ILLUMINATE LIGHTING DESIGN by Outlook Publishing

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Creating exceptional layers of lighting

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Seamless Illuminate Lighting Design has perfected its ability to manipulate and alter spatial elements in order to create exceptional layers of lighting Writer: Phoebe Calver | Project Manager: Tom Cullum

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ver the years, Illuminate Lighting Design has been extremely fortunate to share projects with innovative developers, architects and designers who are renowned in the industry for pushing boundaries; working with such visionaries in the industry has always pushed Illuminate to evolve as project demands increase. Through constantly educating itself and staying relevant in the industry via the crosspollination of ideas that emerge from work with manufacturers, trade shows, clients and designers, the Company is retaining its place at the top of the industry. “Explaining the design process for lighting is particularly difficult to clarify to clients,” explains Simon Berry, Partner at Illuminate Lighting Design. “During our concept phase, we have to use the latest up-to-date techniques to portray our idea and intent - it is critical and the first time the client will see something visually engaging towards the project.” The Company has grown through incredible technological advancements in the industry, at the time Berry started Illuminate, the creative process involved tracing and expressing the lighting using a yellow highlighting pen; now various software is used with the ability represent the lighting throughout the different times of the day. “These advancements haven’t altered our philosophies in any way and I have always believed that first we have to listen before we can understand the needs,” explains Berry. “We remain respectful of the original design at all times and work in a collaborative team structure. “I began Illuminate in 2009 in Singapore predominantly focusing on hospitality projects and interiors in the region - since that point the Company has grown exponentially; to date we have eight studios with the latest addition in Jakarta, Indonesia.”

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Revolutionising the Concept of Lighting F

or more than half a century Lutron Electronics has lit up countless projects worldwide including those in Singapore, unveiling its numerous inventions to revolutionise the concept of lighting control. Growing from just two products to now offer more than 15,000 control products, from individual dimmer and automated window shades and light management systems, the business has also become renowned for a number of industry firsts. Developing the world’s first drapery system with vertical movement - Kirbé - the Company’s philosophy has helped to make a winning difference based on strategic, systemic and measurable advancements. “We have grown exponentially over the years to become a truly global Company,” Lutron Sales Director, SE Asia Seng Boon Liang continues. “Lutron is a technology-centred and people-driven Company. Our success is a result of our strong guiding principles, developed by our founder, Joel Spira.” Driving each and every innovation are five core principles, encompassing customer care, internal company care, personability, high quality products and value for money. Seng elaborates on the latter: “We believe that our customers benefit the most from products that are high quality and cost effective. No matter how big the system, every Lutron product saves energy by reducing electrical consumption. Taken as a whole, Lutron light controls have reduced our customers’ electric bills by $1 billion annually in US alone.

Prestigious projects Such modern day prominence represents the culmination of a journey that began in the 1950s in Spira’s makeshift lab in New York as a young, fascinated physicist. Numerous groundbreaking inventions later, Lutron’s rotary electronic dimmers quickly became the new norm in the market, but Spira never settled and continued to buck lighting trends via unrivalled innovation; one example being GRAFIK Eye® which was the world’s first preset lighting control system and could preprogram different light levels for each circuit and orchestrate all lighting fixtures to provide the best lighting environment for different activities. And as each new product took off, so too did Lutron’s appeal in the global construction domain, and it wasn’t long before a plethora of significant projects called upon the Company’s skill-sets. “Marina Bay Sands in Singapore is one of our most prestigious projects in Asia,” Seng explains. “The project involved customised fixtures in combination with intelligent control systems to help create a lighting atmosphere that is now considered a symbol of ultimate luxury.” World-class restaurants, stunning casinos and vast convention centres represent just a few more of the key contracts Lutron has attained in the intervening years as well as the Empire State Building (ESB) where the Company was asked to demonstrate how technology can help a historical building go green. Seng details: “ESB’s overarching goal was to reduce energy use by more than 38 percent when compared to a building that meets ASHRAE 90.1 code. By reducing lighting electricity use up to 65 percent, Lutron light controls go a long way in helping ESB meet their efficiency goals.

