Green Building Features

Click on the images above to learn about the features of the building.

 

 

 

Light Shelves

What are light shelves?
Have you ever closed the blinds in your office to reduce the glare of the sunlight on your desk and computer monitor, or simply because you were too hot from the sunlight? Light shelves mounted on the interior of a building diffuse those glares by bouncing daylight up to the ceiling first, then back down into the room. By bouncing the light up to the ceiling first, it gets distributed more evenly and more deeply into the room, allowing an office to reduce its artificial lighting and depend more on natural daylight. Maximizing the use of natural light is often referred to as “daylighting.”

Daylighting is typically part of a broader strategy to reduce energy costs that often includes energy efficient  windows or window coverings (“sunshades” on the exterior of a building) and photosensors which help automatically turn lights on and off as needed.

Light shelves are lightweight, and the tops of them are typically matte white to reflect light upward, while underneath (where occupants of the building see them), they are more suited to the design of the interior of the building.

Why use light shelves?
Light shelves have a number of benefits: they help disperse the intense heat generated by the sunlight coming through your office windows, which helps maintain a more constant temperature in your office (thereby contributing to energy savings). The daylighting benefit of light shelves further reduce your energy costs by reducing the demand for interior (artificial) lighting.

Research suggests that workers are more productive when they have access to  natural lighting in their workplace; there is also evidence of reduced absenteeism and improved employee retention and satisfaction.

 

 

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Large Image: Light Shelves in the CarMax’s Corporate Headquarters Richmond, VA. Photograph courtesy Wallace, Roberts & Todd, LLC