School provides lessons in good lighting

Lighting that combines function and aesthetics has been achieved at Chailey Heritage School in Sussex using ALE and AIDA architectural luminaires from RIDI Lighting. The £2.3 million new building for the primary teaching department was designed by architect Hazle McCormack Young, and the lighting was specified by building-services consultant Croft Design. The lighting-design challenge was 2-fold. A scheme had to be developed for large, open areas such as the main hall. At the same time, the learning environment in every classroom had to be enhanced. In the main hall and circulation areas, suspended and wall-mounted AIDA fitting were specified for their ability to blend with the sculpted wooden ceilings. These fittings provide predominantly indirect, shadow-free light to work with natural light to produce an understated but effective end result. In the classrooms, the soft contours of suspended ALE luminaires provide first-rate illumination to meet the various teaching requirements. To achieve energy efficiency, all lighting in the hall and classrooms can be dimmed, and low-energy lamps were used wherever possible. AIDA fittings have a shallow body that achieves shadow-free upward light to exceed the requirements of CIBSE office-lighting standards LG3a and LG7. Square perforations in the housing create an eye-catching pattern that enhances the visual appearance. The ALE range provides an easy method of varying the ratio of direct and indirect light. A variable aperture that runs the complete length of the luminaire can set upward light at 10, 20 or 30%.

Related links:

• www.ridi.co.uk