We have exciting news to share! We were awarded the 2020 IES Illumination Award of Merit for lighting controls and lighting design for our very own corporate headquarters space!

The lighting controls at our 1201 Cass corporate headquarters were designed to bolster the lighting design concept of Limitless Boundaries. The control system accomplishes this goal through deep integration with multiple systems throughout the building, providing a thoughtful balance of flexibility, functionality, intuitive operation, and budget. It also supports our two primary objectives: flexibility to showcase the space as a demonstration/learning lab and aid in the project’s pursuit of WELL Building Standard^TM certification.

On the demonstration side, the audiovisual system sends and receives signals that allow conference room users to recall scenes and adjust zone levels from custom touchscreens. A web interface, accessible from any computer or mobile device connected to the secure network, enables the user to set scenes and adjust zones while being in the space.

The connection to the Building Management and Control System (BMCS) encourages the WELL concept of biophilia or humans’ innate desire for a connection to nature. Utilizing outdoor air temperature and wind speed data, the BMCS affects color and saturation of the RGBAW channels at the reception desk through a custom-written lookup table.

Circadian lighting design, another WELL feature, is reinforced by adjusting the color temperature of the open office lighting via DALI Protocol to resemble daylight. Our lighting designers overcame limitations of DALI through custom time clock schedules that utilize astronomical triggers throughout the day. Daylight sensors, photocells, and occupancy sensors are inputs to the system that affect the electric lights and motorized shades to maintain optimal light levels at the work surface while leveraging daylight for a system energy savings 36% better than code. The occupancy sensors are also utilized as inputs to the security system, programming that took over a month to resolve, reducing the number of sensors overall.

For more information about our IES Award of Merit and the full list of IES award winners, go to the IES Illumination Awards page. Take a look at our beautiful lighting design in action in a video of our corporate headquarters below!