The Four Seasons in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, the Andaz Hyatt in Singapore, Rosewood Bangkok, Ritz Carlton Galaxy in Macau and Radisson Blu in Hangzhou offer just a slight glimpse into the myriad projects compounding Lutron’s success at present, as the Company continues to showcase its flexibility, sustainability and cost efficiency to the world elite. Sustained innovation Compounding the Company’s own internal sustainability, Lutron is committed to investing in the brightest minds to help push the business forward further still in the future; offering each employee the opportunity to accept new challenges, pursue their strengths and expand their horizons. “We are also constantly striving to educate industry professionals about the benefits of lighting control so they have the tools to determine the best solution for every customer and every space,” Seng notes. “Our focus on sustained innovation is what helps us stand apart. Lutron owns more than 2700 patents and manufactures more than 15,000 products, but our product design starts with the customers, not the engineers.

“Our products are designed with functional, aesthetic, ergonomic and cognitive considerations in mind. The result is intuitive and timeless products.” Sustainability is not a fancy concept but a way of life for Lutron, and each year the Company saves more than nine billion kWh of energy, equivalent to: more than $1 billion in costs; 2,000 windmills’ production in a year; and the CO2 of two million acres of trees in a year. “This is enough energy to light 4.5 million homes for one whole year,” Seng concludes. “For more than 55 years, Lutron has set the standard for innovation, quality and service. “[In the future] Lutron will remain a pioneer, and lead the development of light controls in the industry. Energy saving and energy efficiency will continue to be our key focus and we will come up with hardware and software which will make saving energy more easy and effective while improving the ROI of lighting control equipment.”

www.lutron.com/asia

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KREON

reon is an international organisation producing architectural interior lighting products (tools of light) and complete metal ceiling solutions (ceiling solutions) for high end interiors since 1982. In January 2016 Kreon acquired Swiss based manufacturer Belux, offering lighting solutions that are convincing not only with regard to their functional qualities and technical sophistication, but also due to their attractive appearance. The basis for Kreon’s design is a very clear characteristic visualisation of our philosophy: purity and simplicity. Wherever possible we refer to pure three-dimensional architectural shapes. Kreon offers timeless lighting concepts, designed to form an integral part of modern day architecture . The collection includes an array of downlights, uplights and sidelights which disappear into ceilings, floors and walls harmoniously. We always respect the recessed position of the lamp source, creating an emotional feeling of light and preventing an uncomfortable glare situation.

Illuminate is highly experienced in large-scale lighting design

In part this growth is a reflection of the increase in popularity and awareness of lighting design, however it also comes down to experience on large-scale projects with design. For Illuminate, it is ever increasingly not about the amount of light fixtures the Company can fit to a ceiling, but instead finding ways to seamlessly design lighting that integrates with the surroundings - using the best possible design to tell a cohesive story.

Growth potential

As a relatively young Company, Illuminate still has a lot of growth potential in terms of both the size of the Company and the projects that it works on. “Historically, we tend to design for luxury hospitality projects, however, we have actually began to branch out to light-up mixed developments,” continues Berry. “These include resorts, Islands, residential and office projects,

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Historically, we tend to design for luxury hospitality projects, however, we have actually began to branch out to light-up mixed developments

Lighting concepts are implemented at the planning stages of the design process by architects, designers and engineers. Typical applications include residential, hospitality, retail, display and office interiors. We are proud to share our company values with the professional team at Illuminate Lighting Design and partner with them to realise the most wonderful high end projects in residential, office, retail and hospitality lighting.

T +32 89 81 97 80 E mailbox@kreon.com

www.kreon.be

Diapason 80

Cana

Beauty is not created by adding one more detail, it is conceived by removing the last. The design of our collection represents a way of thinking that reduces each product to the

Wabi

Holon

essential components without compromise. Luminance and illumination are the primary goals. Kreon, purity in light gives you the opportunity to create the conditions that allow the beauty of architecture to surface.

