Case study: Bently Reserve

One of San Francisco’s landmark buildings is able to preserve its heritage and still meet 21st-century energy codes and strict environmental standards by introducing four state-of-the-art Lutron solutions: EcoSystem light controls, GRAFIK Eye pre-set controls, Sivoia QED shading system, and Quantum whole-building lighting and energy management solution.

“Lutron’s reputation as a leading manufacturer and innovator of environmentally friendly lighting controls worldwide prompted each tenant to also install Lutron products in their individual office spaces,” said Gregor Stewart with ALR (Associated Lighting Representatives), the Lutron representative for the San Francisco Bay Area. “Essentially, Lutron’s core and shell requirements set the standard for others to follow. It’s a challenging standard to achieve, but one that everyone is willing to embrace.”

Lutron light control systems not only help businesses make an environmental upgrade – they also work to achieve the perfect ambiance for any space. Selecting a system that would be the best fit for all needs of the Bently Reserve was a unique challenge for Lutron.

“Bently Reserve features much of the original architecture. For example, the banking hall has the original columns and there is a huge safe still on the premises,” said Michael Kim, electrical consulting engineer with CB Engineers. “We had to consider these features, among others, as well as the overall ambiance of the building when selecting and installing Lutron’s lighting solutions.”

Additionally, the Bently Reserve’s multiple-pane windows have been part of the building since its construction in 1924, and allow abundant daylight into each room. The lighting solution would need to take this feature into account.

Flexibility and precise control are attributes that extend to all Lutron products. To create the ideal ambiance – an atmosphere of quiet sophistication – while meeting the needs of the building, owners agreed with the design team’s recommendation to install EcoSystem light control solution throughout the structure. GRAFIK Eye preset architectural lighting and Sivoia QED shading products were incorporated in the second floor conference rooms. Quantum whole-building light and energy management solution tied everything together, also facilitating integration with other building support systems.

Manual controls offer personal adjustment of light levels, meeting a requirement for an integrated system that would allow individual tenants to control and monitor their own lighting.

With EcoSystem, tenants can reprogram their system as needs change over time, avoiding construction costs. “Should new tenants move into the office space over the years, the lighting system can be suitably reconfigured to meet the specific requirements of these tenants, regardless of whether they need to individually light multiple offices or light a wide open space, such as a large conference room,” said Audwin Cash, a product manager for Lutron.

The second floor of the Bently Reserve contains videoconference rooms available for public use. Lutron used a GRAFIK Eye preset architectural lighting control unit with automatic Sivoia QED controllable shading products on the building’s original windows. The intuitive GRAFIK Eye system is used to create, store, and easily recall preset scenes that adjust the levels of lights and shades. Stewart notes, “The decision to install GRAFIK Eye in these conference rooms stemmed from the fact that we wanted to create an environment that is not only technologically adaptable to various presentation needs, but one that is also easily controllable.”

Presenters can control the lights using the GRAFIK Eye system from any point in a room via remote control, and the Sivoia QED shades work with the GRAFIK Eye system to further support presentations, as the presenters can adjust shades differently for video presentations, group discussions, or other work.”

To tie everything together, the Bently Reserve uses Quantum whole-building light and energy management solution. Quantum monitors, alerts, and reports on lighting energy usage, lamp outages, and more. The breakthrough system centrally manages electric light and daylight and can lower energy consumption by 40% or more, contributing to LEED certification points. Building owners and facility managers gain total, simple control of the lighting system as well as the power to configure, monitor, analyze, and report on the lighting and energy data it collects.

Other building systems, such as heating and ventilation, were also updated during renovation. Lutron worked to ensure that Quantum would integrate smoothly. Through a BACnet (Building Automation and Control network) interface, Quantum connects to a central Building Management System (BMS). Quantum communicates the occupancy/ vacancy status to the BMS, which adjusts the new HVAC system to save energy.

“Lutron had to create modules specifically for this project in regards to system integration,” said Kim. “Additionally, Lutron had to create a BACnet interface so that all the systems will be speaking the same language, essentially, and working with each other.”

Both the tenants and owners are excited about the fact that Lutron’s updated lighting system allows the Bently Reserve to continue to maintain the rich history that has already established it as a landmark building, while helping the environment and accommodating the tenants simultaneously.

“We take pride in being a principle-driven company that adheres to a strict set of core values,” Mayfield said. “Lutron’s sophisticated products helped us maintain those values by successfully bridging this building’s heritage with present-day eco-standards.”

In a city, he might have added, where such values have become the norm.