When a world-renowned architectural design firm such as Gensler designs a new office setting for itself and aims for LEED certification, the opportunity to make the most of LED lighting’s energy efficiency and design flexibility comes to the forefront.
Gensler recently relocated its East Bay office from San Ramon, Calif., to Oakland’s Uptown Oakland district and looked for ways to integrate the office into the surrounding urban landscape. Within walking distance of historic buildings, the new location adds to the resurgent Oakland and the East Bay areas providing growing business opportunities and economic revitalization.
To set the right lighting for its conference rooms, Gensler looked for luminaires not only to provide general lighting for the open environment, but also for the luminaires to be clean, simply designed and mountable in a TechZone ceiling system.
The firm turned to Zumtobel Lighting, Highland, N.Y., for the solutions, and used Zumtobel BASYS LED II downlights and SLOTLIGHT II to meet the multiple requirements for the installation. The downlights are designed to keep the environment visually quiet with minimal glare, while the minimalist design and clean lines of the Slotlight blend inconspicuously into the conference room.
Zumtobel has been making lighting for more than 60 years, basing its offering on the company’s knowledge of lighting and a profound understanding of its effects on people, Zumtobel said in a release. The company was an early adopter of published and third-party verified environmental product declarations in compliance with international ISO 14025 and EN 15804 standards. This emphasis on environmental responsibility fit well with Gensler’s design philosophy, which holds that a holistic and sustainable approach to design is a fundamental aspect of every project.