Office Lights Provide a Stimulus Similar to a Strong Cup of Coffee
An LED lighting system tuned to support the circadian rhythms of employees has helped to stimulate energy levels, enhance workplace comfort and vision, supporting a sense of wellbeing and performance. Employees give the office lights a thumbs up. They enjoy a comfortable bright light, similar to natural daylight, to start their day and after lunch. The stimulus from the human centric lighting fixtures has been likened to a strong cup of coffee.
Philips Lighting installed the system in the Czech Republic headquarters of energy company Innogy. In November 2017, Innogy completed a deep renovation of 10,000 square meters of office space at its Czech Republic headquarters at Limuzská, Prague. The site comprises three buildings housing 550 office employees, and is one of the largest human centric lighting implementations in Europe.
The company went from a traditional closed office environment to open plan and seized the opportunity to create a best-in-class work environment to enhance the comfort, wellbeing and productivity of its employees. Lighting played a key part of the renovation, which involved a new restaurant, furniture, healthy food, kitchens, and creativity spaces.
The networked lighting system comprises a Philips lighting management and Philips Dynalite control system with control of integrated blinds (daylight harvesting) and Philips Antumbra wall mounted controls. Luminaires used:
- 860 Philips PowerBalance tunable white
- 96 Philips LuxSpace tunable white downlights
- 74 Philips TrueLine luminaires
- 600 Philips GreenSpace downlights
- approximately 250 Philips CoreLine downlights
- approximately 100 modular luminaires (Modular SL Mini Poly and Modular Smart Lotis)
The installation is supported by a five-year Philips LifeCycle Essential support and maintenance services contract.
The subtle differences in the colour temperature and intensity of the lighting support eye comfort and may be personalized by employees to suit specific tasks. While the emphasis of the lighting system is on enhancing employee comfort, it is also helping to improve operational efficiency through remote monitoring and maintenance.
High approval rating from employees
“We wanted to create an outstanding environment for our employees,” says Tomáš Michna, senior manager for facility and services at innogy Czech Republic. “At the beginning of the day the office lights mimic natural daylight, providing a useful energy boost. The light levels decrease until after lunch when we give another boost to help staff over the post-lunch energy dip. Nearly 80% of employees surveyed described the new lighting as better or much better than the previous fluorescent tube lighting, while 60% agreed that it contributed to a place in which they wanted to work.”
Philips has taken its knowledge of how light physiologically benefits people from successful projects in hospitals and schools and applied it to the offices space. “We know that exposure to a certain comfortable bright light setting for one hour can provide a mild energy stimulus,” says Jiří Tourek, Country Manager Czech Republic at, Philips Lighting. ‘’Similarly, other light settings can aid relaxation or help people to wind down before lunch or going home.”
While the lighting is designed to complement people’s natural circadian rhythms, employees at Innogy may, at any time, override the light settings, tailoring the light to their needs or specific work tasks, using a wall-mounted Philips Antumbra Dynalite control. This touch-button control enables control of lighting and blinds, allowing workers to personalize their immediate environment to suit their preferences.
Workplace satisfaction is good for business
High workplace satisfaction positively correlates with high employee engagement. Independent research reveals that workplace satisfaction makes good business sense as disengaged employees cost organizations an average of US$3,400 a year for every US$10,000 in annual salary. The lighting at Limuzská, which 56% of employees found to be easy on the eyes, also contributed to employees rating an improvement in their performance following the renovation.
Saving energy by delivering light when and where it’s needed
The installation includes approximately 150 sensors that detect human presence and switch the lights off in a room or area when it is vacated, saving electricity. This combination of energy-efficient LED lighting and controls has enabled Innogy to reduce electricity used for lighting by around 50% compared to its previous fluorescent lighting.
This article was first published online by Philips: www.newsroom.lighting.philips.com/news/2018/20180125-czech-employees-give-thumbs-up-to-office-lights-that-provide-a-stimulus-similar-to-a-strong-cup-of-coffee.
