORKPLACE LIGHTING – PRODUCTS AND RESOURCES 101
OREA SLC® waveguide
Options
• Cord or pendant suspension
• Continuous-row option
• Circular version
• Wall mounted version
• Dimmable DALI
* SLC® is a registered trademark of Zumtobel Staff
GmbH.
Typical Cat. no: 40 962 222 GZ-ID 2/54 W*
work-stations, laptops and
notebooks, irrespective of the
angle of the screen.
OREA puts the largest compo-
nent of its output onto the
ceiling in a broad distribution
pattern, to ensure uniform illumi-
nation of the ceiling, with a low-
glare direct component of 24 %.
The main advantage of OREA
is that the luminaires can be
viewed from any angle, with no
distracting reflections on screens
and displays, which means it
permits unrestricted arrange-
ments of lighting units within
the space.
Design: Bea Frois
 Direct-Indirect Task Area Luminaires
FREELINE MP-ID Micro-pyramidal optic/C-I/ID Matt Bivergent® Louvre

“A new genre of direct/indirect”

FREELINE MP-ID Optic

Options
• Task MPO Optics at ends
also have uplight
• Dimmable DALI
• Dimming on Demand

Typical Cat. no: 42 159 244 FREELINE MP-ID 2 x 1/49 W ASQ500*

FREELINE MP-ID away from uniform arrays to the

FREELINE is a new genre of
linear suspended direct/indirect
luminaire that is a restrained
design to be perceived as part
of the architecture with empathy
to elements of an interior such
as partitions and furniture.
ideals of localised Task Area
lighting where energy loadings
can be halved as will be the
demands of the European
Energy Performance of Build-
ings Directive.
Design: Ingenhoven & Partners

FREELINE MPO is a tandem

length elegant luminaire with
minimalist features and contin-
ious downlight via an MPO
micro-pyramidal optic having
< 1000 cd/m2 brightness and
generous uplight.

FREELINE is suited to average

ceiling heights and is suited to
lighting concepts that can move

* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/freeline

 WORKPLACE LIGHTING – PRODUCTS AND RESOURCES 103

“Louvres without the headache”

FREELINE C-I/D Louvre

Options
• Task Louvres at ends also
have uplight
• Dimmable DALI
• Dimming on Demand

Typical Cat. no: 42 159 236 FREELINE C-I/D 1/80 W + 2 x 2/24 W*

FREELINE C-I/D 1/54 W, 1/80 W, 2/54 W Uplight

FREELINE Matt Bivergent Louvre

option is a sister product to the
FREELINE MPO, that is opti- Louvre Louvre
C-I/D Louvre
mised to Task Area Lighting.

The central compartment 2/24 W 2/24 W

downlight downlight
houses an uplight only section
whereas the ends contain the
task area
direct downlight louvre section.
When mounted over a task
area, the direct lighting thus 1/54 W, 1/80 W, 2/54 W Uplight Uplight also from
comes from the side to the task, Task Louvres

avoiding veiling reflections.

The Comfort Bivergent louvres Louvre Louvre

render extremely low brightness
C-I/ID Louvre
< 200 cd/m2.
2/24 W 2/24 W
downlight downlight

task area

Sideways light reduces veiling reflections

 Direct-Indirect Lighting Systems
LIGHT FIELDS/SPHEROS
“The prismatic is dead, long live MPO technology”
LIGHT FIELDS
LIGHT FIELDS is a totally unique
lighting system that can be
used in a number of ways: as a
direct, surface-mounted light
source; in a suspended direct/
indirect configuration; as a free-
standing unit; or in clusters
which mimic the appearance of
a large skylight.
In whatever configuration, the
LIGHT FIELDS luminaire has a
restrained, unobtrusive appear-
ance, with its simple, slim con-
tours, strict geometrical form
and highly refined materials.
LIGHT FIELDS does not domi-
nate the architecture of the
space, but fits in discreetly.
* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/lightfields
Both the form and function of
LIGHT FIELDS is generated by
the innovative micro-pyramidal
optic (MPO), a further refinement
of Zumtobel Staff’s Waveguide
technology which has revolu-
tionised office lighting. MPO
technology takes the system
one step further by reducing the
luminance levels of not only pen-
dant luminaires, but also surface-
mounted and recessed lumi-
naires, to guarantee glare-free
lighting for VDU work-stations.
LIGHT FIELDS A-ID, indirect/direct
Typical Cat. no: 42 157 193 LIGHT FIELDS A-ID 2/54 W*
LIGHT FIELDS not only ensures
unusually brilliant lighting quality,
it also reduces direct and reflect-
ed glare to a minimum in con-
formity with the latest EN 12464
recommendations. Annoying
reflections on computer screens
and displays have become a
thing of the past – even on
notebook screens, regardless
of their angle of inclination.
MPO technology ensures that
from all angles one sees only
Options
• 300 or 600 widths
• Configurable into clusters
• Surface, recessed, suspend-
ed and freestanding option
Diffuser layer
Light directing layer
with micro-pyramidal
structure
Supporting layer
the light, and not the lamp –
even with surface-mounted and
recessed versions offering pure-
ly direct light distribution. Des-
pite their high light output ratio
of 72 % (surface-mounted and
recessed versions) and 86 %
(pendant version), the luminance
at radiation angles above 65°
remains less than 1000 cd/m2.
Design: Sottsass Associati
 WORKPLACE LIGHTING – PRODUCTS AND RESOURCES 105

“Slim and minimalist with universal appeal”

SPHEROS C-ID 2/28 W T16 suspended, semi matt louvre

Options
• 1200/1500/2400/3000
lengths
• Different louvre options
• Surface mounting, continu-
ous-row and pendant rod
versions
• Colour strips available
• Dimmable DALI

BIVERGENZ®plus
Louvre technology

max. 1000
The new generation of louvres, developed
in the Research and Development labora-
tories of Zumtobel Staff, optimises the
interaction between two unique technical
developments. It combines the patented
BIVERGENZ ®technology and the innovative
220
Unique®slats.

Typical Cat. no: 42 154 954 SPHEROS C-ID 2/28 W T16 LDE TI ASQ1000*

SPHEROS T16 of the reasons why SPHEROS

C-ID T16 has consistently remained
popular amongst specifiers.
The classic SPHEROS shape
has now become a much imita- Design: Hartmut S. Engel
ted lighting design icon, with
surface mounted, suspended,
individual or continuous versions
of SPHEROS all available.
There is even complementary
wall mounting and free standing
versions available to complete
the family. This enables a con-
stant design theme across the
workplace.

The wide range of optics all

available with or without an indi-
rect component can cater for
any aesthetic and technical
requirements and is perhaps one

* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/spheros

 Direct-Indirect Task Area Luminaires
TECTON Mellow Light and TECTON Louvre

“Ultimate Sustainability from Reconfigurability”

TECTON Mellow Light

Options
• Extensive TECTON System
Range
• See TECTON Brochure for
more details

Typical Cat. no: 22 160 106 TECTON-D ML 28/54 W*

TECTON Mellow Light
The TECTON Range straddles
a wide application range from
industrial through commercial
to retail and architectural.
Specify also appropriate batten and accessories.
Range. The design execution in
detail is exquisite and the lit
effect is even better.
Design: Nicholas Grimshaw &
Partners

TECTON features a continuous

bus bar trunking to which vari-
ous attachments can be clip-fit-
ted.

Key to the TECTON range is

choice of luminaire type, ease of
installation, and ease of re-con-
figuring which renders ultimate
flexibility for office churn.

