Architectural lighting of facades

Goals and objectives

Architectural lighting of buildings and facades with LED floodlights is performed with two goals: it ensures the functionality of the urban environment, improves the aesthetics of individual buildings.

• The functionality of building lighting is that it complements street lighting. As a result, the streets are better illuminated at night, which simplifies navigation at night and increases the overall safety of city streets.
• Decorative lighting of cities makes individual objects recognizable, improves the urban landscape, and creates an attractive appearance of the building. An unlit building looks dark and faded at night, at best, the lights in the windows will be on. A building with illumination looks bright, stylish, becomes a dominant feature of the evening landscape, attracts attention.

Architectural facade lighting helps to solve the following problems:

• Ensures the safety of the urban environment;
• Increases the attractiveness of the city for tourists;
• Emphasises the architectural features of individual buildings;
• Masks up the shortcomings of facade elements;
• Decorates the infrastructure and landscape.

LED outdoor lighting is also used for commercial purposes:  owners increase its liquidity and attractiveness in the eyes of buyers or tenants.

Facade lighting of buildings is suitable for objects of any functional purpose:

• Apartment buildings and residential complexes;
• Monuments and monuments;
• Office and administrative buildings;
• Bridges and embankments;
• Sports facilities;
• Churches and cathedrals;
• Terrain elements;
• Walking and park areas with architectural structures.

For each project, an individual style is developed that fits harmoniously into the citywide concept.

Types of architectural lighting

By design, architectural lighting of buildings is divided into several types, which directly affect the area of ​​application.

• Floodlight. General bright illumination of the building, creating a light background, without an emphasis on individual details. For floodlighting, powerful spotlights are used, located on the ground or adjacent buildings. Such solutions are chosen for historically significant and public buildings, but are not recommended for significant facade defects. Floodlighting is not suitable for residential buildings, because bright light from spotlights can shine into windows and interfere with the daily life of residents.

• Accent. Emphasizes individual elements of the facade, highlighting them against the general background. Local accent lighting is used for buildings with architectural delights in the decor: with stucco, bas-reliefs, columns, pilasters, porticos.

• Contour. The building is illuminated only along the perimeter with LED linear lights or strips. Allows you to save significantly on lighting, while creating an interesting light appearance. Suitable for buildings and structures of any type, since contours are illuminated: roof lines, ends, window openings and entrance doors.

• Background. The visual effect is created due to the contrast: the façade is illuminated less than the background. For illumination, luminaires with a diffusing luminous flux are used. The lighting solution is suitable for low-rise buildings and for structures with colonnades, it emphasizes the grandeur of the building.

• Dynamic. A type of software LED lighting using RGB lamps. The light intensity is controlled, set using computer programs and algorithms. Dynamic lighting allows you to use different modes: economical modes for ordinary days, for important events and holidays - special bright lighting solutions.

• 3D-mapping. New lighting technology that allows you to project various images onto a building. Video content is used by marketers to conduct large-scale advertising campaigns. Often, such broadcasts are accompanied by sound. 3D-mapping is an excellent solution for the headquarters of well-known companies and shopping malls.

By the method of installation, wall and facade lighting is divided into open and closed. In the first case, the lamps are visible on the facade or next to the building. In the second, the lighting fixtures are hidden in niches or behind architectural elements, so only the light is visible from the outside.

Smart Lighting and Color Scheme

Smart lighting is a modern concept that simplifies the control of the lighting system. Usually, smart lighting projects are implemented using color dynamic lighting with the ability to control lighting scenarios. Lighting equipment is easily reconfigured using remote controls. The dynamics of illumination are set by logical controllers, which contain the necessary algorithms.

Thanks to variable lighting modes, the building's facade flexibly adapts to any significant events. An example is the Lakhta Center skyscraper in St. Petersburg. When national holidays are held in the country, the building is illuminated in the colors of the Russian tricolor. On May 9, the St. George ribbon is displayed on the facade. The scenario can be selected for any holiday, so the object always remains in trend.

The advantages of architectural lighting of buildings with smart control also include cost-effectiveness. The level of illumination is adjusted taking into account the time of day, which ensures maximum energy efficiency.

Glass facades as part of the lighting

Traditional lighting methods cannot be used for buildings with glass facades. It is necessary to take into account the characteristics of glass, which has a high reflection coefficient and a low percentage of backscattering.

The lighting project is usually developed simultaneously with the construction of the building. Lighting designers are faced with a difficult task, which is to illuminate the building from the outside, while eliminating the reflection of light flows into the premises.

A well-implemented illumination of a glass facade should:

• Illuminate the entire perimeter;
• Give the object visual lightness;
• Provide the possibility of implementing several scenarios;
• Change the power of the light flow according to vertical.

The main thing is that the lighting does not create discomfort for people working inside the building.

Such projects are implemented in two ways. The first is to illuminate the interior of the premises. Thanks to the transparency of the glass, the building looks illuminated at night. The second is to LED lights are installed between the panes of glass, provided that the facility uses double glazing.

