Lutron Natural Light Optimization
Olympia Brackin
Hawkeye Communication is a certified Lutron dealer, installer, and service provider. Lutron products offer the flexibility you need with the energy savings you want. Shading solutions help optimize daylight in your home by reducing heating and cooling costs and making your space more comfortable.
Hawkeye Communication is proud to now offer the new Lutron battery-powered wood blinds! Wake up to a soothing, sun-filled room to set the tone for your day. Natural light can change the look of your space as well as the way you feel.
Using Lutron's app, you can enable the Natural Light Optimization feature to automatically tilt blinds to preset angles throughout the day to diffuse direct sunlight and maximize comfortable daylight in any space.
The Lutron battery-powered wood blinds are equipped with the best-in-class technology and come in many types of finishes and valance styles. Contact Hawkeye Communication and see how you can start to take advantage of the natural light in your home.
Natural light does wonders for your home. As it enters through your windows, it instantly energizes your space and can even help lift your mood! Sadly, many homeowners leave their blinds closed most of the time and miss the opportunity to harness the power of natural light.
Beyond schedules, easily control the tilt of your blinds using a handheld remote, mobile app, or voice command. Lutron wood blinds are also cordless and feature a carefully designed bar for easy and precise manual lift when you want to raise your blinds or pull them down.
Wipliance is a Diamond Elite Lutron dealer and would love to help design and install the perfect Lutron wood blinds for your home. To start your project, book a free consultation by contacting us here or sending us a message in the chat box below! To learn more about our Lutron offerings, check out our Lutron lighting and shading page.
These new smart window blinds can be controlled using a mobile app, remote control or they can open/close themselves automatically to allow in just the perfect amount of sunlight. The window blinds are equipped with natural light optimization feature that automatically tilts the blinds to preset angles throughout the day to diffuse direct sunlight and maximize comfortable daylight in your space. All schedules are based on the location and orientation of your house as well as the location of the blinds.
In the morning, the blinds on the East facing side of your home will tilt to minimize direct glare of the sun and blinds on all other sides of your home will shift to the Max View position to let in natural light and views. In the afternoon, the blinds adjust to fade fighter tilt position to defuse direct sunlight from coming in. It helps in protecting floors, furniture, and artwork from harmful UV rays that can cause fading or discoloration.
Handcrafted from North American basswood, these automated blinds are available in battery-powered, wired, or full manual options. There will also be different finishes and styles to choose from according to personal taste and interior style.
Homecrux is an online magazine that advocates the authority of design. It allows readers to both discover and follow the most creative and interesting projects in the field of design, architecture and smart home technology.
Smart Control Integration: Seamlessly integrating into your smart home ecosystem, these shades can be controlled using the Lutron app. This integration allows for the simultaneous management of natural light (via the shades) and artificial light (using Casta smart dimmers and switches). The shades can be adjusted effortlessly using voice commands, the app, or a smart remote, offering unparalleled convenience.
Privacy and Scheduling Flexibility: Serena Shades offer the ability to close in near-perfect unison, providing complete privacy when needed. Additionally, the scheduling feature allows the shades to open and close based on sunrise and sunset times, adapting to the changing seasons.
Installation Options: Catering to a wide range of customer preferences, Serena Shades offer both professional installation services and a do-it-yourself approach. This flexibility, combined with their compatibility with numerous smart home brands, makes them a versatile choice for various home setups.
By now, the 3/30/300 story is probably familiar to you. As a general rule, organizations spend approximately $3 per square foot per year for energy, $30 for rent, and $300 for personnel. Since people are your most valuable asset, improving their overall experience delivers the greatest return on investment (ROI). Furthermore, investments that focus on wellness and sustainability are proving to have exponential results in terms of employee satisfaction and productivity. The WELL Building Standard, administered by the International Well Building Institute, provides a model for space design and construction that integrates performance-based systems to positively impact the built environment ( ). Lighting and lighting control are an essential piece of this proverbial puzzle.
Many organizations that were early supporters of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification are also turning their attention to the WELL standard as a guideline for design focused on wellness, comfort, and productivity. WELL Building Certification can also help to address another pressing need - the ability to attract and retain top talent in an increasingly competitive environment. Beyond a simple ROI, the WELL Building Standard offers a value proposition that includes:
The Washington, DC-based headquarters of the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) is the first space in the world to achieve Platinum Level Certification for both the WELL v1 Building Standard (WELL) and Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), under the LEED ID+C rating system v4. ASID leadership, along with architectural firm Perkins+Will, lighting designers Benya Burnett Consultants, and electrical engineers GHT Limited, were committed to making the new ASID headquarters a showcase for progressive design, and prioritized the goal of achieving dual Platinum certifications. A centralized light and shade management system - Quantum Total Light Management System and Sivoia QS shades with Hyperion solar adaptive shading software - was essential for helping to achieve these important goals.
In this article, we use the ASID project as an example to look at the structure of the WELL Building Standard, examine the WELL features that lead to certification, and delve into the role lighting controls can play in how a building or space is configured to achieve WELL requirements.
Certification starts with seven concepts that influence human behaviors and define a wellness-focused environment: Air, Water, Nourishment, Light, Fitness, Comfort, and Mind. Under these concepts there are "features" or provisions that have requirements to be met. Some features are mandatory and are called preconditions. Others are optional, known as optimizations. There are three levels of WELL Certification: Silver, Gold, and Platinum. Silver level certification is achieved by meeting 100% of the WELL preconditions applicable to the project type in all concepts. Gold level certification is achieved by meeting all of the WELL preconditions, as well as 40% or more of the optimization features. Platinum level certification is achieved by meeting all of the WELL preconditions, as well as 80% or more of the optimization features.
The Light concept area provides illumination guidelines to minimize disruption to the human body's circadian system, enhance productivity, and provide visual acuity. The WELL Building Standard promotes lighting and shading systems that increase alertness, enhance the overall occupant experience, and even promote healthy sleep. In designing lighting and controls to meet WELL requirements, the lighting professional will consider standard strategy categories including activity-based light levels, color quality, daylighting, and glare control for any given space.
For the ASID project, James Benya and Deborah Burnett of Benya Burnett Consultancy created a lighting design incorporating all these strategies to ensure circadian-optimized lighting and daylighting, critical luminaire placement, and annual lighting schedules and sequences. To maximize points in both WELL and LEED programs, the Quantum system automatically adjusts shades and light to provide appropriate spectra, light intensities, and exposures throughout the year while saving as much energy as possible (Fig. 1). Because LEED and WELL certifications provide complementary, but different benefits, designing a lighting control system that effectively supports both certifications demands intricate knowledge of both the lighting control system capabilities and the certification requirements.
Visual Lighting Design, Feature #53, defines required average light levels of 215 lx on the horizontal plane, measured at 30 in. above the floor, as well as independently controlled zones of light no larger than 500 ft2. Also, this feature requires the appropriate brightness and contrast ratios on different surfaces among spaces (e.g., no greater than 10 in main room than ancillary rooms) and among surfaces within a space (e.g., surface cannot exhibit 3 greater or lesser luminance than an adjacent surface) to avoid dark spots or excessively bright spots in a room. Tunable lighting (setting maximum lighting output to the appropriate illuminance level) helps designers meet the contrast ratios.
A lighting design can meet required lux levels with fixtures alone, but this strategy can result in very bright light, which is acceptable earlier in the day but considerably less desirable in the late afternoon when it can negatively affect sleep patterns. Designing an integrated light management system with usable daylight enables the shades to help regulate daylight, provide the required footcandles, and prevent glare, while the drivers/ballasts automatically dim to help save energy.