TECTON Mellow Light brings all

the attributes of MELLOW
LIGHT IV to the TECTON

* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/tecton

 WORKPLACE LIGHTING – PRODUCTS AND RESOURCES 107

“Louvres with Flexibility”

TECTON Louvre
Options
• Extensive TECTON System
Range
• See TECTON Brochure for
more details

Typical Cat. no: 22 157 522 TECTON-D ID 28/54 W*

Specify also appropriate batten and accessories.
TECTON Louvre attractive contemporary designs
for the more domestic atmos-
TECTON Louvre is a functional phere needed in Break Out
Workplace lighting luminaire with Zones, Restaurants etc. within
direct-indirect distribution. The the Workplace.
louvre is a darklight with narrow
lamellae made from injection
moulded polycarbonate. The
luminaire is thus suited to loca-
lised lighting to task areas, but
combined with the TECTON
trunking, the whole system
renders extraordinary flexibility
to churn in Workplace space
planning.

Moreover there are other lumi-

naires in the TECTON Range
besides the Mellowlight, includ-
ing TECTON Dekoroptik and
TECTON Pool-light, which are
 Direct-Indirect Lighting Systems
CLARIS II/VOLARIS
“Clear, unobtrusive, geometric, symmetric”
CLARIS II/VOLARIS
The CLARIS II and VOLARIS
surface-mounted, wall-mounted
or pendant luminaires represent
the latest step in a long line of
successful louvre-based lumi-
naires for a wide range of work-
place lighting applications.
CLARIS II has an independent,
clear and unobtrusive appear-
ance, with its geometric, sym-
metric lines. VOLARIS offers the
same lighting features as its
“sister” model, but its curva-
ceous, flowing shapes and soft,
gently rounded appearance
offers an alternative architectural
aesthetic.
* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/claris2
Both luminaire ranges use the
latest cell louvre technology
which set new standards for
this type of luminaire. For the
first time in linear fluorescent
systems, the louvre has been
manufactured from injection-
moulded materials, offering the
homogeneous 360° Bivergenz
optic design. This means that in
terms of light distribution and
lighting effect, CLARIS II and
VOLARIS out-class luminaires
with larger louvres. They both
offer efficient, all-round glare
control, making undesired
reflections on screens and dis-
plays a thing of the past and
allowing maximum flexibility in
luminaire configuration.
CLARIS II MC-ID cord supension, titanium
Options
Typical Cat. no: 42 158 653 CLARIS II MC-ID 1/54 W*
CLARIS II and VOLARIS come in
four main variants:
• Darklight Specular Louvre
version, for particularly onerous
VDT applications;
• Matt Comfort Louvre version,
®
with its innovative micro-tex-
tured embossed finish, which
gives a high diffusivity to the
louvre surface, offering a very
soft image of the lamp, even at
high viewing angles. Despite the
matt finish, the product meets
the 1000 cd/m2 limit at 65º and
is the preferred choice for gen-
eral VDT office lighting.
• Matt Comfort Louvre with
Dealer Room refractor, specially
• Cord or pendant suspension
• Comfort or darklight louvre
• Dealer Room refractor for
louvres
• Opal Diffuser
• Single and Twin lamp
• Double length luminaires
• Matching surface luminaires
• Dimmable DALI
The 3D model of the cell
louvre shows the groove-
shaped design which
provides for optimum
light distribution.
designed for the UK market,
which has a particular lamp
position that allows a prismatic
refractor to be added between
the lamp and louvre. This miti-
gates the lamp brightness,
which may otherwise cause
problems on dealer screens or
other LCD desk-based equip-
ment.
• Opal Diffuser model, de-
veloped for situations where the
designer wants the lighting to
be minimalist yet conspicuous.
The Opal Diffuser completely
diffuses the view of the lamp,
yet the lit appearance remains
crisp and even.
Design: A • G Licht Bonn
 WORKPLACE LIGHTING – PRODUCTS AND RESOURCES 109

“A softening of lines”

VOLARIS MC-ID cord supension, anodised

Options
• Cord or pendant suspension
• Comfort or darklight louvre
• Dealer Room refractor for
louvres
• Opal Diffuser
• Single and Twin lamp
• Double length luminaires
• Matching surface luminaires
• Dimmable DALI

Typical Cat. no: 42 156 237 VOLARIS MC-ID 1/54 W*

CLARIS II

VOLARIS

* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/volaris

 Dual Component Lighting Systems
MELLOW LIGHT IV Grid-mesh
“A Piece of sky”
MELLOW LIGHT IV
Grid-mesh
The MELLOW LIGHT system,
now in it’s fourth refinement,
has set the benchmark for sur-
face mounted and recessed
office lighting for more than a
decade. The key aspect of its
design is that thanks to the
unique all-round glare control of
the grid-mesh diffuser, you see
the light but not the lamp, at all
angles of view. The usual glare
and distraction associated with
overhead lighting are eliminated,
while the subtly varied appear-
ance of the luminaire from
different directions adds visual
interest.
* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/ml
With it’s rounded polar curve
showing slow rate of change
of intensity, MELLOW LIGHT IV
epitomises good office lighting.
The often conflicting needs of
architectural quality, visual com-
fort, daylight integration and
control of screen reflections can
all be reconciled through the
unique qualities of MELLOW
LIGHT IV. For example, the main
visual surfaces, such as faces,
walls and furniture are better lit
by MELLOW LIGHT than by
conventional louvre fittings so
that the overall impression of
interior brightness is enhanced,
without added energy consump-
tion. The grid-mesh diffuser sets
a new trend for style that leaves
behind perforated diffusers. The
MELLOW LIGHT IV recessed, grid-mesh controller
Options
• 600/1200/1500 widths
• Diffuser optic with slotted
metal sheet for all-round
glare control
• Dimmable Dali
1 SECONDARY CHAMBER
acts as backlighting plenum to 1
diffuser wings 3
2 4
2 TRANSLUCENT OPAL DIFFUSER 5
WINGS
utilising variable refractive index
plastic for high efficiency 4 PRIMARY COMPARTMENT
enclosed for optimal T16 lamp
3 TONAL COLOUR STRIPS operation, and to improve
provide differential colour tone maintenance factor
between primary optic and
secondary chamber 5 GRID-MESH or SYNTO LOUVRE
CONTROLLER
Typical Cat. no: 42 106 224 ML4 B EB 2/24 W T16 M600*
grid-mesh diffuses the lamp, yet
integrates with the secondary
chambers to bring about an
attractive luminaire whether it is
switched on or off.
Design: Studio & Partners
 WORKPLACE LIGHTING – PRODUCTS AND RESOURCES 111

“Tames even the brightest lightsources”

MELLOW LIGHT IV recessed, grid-mesh controller

Options
• 600/1200/1500 widths
• Diffuser optic with slotted
metal sheet for all-round
glare control
• Dimmable Dali

1 SECONDARY CHAMBER
acts as backlighting plenum to 1
diffuser wings 3
2 4
2 TRANSLUCENT OPAL DIFFUSER 5
WINGS
utilising variable refractive index
plastic for high efficiency 4 PRIMARY COMPARTMENT
enclosed for optimal TC-L lamp
3 TONAL COLOUR STRIPS operation, and to improve
provide differential colour tone maintenance factor
between primary optic and
secondary chamber 5 GRID-MESH or SYNTO LOUVRE
CONTROLLER