It is also possible to use perimeter contour lighting.

Architectural Lighting Requirements and Standards

Outdoor architectural lighting is installed in accordance with current standards and requirements:

• GOST R 54350;
• GOST 14254;
• GOST R 522398.

Basic requirements for architectural lighting based on GOST:

• The uniformity of brightness is determined taking into account the texture of the facade; for buildings with a single-color and smooth surface, the UL value is 0.3; for textured and multi-color finishing materials – 0.2;
• For central alleys, the minimum cylindrical illumination is 2 lux relative to the axis;
• The color balance is selected to match the style of the facade structures and varies within 2200-3500 and 4000-6000 K for warm and cold shades, respectively;
• For backlighting polychrome materials, luminaires with a color rendering index of at least 80 Ra are selected;
• Lighting equipment with a power of 150 W and higher is equipped with screening elements and installed in such a way that the luminous flux does not blind drivers;
• All lighting devices that are used in outdoor conditions are manufactured in moisture-proof housings with a protection level of at least IP 65.

Lighting of apartment buildings

Architectural lighting of apartment building facades has its own characteristics. Engineers and lighting designers are guided by the style of the building, while observing the rules of comfortable visual perception of the selected color scheme.

For apartment buildings, it is prohibited to use blinding floodlighting and install lamps so that the light will fall into the windows.

If the building is made in a classical architectural style, light garlands and LED strips are usually not used. The contour is illuminated with linear light, attention to individual elements of the facade is focused by means of narrowly directed light streams.

For apartment buildings made in the Art Nouveau and Baroque styles, a lighting concept based on lighting contrast is chosen. Thanks to such solutions, it is possible not only to illuminate the building as a whole, but also to highlight individual elements of the facade.

Architectural Lighting Scenarios for Large Projects

Facade lighting of buildings can offer three main scenarios:

• Evening. The main type of illumination selected for the building: contour, flood, accent, etc. Illumination starts with the onset of darkness and operates until the morning.
• Standby. An energy-saving mode in which part of the main lighting is switched off. The building remains illuminated, but energy costs are significantly reduced.
• Holiday. Thematic lighting, the style of which is developed for a specific event: New Year, May 9, March 8, Russia Day, etc. Usually this is dynamic lighting, for which additional equipment is used.

Smart lighting control systems

Lighting technologies do not stand still and intelligent street lighting control systems are actively being introduced into the market. This is a complete automation of work processes, while the system is programmed according to the artistic concept of the lighting designer.

Programming is usually performed for a long time, scenarios entered into the computer memory are launched independently in accordance with the set timer. Manual control in real time is possible.

For example, if there is a scenario for Russia Day, it will automatically start when this date comes, but the owner of the building can activate it on any other day at his discretion. Such systems are usually scalable, so over time they can be supplemented with other lighting fixtures and operating scenarios.

Stages of architectural lighting design

An architectural lighting option can be planned at the construction stage or created for an already completed facility. If necessary, coordinate the project with supervisory authorities and obtain all required permits.

Work on architectural lighting is carried out in several stages:

• Discussion of conditions with the client. The engineer prepares a lighting scheme, marks the location of lighting equipment, control units, and switches on the building plan. At this stage, a specialist goes to the site to obtain initial data and photograph the facade.
• Development of a computer model. This is a three-dimensional model that clearly displays the project in kind, taking into account the actual characteristics of the lighting equipment. Professional software is used to create a 3D model.
• Selection of lighting fixtures. The power of the lamps, the optimal level of protection from moisture and dust, the angle of illumination, the cross-section and length of the cable lines are taken into account. At this stage, the project implementation budget is planned.
• Providing the customer with a finished project. The client is given a package of project documentation, and the necessary edits are made.
• Production. The prepared technical specifications are transferred to the enterprise where lighting fixtures, mounting brackets, and accessories are manufactured.
• Installation. Lighting equipment is installed at the site, connected and commissioned.

Common mistakes in architectural and artistic lighting of a building

Common mistakes made in the design of architectural lighting are divided into conceptual and technical. In the first case, we are talking about a weak concept, when there is no single artistic image.

Among the technical errors, we can highlight:

• Uneven lighting, when some lamps shine brighter than others;
• Incorrectly selected light temperature, which leads to the appearance of color spots;
• Adjacent infrastructure is not taken into account: street lighting and lighting of neighboring buildings;
• The project is monotonous, without an emphasis on important details of the facade, so the building is depersonalized;
• Too bright light, which looks flashy and stands out very sharply against the background of adjacent buildings.

Errors are most often associated with the insufficient qualifications of the specialist who worked on thead project or failure to comply with generally established norms and requirements.

How to save on architectural lighting

One of the options for saving is adding various sensors and highly intelligent control systems to the lighting scheme. Intelligent control systems start the lighting strictly according to a given scenario. Sensors ensure automatic switching on of lighting equipment at dusk or when a person approaches.

In any case, energy consumption is optimized, which provides significant savings.