Kreon Industrieweg Noord 1152 3660 Opglabbeek Belgium

www.kreon.be

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Illuminate has many iconic projects under its belt

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LIGHTING EXCELLENCE FOR TODAY, TOMORROW & THE FUTURE

As a leading lighting solutions provider in the professional distribution of architectural and decorative lightings, LuxLight supports our customers with comprehensive and innovative ideas and services, meeting the aspirational demands of architects, designers, lighting consultants and the owners and builders of hotels, resorts, commercial buildings, institutions and industrial estates. www.luxlight.sg 65-6278 8588 | info@luxlight.sg

we will usually join the project once the architect or designers are about to finalise their design concept stage.” One of the first projects completed by Illuminate was Hotel Indigo at the Bund in Shanghai, with each Indigo hotel carrying a unique story; the Company was able to expose the historical context of Shanghai. “We worked closely with the interior team, clients and operators in order to make their vision come to fruition,” berry describes. “These close collaborations resulted in many integrated lighting features that are woven into the fabric of these interiors - an achievement that we are very proud of.” This project was particularly successful for the Company and stemming from that, Illuminate has built a strong and continuing relationship with the operator IHG; many years later having the honour to work with them again on the first Hotel Indigo in Southeast Asia in Bangkok.

Memorable projects

Just imagine, during the day you would be looking at falling cherry blossoms, while stood inside a cavernous and almost museum-style space

Another particularly iconic project undertaken by Illuminate was the Nuo Hotel in Beijing, in which the team undertook numerous brainstorm sessions in order to successfully meet the brief. “I remember the day I was shown the lobby ceiling drawing - the ceiling had geometric skylight pockets that formed a huge triangle,” Berry recounts. “We needed to ensure that we would avoid submitting a black hole in the lobby ceiling at night, eventually coming up with a playful idea to feed videos with LED mesh that could be projected onto stretched membranes. “Just imagine, during the day you would be looking at falling cherry blossoms, while stood inside a cavernous and almost museum-style space.” It is this sort of surreal experience that the Company is becoming renowned for creating through its

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Designs are always ambitious and innovative

lighting designs, and it was particularly iconic as NUO was the pioneer Chinese hospitality brand that Beijing Tourism Group created and has vast ambitions for; at Illuminate, working on this project in Beijing was a once in a lifetime opportunity. Another particularly iconic and memorable project for the Company was the Shangri-La Resort and Spa at Hambantota that opened last year in Sri Lanka; one of its first comprehensive lighting projects that included interior, exterior and landscape lighting requirements. “It was a project that we had to treat with great sensitivity and

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From the moment guests enter the facility, the lighting is set to present avenues for discovery and exploration

sincerity, due to its abundance of nature and secluded placement, we had the opportunity to specifically define the night vista, which we thought over with great care,” Berry adds. “From the moment guests enter the facility, the lighting is set to present avenues for discovery and exploration, leading the way and staging the environment for the visitors, a process that we thoroughly enjoyed.”

Integrated design teams

The Company now has eight offices, with five located in Asia - namely Singapore, New Delhi, Shanghai,

the feeling that they can discuss and propose options to explore when working on a project,” Berry describes. “For this to happen our employees really need to become one of the family - skills can be taught but attitudes are particularly difficult to change. “Retention of our staff is of course very important to us, and it is important to ensure that the individual feels rewarded and challenged in the workplace.” With a solid body of work in hospitality, its staff set Illuminate apart

from its competition, due to the fact that it is finely attuned to the way in which people behave and how they interact with the environment. “To a certain extent, we don’t limit ourselves to see light purely for its performance value, we delight in the emotional aspects of light and the way in which it brings joy to a surrounding,” concludes Berry. “I hope in the future we will be able to undertake more public space projects, looking to achieve more collaborative and integrate work that will reach out to other designers.”

Hong Kong and Jakarta and when it comes to identifying new projects, countries with ambitious development plans - such as Indonesia and India - are always particularly interesting. Having local offices in place to help coordinate projects locally are especially important and useful. With that, the staff hired to fill these positions are incredibly important and without doubt a firm pillar of any good company, therefore when considering new hires, it needs to be ensured that they will fit well within the current structure. “Our design teams need to integrate well together, in order to promote

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46 Kim Yam Road, The Herencia #01-10, 239351 Tel: +65 6337 2511 info@illuminateld.com