Typical Cat. no: ML4 B EB 1/80 W TC-L M625*

This is a project specific solution. Alternative luminaire dimensions (e.g.
MELLOW LIGHT IV and its even, omni-directional 600 or 750 mm) are available. Please contact your local Zumtobel Staff
representative.
Grid-mesh light output allows arrays to be
under or over spaced, without
The novel feature of the latest adverse effects on uniformity.
MELLOW LIGHT model, desig- Due to the higher lamp output
ned by Studio & Partners, is the of versions using the TC-L lamp,
primary light chamber so that they consequently have higher
the fitting is enclosed, to stabi- brightness’s (see published Lmax
lise the lamp operating tempera- values).
ture, coupled with the secondary
light chamber concept, which
gives visual depth to the lumi-
naire. A degree of direct lighting
is available from the primary
chamber, using a variety of de-
vices, including grid-mesh and
SYNTO louvre. One of the
most useful characteristics of
MELLOW LIGHT IV is its flexibili-
ty – luminaires can be arranged
wherever you like in the room –
 Dual Component Lighting Systems
MELLOW LIGHT IV SYNTO Louvre

“High levels of efficiency and comfort”

MELLOW LIGHT IV recessed, SYNTO louvre controller

Options
• 600/1200/1500 widths
• Diffuser optic with slotted
metal sheet for all-round
glare control
• Dimmable Dali

1 SECONDARY CHAMBER
acts as backlighting plenum to 1
diffuser wings 3
2 4
2 TRANSLUCENT OPAL DIFFUSER 5
WINGS
utilising variable refractive index
plastic for high efficiency 4 PRIMARY COMPARTMENT
enclosed for optimal T16 lamp
3 TONAL COLOUR STRIPS operation, and to improve
provide differential colour tone maintenance factor
between primary optic and
secondary chamber 5 GRID-MESH or SYNTO LOUVRE
CONTROLLER

Typical Cat. no: 42 106 232 ML4 B EC 2/24 W T16 M600*

MELLOW LIGHT IV Design: Studio & Partners

SYNTO

The MELLOW LIGHT SYNTO is

ideal for situations where a de-
signer may wish to have more
“focal glow” on the desk.

The SYNTO louvre option of

MELLOW LIGHT IV offers a
higher direct ratio onto the
working plane.

The louvre and grid-mesh

optics are interchangeable so
can be used in combination to
add even greater flexibility
and diversity to an installation.
The shielding angle from the
louvre gives conventional glare
control. This also provides
higher operating efficiency.

* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/ml

 WORKPLACE LIGHTING – PRODUCTS AND RESOURCES 113

“Optimised to get the best from TC-L lamps”

MELLOW LIGHT IV recessed, SYNTO louvre controller

Options
• 600/1200/1500 widths
• Diffuser optic with slotted
metal sheet for all-round
glare control
• Dimmable Dali

1 SECONDARY CHAMBER
acts as backlighting plenum to 1
diffuser wings 3
2 4
2 TRANSLUCENT OPAL DIFFUSER 5
WINGS
utilising variable refractive index
plastic for high efficiency 4 PRIMARY COMPARTMENT
enclosed for optimal TC-L lamp
3 TONAL COLOUR STRIPS operation, and to improve
provide differential colour tone maintenance factor
between primary optic and
secondary chamber 5 GRID-MESH or SYNTO LOUVRE
CONTROLLER

Typical Cat. no: ML4 B EC 1/80 W TC-L M625*

This is a project specific solution. Alternative luminaire dimensions (e.g.
MELLOW LIGHT IV 600 or 750 mm) are available. Please contact your local Zumtobel Staff
representative.
SYNTO

The SYNTO louvre version of the

MELLOW LIGHT IV has also
been developed to maximise the
benefits of using compact fluo-
rescent TC-L lamps, which are
available in ever increasing
lumen outputs.

The MELLOW LIGHT IV SYNTO

has an optional visor which can
be used with the higher output
lamps, for example the 80 W
TC-L. This visor spreads and
distorts the lamp image by
broadening it, thus reducing
direct glare.
 Dual Component Lighting Systems
MELLOW LIGHT IV Q Grid-mesh/SYNTO

“Single Source Solution for LG3”

MELLOW LIGHT IV Q semi-recessed, grid-mesh controller

Options
• Colour tints available
• VDT attenuator available
• Balanced light version
• Dimmable DALI

1 SECONDARY CHAMBER
acts as backlighting plenum to
diffuser wings 2 1

2 TRANSLUCENT OPAL DIFFUSER 3

WINGS
utilising variable refractive index
plastic for high efficiency
3 TONAL COLOUR STRIPS
provide differential colour tone
between primary optic and
secondary chamber
4
5
4 PRIMARY COMPARTMENT
enclosed for optimal T16 lamp
operation, and to improve
maintenance factor
5 GRID-MESH or SYNTO LOUVRE
CONTROLLER

Typical Cat. no: 42 106 246 MELLOW LIGHT IV ML4 B AB 2/24 W T16 Q606*

MELLOW LIGHT IV Q most office applications would

be a single luminaire solution to
MELLOW LIGHT IV Q Grid- LG3.
mesh is a UK market driven
solution, optimised for achieving
light on to the ceiling. Necessar-
ily this means the luminaire can
not be flush and so the main
optic is below the ceiling level.

One unique feature of the

MELLOW LIGHT Q is that it can
easily be MELLOW LIGHT IV Q
used as a surface luminaire,
but it is actually designed to fit
into a 600 square lay-in grid
aperture.

The MELLOW LIGHT IV Q

derivative will put light on both
the ceiling and walls and thus to

* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/ml

 WORKPLACE LIGHTING – PRODUCTS AND RESOURCES 115

“The no-risk louvre solution”

MELLOW LIGHT IV Q semi-recessed, SYNTO louvre controller

Options
• Colour tints available
• VDT attenuator available
• Balanced light version
• Dimmable DALI

1 SECONDARY CHAMBER
acts as backlighting plenum to
diffuser wings 2 1

2 TRANSLUCENT OPAL DIFFUSER 3

WINGS
utilising variable refractive index
plastic for high efficiency
3 TONAL COLOUR STRIPS
provide differential colour tone
between primary optic and
secondary chamber
4
5
4 PRIMARY COMPARTMENT
enclosed for optimal T16 lamp
operation, and to improve
maintenance factor
5 GRID-MESH or SYNTO LOUVRE
CONTROLLER

Typical Cat. no: 42 106 252 MELLOW LIGHT IV ML4 B AC 2/24 W T16 Q606*

MELLOW LIGHT IV Q

MELLOW LIGHT IV Q with a

SYNTO louvre gives all the
attributes of the grid-mesh ver-
sion but renders a higher direct
ratio onto the task area.

The louvre and grid-mesh optics

are interchangeable so can be
used in combination to add even
greater flexibility and diversity to
an installation.
 Dual Component Lighting Systems
MELLOW LIGHT III

“You see the light not the lamp”

MELLOW LIGHT III semi-recessed, perforated basket

Options
• Fly guard attachment
• Surface mounting version
available
• Dimmable DALI

B1

H
4,5
12

H1

30
B2
B

Dropped perforated basket with opal

inlay for total lamp diffusion.

Typical Cat. no: 40 735 010 MELLOW LIGHT III RCE 1/55 W TC-L M600*

MELLOW LIGHT III Still a much favoured lighting

RCE solution by many, but out-
classed in the style and perfor-
The original in the MELLOW mance stakes by the MELLOW
LIGHT concept family of lumi- LIGHT IV range.
naires which comprises of a
white painted involute reflector
for the indirect component and
a dropped basket for the lamp
diffuser. MELLOW LIGHT III
RCE.

A simple solution to the

Brightness Management philos-
ophy of lighting the ceiling and
vertical surfaces including the
walls, partitions and peoples
faces.

* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/ml

 WORKPLACE LIGHTING – PRODUCTS AND RESOURCES 117

“Entirely flush and entirely discreet”

MELLOW LIGHT III semi-recessed, perforated basket

Options
• Fly guard attachment
• Surface mounting version
available
• Dimmable DALI

B1

H
4,5
B4
B2
B

Dropped perforated basket with opal

inlay for total lamp diffusion.

Typical Cat. no: MELLOW LIGHT III RCB 1/40 W TC-L M600 “Project special”*
NB. This luminaire is a project special with a minimum order quantity of
MELLOW LIGHT III 300 pieces.

RCB

This is the sister, flush recessed

version of the MELLOW LIGHT III
RCE.

The RCB perforated mesh bas-

ket is flush with the recessing
flange which may be preferred
aesthetically or in situations
where there are worries about
air diffusion.

Since the MELLOW LIGHT III

RCB shares the main technology
and design principle as the
MELLOW LIGHT III RCE it
offers all the main benefits
and performance.

NB. Made to order only as a

project special.
 Dual Component Lighting Systems
SYNTO Louvre

“The fundamentals of lighting synthesis”

SYNTO LRC semi-recessed, perforated basket

Options
• Fly guard attachment
• Surface mounting version
available
• Dimmable DALI

BIVERGENZ®plus 277
Louvre technology

94
The new generation of louvres, devel-

4,5
oped in the Research and Develop- 94
ment laboratories of Zumtobel Staff, 288
optimises the interaction between 310
two unique technical developments.
It combines the patented
L = 1548
BIVERGENZ ®technology and the
innovative Unique®cross-blade.

Typical Cat. no: 42 051 815 SYNTO LRC 2/40 W TC-L M600

SYNTO LRC

The original SYNTO luminaire

comprises of a white involute
reflector for the indirect compo-
nent and a semi-matt bivergent
louvre for the direct component.

Despite the flush louvre allowing

no direct illumination on the
ceiling this luminaire type, often
referred to as a “Dual Compo-
nent”, is a generic luminaire
much favoured in the office
lighting market.

However, it is out classed in

style and performance by the
MELLOW LIGHT IV SNYTO
range.
 WORKPLACE LIGHTING – PRODUCTS AND RESOURCES 119

“High-tech appearance and performance”

SYNTO LRZ semi-recessed, perforated basket

Options
• VDT attenuator available
• Surface mounting version
available
• Dimmable DALI

BIVERGENZ®plus 277
Louvre technology

94
The new generation of louvres, devel-

4,5
oped in the Research and Develop- 94
ment laboratories of Zumtobel Staff, 288
optimises the interaction between 310
two unique technical developments.
It combines the patented
L = 1548
BIVERGENZ ®technology and the
innovative Unique®cross-blade.

Typical Cat. no: SYNTO LRZ 2/40 W TC-L M600 “Project special”
NB. This luminaire is a project special with a minimum order quantity of
SYNTO LRZ 300 pieces.

The SYNTO LRZ in the UK is

a very successful derivative of
the SYNTO LRC due to the
additional “techy” appearance
given by the ribbed involute
reflector. However, this clever
technology not only looks good
but also attenuates the lumi-
nance above 60° compared to
the white reflector on the
SYNTO LRC.

NB. Made to order only as a

project special.
 Project Special Lighting Systems
MIREL T16

“Conventional high direct ratio downlights”

MIREL FEC-B 3/14 W T16, recessed, semi-matt louvre

Options
• 600/1200/1500 mm
• 1/2/3/4 lamps
• Dimmable DALI

Typical Cat. no: 42 159 150 FEC-B 3/14 W T16 EVG M600*

MIREL Bivergent® T16 The particular luminaire selec-

The latest generation of T16
Louvre products offers an ex-
tensive range, all with semi-matt
bivergent louvres, which meet
®
tion here is highly dependent
on the ceiling choice. The most
common solution for average
ceiling heights is the 3/14 W.

the onerous 1000 cd/m 2

luminance limitation to which
some designers still seek to
comply.

The Bivergent ® principle causes

the lamp image, when viewed
from 75º elevation downwards,
to roll down the principal reflec-
tor, such that cut off of the
object (lamp) coincides with
the image in the reflector disap-
pearing.

* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/miral

 WORKPLACE LIGHTING – PRODUCTS AND RESOURCES 121

“Optional visor for high output lamps”

MIREL REH 2/40 W TC-L, recessed, semi-matt louvre

Options
• 600/1200/1500 mm
• Dimmalbe DALI

Typical Cat. no: REH 2/40 W TC-L EVG M600*

NB. Made to order only as a project special.
MIREL Bivergent® TC-L
with Visor

Despite the prowess of T16

lamps, TC-L lamp configurations
are making a strong challenge
on several counts, not just 500
square ceiling modules, but also
the configurability of shorter,
high power TC-L lamps in the
Tartan Grid ceiling systems
greatly favoured in the premium
markets.

As the TC-L lamps get more and

more bright, their use in open
louvre luminaires in office envi-
ronments is highly questionable.
In consequence with higher out-
put lamps we offer a visor to
spread the lamp image and
reduce discomfort.
 Project Special Lighting Systems
MIREL T16

“Service Tile options”

MIREL T16

These luminaires offer the flexibility to B1 181

create project specific solutions.

Subject to a minimum order quantity

which is project dependant.
B 200

4,5
Please contact your local Zumtobel 12
Staff Project Engineer to discuss
details of your requirements.

Typical Cat. no: FEC 2/24 W T16 “Project special”*

Service Tile Louvre very light in weight and have

Options – T16 engendered a new maintenance
methodology: “Basement Main-
In the Premium Office Market tenance” wherein defective lumi-
so many of the projects use tar- naires are replaced and returned
tan grid ceiling systems, where for maintenance in the Plant
inevitably the result is the provi- Room.
sion of a multi function service
tile which also supports the
principal luminaire type. Such
louvre luminaires have colloqui-
ally come to be called “shoebox
luminaires” alluding to their
compactness.

Zumtobel Staff have optimised

luminaire design in this sector
by achieving a 70 mm depth
including integral emergency
invertors. The luminaires are

* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/miral

 WORKPLACE LIGHTING – PRODUCTS AND RESOURCES 123

“Service Tile options”

MIREL TC-L

These luminaires offer the flexibility to B1 95

create project specific solutions.

Subject to a minimum order quantity

which is project dependant.
B 114

4,5
Please contact your local Zumtobel 12
Staff Project Engineer to discuss
details of your requirements.

Typical Cat. no: FEC 1/36 W TC-L “Project special”*

“New version with injection moulded louvre: FEK 1/24 W T16”
Service Tile Louvre
Options – TC-L

Again the TC-L lamp size and

power options combined with
new louvre technology offer new
horizons in high direct ratio light-
ing concepts.

Given that the ceiling will always

remain relatively dark, the new
cell louvre has a satin lustre
finish that raises the Ceiling
Brightness Impression CBI (see
page 26). Meanwhile the avail-
ability of a refractor to split the
lamp image, thereby reducing
glare, means that the louvre
solution still has something to
offer.
 Dual Component Lighting Systems
MELLOW LIGHT IV Q Balanced/MIREL Balanced
“Lighting with the power to change”
MELLOW LIGHT IV Q
Balance
Recent research has hinted at
the possibilities associated with
light that changes in character
over time since, as human
beings, we appear to be pre-
programmed to prefer subtle
change. Whilst change in light-
ing can be achieved with combi-
nations of luminaires there is no
doubt that the widespread
application of Balanced Light
Concepts will require the intro-
duction of easy to apply innova-
tive lighting solutions.
The MELLOW LIGHT IV Q
BALANCE is such a solution.
* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/ml
Using separately controlled pairs
of lamps, in the same optical
chamber, allows subtle or more
pronounced changes in the light
produced by the luminaire.
When equipped with different
colour temperature lamps the
light output can be changed in
colour, directional character and
quantity.
When equipped with normal
colour temperature lamps, spe-
cial 17,000 K Blue “third eye”
colour lamps can be incorporat-
ed. This gives the opportunity of
incorporating a small proportion
of melatonin suppressing blue
light into the lighting design.
MELLOW LIGHT IV Q BALANCE semi-recessed
Options
• Colour tints available
• VDT attenuator available
• Standard Non-Balance
versions
• Dimmable DALI
1 SECONDARY CHAMBER
acts as backlighting plenum to 1
diffuser wings
2
2 TRANSLUCENT OPAL DIFFUSER
3
WINGS
utilising variable refractive index 4
plastic for high efficiency
3 PRIMARY COMPARTMENT 4 GRID-MESH or SYNTO LOUVRE
enclosed for optimal T16 lamp CONTROLLER
operation, and to improve
maintenance factor
Typical Cat. no: 42 159 352 ML4 B EB 2/24 W+2/24 W T16 M600 GET-BC*
Coloured lamps or filters can be
used for adding lighting effects
for nightscaping or to enhance
corporate identity in entrance
and circulation areas.
 WORKPLACE LIGHTING – PRODUCTS AND RESOURCES 125

MIREL FEC-BC 4/14 W + 2/14 W BALANCE recessed

Options
• Standard Non-Balance
versions
• Dimmable DALI

BALANCE feature same as the

MELLOW LIGHT IV Q BALANCE
on previous page except in only
one plane through the central
inlay panel.

12
B1
ET 57
52

4,5
B
12
L1

Typical Cat. no: 42 160 124 FEC-BC 4/14-2/14 W LMB GET M600*

MIREL Balance

The MIREL BALANCE solution

has much of the potential of
MELLOW LIGHT IV Q BAL-
ANCED but in a fully recessed
form. The downward “task” light
distribution is precisely con-
trolled by louvres, whilst the
central diffusing panel controls
the light from the additional
lamps above. This simple solu-
tion gives access to a whole
plethora of effects including
changing colour temperatures,
changing intensity and changing
direction.

* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/miral

 Innovation In Surface Linear Luminaires
PERLUCE
“Like a diffuser luminaire … only better”
PERLUCE D
There are many, many work-
place installations where the
lighting possibilities are almost
entirely dictated by practical
considerations such as wiring
points or potentially onerous
environments. In such
situation the PERLUCE louvre
scores.
The PERLUCE D makes clever
use of different optics and is
one of the few luminaires to
combine precise optical control
via a louvre and protection via a
clear cover.
* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/perluce
PERLUCE D, enclosed louvre
Options
• Opal diffuser version
• 310 mm Square version
• Colour tints
• Asymmetric wallwasher optic
• Dimmable DALI
BIVERGENZ®plus
Louvre technology
The new generation of louvres,
developed in the Research
and Development laboratories
of Zumtobel Staff, optimises
the interaction between two
unique technical developments.
It combines the patented
BIVERGENZ®technology and
The grid of the 3D model illus- the innovative Unique®cross-
trates the complex form of the blades.
cross-blades. They guarantee
optimum light distribution.
Typical Cat. no: 42 159 052 PERLUCE D 1/54 W T16 IP50*
This cover also means that the
fitting is enclosed which stabilis-
es the lamp operating tempera-
ture to maximise the efficiency
of the lamp and luminaire.
Add into the equation a modern
technical appearance and a
proportion of indirect and side
glow and the PERLUCE D
louvre steps into the breach as
the ideal workplace tool for
factory offices, schools and
other education establishments
or simply where a different and
modern “techy” appearance is
required in a clean, surface
mounted design.
 WORKPLACE LIGHTING – PRODUCTS AND RESOURCES 127

“Wallwasher Options for Good Office Lighting Practice”

MIREL FEW 1/55 W TC-L M600,

recessed linear

The illumination of wall surfaces can be achieved in

numerous ways. The reflector within the FEW is
designed to give the best uniform distribution possible
with a fully recessed luminaire. Small dimensions make
it a very discreet solution to many wallwashing prob-
lems.

Typical Cat. no:

42 159 253 MIREL FEW 1/55 W TC-L EVG M600*

* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/miral

PERLUCE WW 1/49 W T16, surface mounted,

linear
Several of the many applications where PERLUCE
makes an ideal lighting solution, including schools, uni-
versities, healthcare and laboratories, also require good
illumination of the vertical surfaces. PERLUCE WW offers
this with the same style as the rest of the PERLUCE
family.

Typical Cat. no:

42 159 366 PERLUCE W 1/49 W T16 PM IP54*

* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/perluce

CLARIS II WW 1/28 W T16, surface mounted,

linear

The CLARIS II WW is a very useful addition to

the CLARIS II range in installations of CLARIS
where wallwashing is also required.

Typical Cat. no:

42 174 126 CLARIS II WW 1/28 W T16 EVG*

* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/claris2

PANOS HWW 1/32 W TC-TEL 200

PANOS HWW uses a very clever ribbed detail on one

side of the reflector to achieve a more asymmetric dis-
tribution without changing the appearance of the
installation from the main direction of view.

Typical Cat. no:

60 810 240 PANOS HWW 1/32 W TC-TEL 200*

* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/panos

 Direct Downlight Lighting Systems
PANOS
“Multi-talented to meet any requirements”
PANOS
Standard PANOS reflectors pro-
duce exceptional photometric
performance. But radical new
design thinking can enhance
this still further: enter PSP+. The
material used for the new PSP+
coating is PUREST SILVER
(100 % silver – which is over
Typical Cat. no:
60 810 236 PANOS HF1/32 W TC-TEL 200*
* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/panos
Options
• Reflector options: Faceted highly specular, Smooth highly specular, Smooth matt,
• Smooth white coated and Faceted highly specular with PUREST SILVER (PSP+)
• Recessed and surface mounted versions
• Increased thermal reflection gives longer lamp service life
• High and Low housing depths with horizontal and vertical lamp positions available
• Versions with UGR:16/19 suitable for use in environments with DSE equipment
• Reflector and cover ring unit made of high-quality,UV-resistant polycarbonate
• Supplied as complete models consisting of luminaire and separately housed bal-
last unit
• No-tool installation into ceiling for ceiling thickness' between 1–25 mm
• Attachments ordered separately
High and Low Recessed
High and Low Surface
Low voltage and Metal
halide PANOS versons
17 % more reflective than alu-
minium). The silver is precisely
applied onto the reflector by
means of a high tech sputtering
technique and sealed. This
new coating technique can be
applied to all highly polished
reflectors made of high-quality
polycarbonate in the downlight
range PANOS L and H.
Typical Cat. no: Typical Cat. no:
60 810 251 PANOS HF 2/26 W TC-DEL 200* 60 810 068 PANOS LM 1/26 W TC-DEL 175*
 WORKPLACE LIGHTING – PRODUCTS AND RESOURCES 129

“Innovative downlight solutions”

2LIGHT/E1 1/42 W TC-TELI, recessed single

module

The lit effect of 2LIGHT is beyond description.

It is a downlighter but that is where the similarity ends.
2LIGHT has a mystic halo effect that is entrancing and
is ideal for break-out zones and common parts.

Typical Cat. no:

60 810 782 2LIGHT E1 1/42 W TC-TELI EVG*

* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/2light

LIGHT FIELDS Mini E 2/32 W TC-TELI recessed

The 300 mm square LIGHTFIELDS is a very neat

corridor lighting solution. Good glare control yet re-
cognisable luminosity allows this luminaire to depict
the notional corridor.

Typical Cat. no:

42 159 215 L-FIELDS Mini E 2/32 W TC-TELI EVG M600*

* For further details: www.zumtobelstaff.com/lightfields

QUARTOS CQF 2/26 W TC-DEL EVG 260

Another square solution for corridor, but this is a

downlighter with many lamp and reflector variants to
make it suitable for numerous other applications.

Typical Cat. no:

40 938 519 QUARTOS CQF 2/26 W TC-DEL EVG 260
 Free-standing Luminaires
“Variable, adaptable lighting solutions”
Flexibility in the office requires
variable, adaptable lighting
solutions which can be person-
alised to cope with the chang-
ing needs of individual users
– or with frequent reconfigura-
tion of the workstations. For
many installations, free-stand-
ing luminaires may be the
favoured option. Research has
also shown that by giving
office workers control over
their local environment their
productivity will increase.
Zumtobel Staff offers a number
of free-standing variants of its
existing ranges, as well as
some specific free-standing
models offering a range of
distinctive features.
LIGHT FIELDS-S
With its slender luminaire head,
uncluttered lines, expressive
materiality and elegant looks,
the LIGHT FIELDS-S free-stand-
ing luminaire is sympathetic to
it’s surroundings. In terms of
lighting quality, the free-standing
model shares the same unique
micropyramidal optic as all other
versions of LIGHT FIELDS. This
guarantees brilliant, glare-free
lighting and a high output ratio.
The asymmetric indirect compo-
nent provides pleasant general
lighting and brightens up the
depth of a room. The light provi-
ded by LIGHT FIELDS-S can be
individually adjusted to suit both
mood and taste, using the inte-
gral SensControl lighting Man-
agement system, which can be
programmed individually by
the user or controlled through
four pre-set scenes. Its daylight
sensor and presence detector
and timer unit ensure the highest
quality illumination of the task
area at all times.
KAREA
With its slender luminaire head
the free-standing direct/indirect
KAREA luminaire model (and
matching wall light) has slim,
geometric lines and is made
from simple, elegant materials.
The direct light component is
controlled by a perforated metal
optic, ensuring pleasant light
distribution in the task area.
At the same time, the integral
SensControl lighting manage-
ment system allows individual
adjustment of the illuminance,
depending on the user’s person-
al wishes and needs, the indi-
vidual task and the specific
daylight conditions.
LANOS
The LANOS luminaire has an
altogether softer, less angular
appearance but still provides a
high output direct/indirect light
distribution. Sophisticated con-
trols are also built-in to LANOS
for manual or automatic control.
FLEXOS
As its name suggests, the
FLEXOS free-standing direct/
indirect luminaire, designed by
Da Costa & Wolf, takes the prin-
ciple of flexibility in workplace
lighting one step further. The
entire FLEXOS fitting be re-posi-
tioned and is available with one,
two, three or four luminaire
heads, all of which can be rotat-
ed and switched separately. This
means that a single luminaire,
with one base and one electrical
connection can illuminate up to
four desks highly efficiently and
according to individual require-
ments. Even the wall light ver-
sion can be adjusted in two
axes, offering a variety of
options for optimum vertical illu-
mination or mounted on the top
of partition walls or inclined ceil-
ings. FLEXOS comes with a
choice of two optics – a louvre
optic, guaranteeing a large
direct light component on the
working plane or a perforated
steel optic, with a reduced direct
lighting component, to ensure
more pleasant illumination of the
workstation. FLEXOS can be
controlled either by the Sens
Control system or using WinDIM
software allowing FLEXOS fit-
tings to be switched or dimmed
directly from a PC. Finally, a
bit of colour can be added by
using colour trims to match the
interior design or corporate
identity.
ID-S
Commissioned by Zumtobel
Staff in 1987, from Italian desi-
gners Sottsass Associati, the
ID-S range has since become a
design classic due to it’s clear,
simple lines and its versatile
technical performance. The
luminaire incorporates a safety
diffuser made of either 4 mm
heat-resistant tempered silicate
glass or ceramic glass, and has
a 12 mm glass frame with lumi-
nous edges, integrated into the
head. Featuring a range of tung-
sten halogen and metal halide
lamps to produce a substantial
indirect uplight component, the
ID-S can provide a pleasant,
warm lighting ambience. The
adjustable matt anodised alu-
minium reflector in the head of
the luminaire can be used for
effective task lighting.
The SensControl system means
that lighting levels can be opti-
mised individually, depending on
the task, ambient light and
user’s requirements. The user
can choose between automatic
and manual control in addition
to a pivoting PIR sensor which
automatically switches off the
luminaire whenever no move-
ment is detected in the task
area during a set period (up to
15 minutes). Depending on the
luminaire version, the control
system is set and operated
either via buttons or via an LCD
display.
 WORKPLACE LIGHTING – PRODUCTS AND RESOURCES 131

“The future has arrived”

633
ø 538
1940

HELIODISC

HELIODISC is a task luminaire

with added flexibility since it has
separately switchable direct,
indirect and task illumination.
This gives architects and lighting
designers greater planning pos-
sibilities. HELIODISC is a design
oriented luminaire with a trans-
parent, organic design for office
lighting according to the Task
Area Concept in EN 12464.

For more information on any of

the products featured on these
pages please contact your
local Zumtobel Staff Lighting
representative.
VPI
Wall Lighting

All current codes of practice VPI: Ultimate Recessed

Wallwashing Wallwashing
for lighting primarily refer to the
notional horizontal working
plane. This has tended to popu-
larise the use of regular arrays
of luminaires optimised to light a
plane that none of us actually
see.

In fact, in almost every building

we enter it’s the walls that do-
minate our vista. So, in every
main interior space we would
recommend the selection of at
least one wall for a specialist
lighting effect. Here we offer a
sample of different wall lighting
approaches, from wall-washing
to scolloping. While wallwashing
is a fairly well established tech-
nique, it is often not done well;
on the other hand, wall scollop-
ing usually happens without the
designer intending it and usually
has a messy, unplanned
appearance.
VPI 1: Ultimate wallwashing
Typical offset: 600–900 mm
Typical spacing: 900–1,200 mm
Wallwashing with semi-recessed compact
fluorescent luminaire gives a perfect soft wash
right up to the ceiling trim.
Luminaires:
778 301/302 compact fluorescent
PANOS S QT-DE/HIT-DE/HST
VPI 2: Recessed wallwashing
Typical offset: 300–600 mm
Typical spacing: 750–1,000 mm
Wallwashing with fully recessed compact fluo-
rescent luminaires that cannot light right up to
the ceiling trim and give quite a fall off down
the wall. This sometimes necessitates a second
row of luminaires. The luminaire is from the
PANOS family and looks identical to most
downlighters in that range, which means it does
give a “clean” ceiling appearance.
Luminaires:
PANOS HWW CFL
PANOS MWW QT/HIT

At Zumtobel Staff Lighting in the VPI 3: Linear/Continuous wallwashing

UK we have taken up the cause
of wall lighting and developed
the concept of VPI (Verti-Planar
Illuminance, to give it its full
name). This is a major design
aid to the art of lighting walls.
Here we present the “VPI” spec-
trum in a shortened form, with
Typical offset: 750–1,000 mm
Typical spacing: 900–1,800 mm
Here the lighting is very conspicuous, compris-
ing surface or suspended linear luminaires,
usually mounted on track. This offers great
flexibility in aiming the fixtures, which can be
moved up and down the track.
Luminaires:
ARCADE suspended continuous wallwashers
RTXII WW – 1 or 2 lamp T16
XENO WW QT-DE/HIT-DE
SPIRIT HST/TC-TEL/QT-DE

advice on simple offset and

spacing. The brochure “Lighting
Up the Wall: a VPI Design
Guide” is available in english.
 WORKPLACE LIGHTING – THE VERTICALS 133

Multi-Cusp Cornice Ellipsoidal

Scolloping Scolloping Scolloping

VPI 6 & VPI 7: Multi-cusp scolloping
Typical offset: 150–300 mm
Typical spacing: 500–750 mm
Wall scolloping with incandescent, low voltage
lamps in open reflectors and luminaires close to
the wall, creates a multitude of secondary
cusps on the wall. These can be incorporated
into an intentional pattern. VPI 6 uses fixed
downlights whereas VPI 7 adjustable versions
can be aimed higher or lower on the wall.
Luminaires:
PANOS M low voltage recessed luminaires
PANOS S low voltage recessed luminaires
VPI 8: Cornice scolloping
Typical offset: 40–60 mm
Typical spacing: 150–250 mm
Here very gentle wall scolloping along the very
top of the wall, at cornice level, is achieved by
using fibre optics or low power, low voltage
downlights.
Luminaires:
STARFLEX fibre optics
STARLIGHT 2 recessed low voltage downlights
VPI 9: Ellipsoidal scolloping
Typical offset: 300–400 mm
Typical spacing: 600–750 mm
Very strong wall scolloping using ultra-narrow
beam QR111 lamps in multi-directional down-
lights. The lamps are very precise and produce
no stray light, so the scollop shape is almost a
pure ellipse.
Luminaires:
PANOS S recessed luminaires recessed lumi-
naires

VPI 5: Feathered edge scolloping

Typical offset: 450–600 mm
Typical spacing: 1,200–1,800 mm
When lighting rooms with ordinary compact flu-
orescent downlights, the first row of luminaires
will very often be more than one metre away
from the walls. By using the VPI 5 technique,
the first row is deliberately positioned within
450 and 600mm of the wall, giving the appear-
ance of a deliberate pattern of feathered edge
scollops. These scollops will become “sharper”
with a mirror or specular reflector, rather than
one that is matt or white.
Luminaires:
PANOS L or H compact fluorescent
QUARTOS compact fluorescent
Advisory Services
References and Useful Websites
Advisory Services and
References
Lighting Solutions
Consultant (LSC)
Far from having a conventional
salesforce, Zumtobel Staff in the
UK employ a network of remote
users who are entirely devoted
to servicing the needs of speci-
fiers. Our personnel are the best
in the industry and, to ensure
unparalleled specifier support,
have embarked on the 3 year
Zumtobel Staff Lighting Solu-
tions Consultant course. This
course is aimed at taking the
lighting specialist to a new level
of competence by broadening
knowledge in both the lighting
discipline and across the whole
building design spectrum. Thus
your LSC qualified Zumtobel
Staff contact is able to provide
professional and practical design
advice on all aspects of work-
place lighting from boardrooms
to break-out zones, showrooms
to stairwells, atria to offices.
To find out who in building light-
ing design is Master of all
Trades and not a sciolist visit
www.zumtobelstaff.co.uk and
follow Lighting Solutions Consultant.
Technical Department
Zumtobel Staff UK employs a
team of qualified and experi-
enced lighting engineers who
are available to assist specifiers
with advice and information on
how to create the best possible
lit space. We do not do lighting
designs, preferring instead to
channel all our energies into
specifier support and not to
compromise our fee earning,
professional customers.
Contact the UK Technical team on:
enquiries@uk.zumtobelstaff.co.at
Grey Imports
Specifiers may be surprised to
learn that ZS luminaires sup-
plied on some projects in the
UK may have been sourced, by
the purchasing organisation,
from unofficial channels and not
via the Official UK Sales Organi-
sation, based in Hayes Middlesex.
Ensuring that the UK operation
is the source of all ZS product
required for projects allows us
to invest for the future and to
continue to provide high levels
of UK specifier support. Unoffi-
cially sourced product is not
covered by the normal compre-
hensive warranty provided by
the UK operation and even
basic levels of pre and post
order support is unlikely to be
available.
Flux Futura Seminars
Held regularly throughout the
year, the Zumtobel Staff Lighting
Flux Futura “CPD” accredited
lighting seminars are a great
learning experience. The pur-
pose of these events is to
address the various strategic
methods for illuminating the
modern environment, particular-
ly offices.
Places can be booked at
www.zumtobelstaff.co.uk by
following the Flux Futura link.
Software Installation Instructions
Software for downloading free Installation instructions for our
of charge can be found at products are available to down-
www.zumtobelstaff.co.uk by load at www.zumtobelstaff.
following the Service Centre/ co.uk by following the Service
Download/Programs link. Soft- Centre/Download/Installation
ware includes Zumtobel Staff Instructions link.
Product Explorer, the COPHOS
lighting design programs and
O&M Manuals
other tools designed to ease
considerably your daily work.
Installation, operation and main-
Included is COPHOS Phoenix,
tenance instructions and data-
THE working tool for lighting de-
sheets are available for O&M
sign – easy to handle, and sup-
Manuals at www.zumtobelstaff.
porting both emergency lighting
co.uk by following the Service
and dimming with Luxmate.
Centre and Product links.
Photometric Data
CAD Data
Data Plug-Ins for lighting design
2D CAD symbol data for Zumto-
programs can be found at
bel Staff products to be used in
www.zumtobelstaff.co.uk by
CAD programs is available at
following the Service Centre/
www.zumtobelstaff.co.uk by
Download/Photometric Data
following Service Centre/Down-
link. Use the data Plug-In to
loads/2D CAD data. Our 2D
download quickly and easily to
CAD luminaire library is available
your computer the current data
for AutoCAD in DXF and DWG
of all Zumtobel Staff luminaires
format. 3D data is also available
in IES, LDT (Eulumdat) or TM14
in several formats including DXF,
file formats. Detailed instruc-
Rhino, Lightscape and 3D Stu-
tions are also available covering
the use of Photometric Data
dio Max, free of charge from the
same source.
files in COPHOS Phoenix,
DIALux and Relux.
Zumtobel Staff Group
Environmental protection,
Specifications
health and safety guidelines
Individual products are described
The Group realises that all its
in detail at www.zumtobelstaff.
business activities are associat-
co.uk by following the Products/
ed with responsibility for envi-
Specifications link. This informa-
ronmental protection, health and
tion can be downloaded for use
safety, ascribing top priority to
in lighting design programs and
dealing with these issues. The
to generate specifications.
environmental protection, health

and safety guidelines of the
Group thus reflect its commit-
ment to ensure that sound envi-
ronmental protection, health and
safety measures are implement-
ed in all its business areas, sig-
nalling that in this respect it
seeks to apply high standards
group-wide at international level.
Preparations have been made
with the aim of integrating envi-
ronmental protection and indus-
trial occupational safety into the
quality management system.
Zumtobel Staff is thus prepared
for ISO 14001 certification.
Quality management sys-
tem certification
ZUMTOBEL STAFF has been
certified according to EN ISO
9001 since 27 May 1991, and
according to EN ISO 9001:2000
since 27 November 2003.
This certificate is acknowledged
by IQ Net partners in more than
30 countries.
Glossary of Terms
For a glossary of terms please
refer to the Zumtobel Staff
Lighting main Product Cata-
logue.
WORKPLACE LIGHTING – ADVISORY SERVICES/REFERENCES
Useful Websites
www.products.bre.co.uk/bree-
am/index.html – BRE Environ-
mental Assessment Method
(BREEAM), Building Research
Establishment (BRE)
www.bco.org.uk – British
Council for Offices (BCO)
www.bifm.org.uk – British Insti-
tute of Facilities Management
(BIFM)
www.bsi-global.com – BSI
British Standards is the Nation-
al Standards Body of the UK
www.cibse.org – The Char-
tered Institution of Building Ser-
vices Engineers. The Society
of Light and Lighting (SLL) is
part of CIBSE and acts as the
professional body for lighting
in the UK
www.dial.de – DIAL is a manu-
facturer-independent services
enterprise for lighting engineer-
ing and building technology
and is not profit oriented.
www.eldaplus.org – European
Lighting Designers’ Association
(ELDA+), Guetersloh, Germany
www.icel.co.uk – Industry
Committee for Emergency
Lighting, ICEL is the leading
UK authority on Emergency
Lighting
www.ile.org.uk – The Institution
of Lighting Engineers (ILE) is
135
the UK and Ireland’s largest association with the British
professional lighting association Institute of Facilities Manage-
and is dedicated solely to ex- ment (BIFM).
cellence in lighting.
www.luxmate.co.uk –
www.iald.org – International LUXMATE are Lighting Manage-
Association of Lighting Design- ment and Daylight harvesting
ers, Chicago, USA specialists and are part of the
Worldwide Zumtobel organi-
www.lightright.org – The Light sation.
Right Consortium aims to shift
the paradigm of lighting specifi-
cation and installation in com-
mon practice toward ergonomi-
cally designed lighting solutions.
www.lif.co.uk – Lighting Indus-
try Federation (LIF)
www.diag.org.uk – The Euro-
pean Energy Performance of
Buildings Directive (EPBD)
comes into force in the UK in
January 2006, and will have
major business implications for
all owners, operators, design-
ers and developers of new and
existing buildings. The Directive
Implementation Advisory Group
(DIAG) has been established to
advise the UK Government on
the energy performance of
buildings and the implementa-
tion of the Directive in a timely
manner.
www.workplaceintelligence.co.uk
– The Workplace Intelligence
Unit develops and shares infor-
mation and ideas on creating
more distinctive, productive and
healthy workplaces. Zumtobel
Staff sponsor the WIU, which
was founded by Herman Miller
and forward thinking inc. in
INDUSTRY SPORT Throughout the world, Zumtobel Staff
AND ENGINEERING AND LEISURE
is the competent reliable partner for
innovative lighting solutions in all areas
of application of professional interior
lighting:

Industry and Engineering

Sport and Leisure
Transit areas and Car parks

Offices and Education

Presentation and Retail
Hotels and Catering
TRANSIT AREAS OFFICES
A N D C A R PA R K S A N D E D U C AT I O N Art and Culture
Health & Care
Orientation and Safety
Active Light

With production plants in Austria,

Germany, Australia and the USA, and
sales organisations in all major Euro-
pean markets as well as commercial
agencies in most regions of the world,
Zumtobel Staff is one of the biggest
P R E S E N TAT I O N HOTELS international enterprises in the lighting
A N D R E TA I L A N D C AT E R I N G
sector.

As a leader in innovation, we guaran-

tee our customers global competence
in lighting consulting and design
assistance, superior product quality
and future-proof technologies – from
individual luminaires to electronic light-
ing management systems.

ART H E A LT H &
A N D C U LT U R E CARE Corporate goal: We want to use light
to create worlds of experience, make
work easier and improve communica-
tions and safety while remaining fully
aware of our responsibility to the envi-
ronment.
 United Kingdom Norway
Zumtobel Staff Lighting Ltd. Zumtobel Staff Belysning AS
Unit 4 - The Argent Centre, Industriveien 11
Pump Lane 1481 Hagan
Track and spots
Hayes/Middlesex UB3 3BL Tel: +47/(0)670/62230
Tel. +44/(0)20 8589 1800 Fax: +47/(0)670/62269
Fax +44/(0)20 8756 4800 Email: firmapost@zumtobelstaff.no
Email: enquiries@uk.zumtobelstaff.co.at
Modular lighting systems www.zumtobelstaff.co.uk Sweden
Zumtobel Staff
USA and Canada Birger Jarlsgatan 57
Zumtobel Staff Lighting 113 56 Stockholm
3300 Route 9W Tel: +46/(0)8/26 26 50
Down-/uplights Highland, New York 1258-2630 Fax: +46/(0)8/26 56 05
Tel. +1/(0)845/691 62 62 E-mail: info@zumtobelstaff.se
Fax +1/(0)845/691 62 89 www.zumtobelstaff.se
www.zumtobelstaff.us
www.zumtobelstaff.ca Poland
Recessed luminaires
Zumtobel Staff Przedstawicielstwo w
Australia and New Zealand Polsce
Zumtobel Staff (Australia) Pty. Ltd. ul. Zuga 14/2
2 Wella Way 01-806 Warsaw
Surface-mounted and Somersby, NSW 2250 Tel. +48/22 635 6499
Tel. +61/(2)4340 3200 Fax +48/22 865 1530
Fax +61/(2)4340 2108 www.zumtobelstaff.pl
Email: info@zumtobelstaff.com.au
pendant luminaires www.zumtobelstaff.com.au Russia
Wallwashers Zumtobel Staff Representative Office
China Office 2111/Skakovaya-17
Zumtobel Staff 125040 Moscow
T5-2-152 Tayuan Diplomatic Compound, Tel. +7/095 945 3633
No. 1 Xin Dong Road, Chaoyang District Fax +7/095 945 1694
LED, task, wall and uplights
100600 Beijing www.zumtobelstaff.ru
Tel. +86/(10) 8532 3886
Fax +86/(10) 8532 3889 Head offices
Email: admin@zumtobelstaff.com.hk Zumtobel Staff GmbH
Continuous row and Schweizer Strasse 30
Hong Kong Postfach 72
Zumtobel Staff 6851 Dornbirn, AUSTRIA
Unit 4319-20, Level 43, Tel. +43/(0)5572/390-0
batten luminaires
Tower 1, Metroplaza, Fax +43/(0)5572/22 826
High-bay luminaires
223 Hing Fong Road,
Kwai Chung, N.T. Zumtobel Staff GmbH & Co. KG
Tel. +852/(0)2503 0466 Grevenmarschstr. 74-78
Fax +852/(0)2503 0177 32657 Lemgo, GERMANY
Luminaires with extra protection Email: admin@zumtobelstaff.com.hk Tel. +49/(0)5261/2 12-0
Fax +49/(0)5261/2 12-7777
Singapore www.zumtobelstaff.de
Zumtobel Staff Representative Office
No. 5 Kaki Bukit Crescent #04-03 www.zumtobelstaff.com
Lighting Controls 416238 Singapore
Tel. +65/(0)6848 2560
Fax +65/(0)6234 4972
Email: info@zumtobelstaff.com.sg

Emergency lighting

Art.-No. 04 797 631-UK 04/05 © Zumtobel Staff

Technical data was correct at time of going to press.
We reserve the right to make technical changes without notice.
Please contact your local sales office for further information.
Medical supply systems Printed on environmentally-friendly chlorine-free paper.
Lighting for the
Workplace

www.zumtobelstaff.com