part of this and where our expertise comes in , working within the parameters of the project and with the architecture and architect to make it happen .”
And much of that has to do with longterm operation and maintenance considerations , he adds . “ The last thing we ever want is to have an installation we work on go down , so we take a lot of pride in pointing out that , when we do these kinds of projects , they work ,” he states . “ In this case , having to shut down three lanes of a busy downtown street to troubleshoot an issue just isn ’ t acceptable . We make sure [ these systems ] work five years later , that they ’ re easy to maintain , and that the end user has a good grasp on their operation .” While Bedard headed up the spec design for the project as a feature lighting consultant , Eos avoids having one person responsible for two arms of the same project , so when it came to the physical
LEED Platinum Certification
Virtually every aspect of TELUS Garden ’ s architecture , mechanical design , and resource utilization came together with energy savings as the top priority . Subsequently , the building boasts many unique and innovative sustainability solutions , including a district energy system that distributes heat generated by the company ’ s massive data centre to its office and residential towers , reducing its overall CO2 emissions by one million kilograms annually . Combined with the nearly 300 solar panels adorning its exterior , the complex ’ s total energy demands can be reduced by up to 90 per cent .
Other green solutions include a triple-pane curtain wall design , operable windows , 100 per cent outside air supply , radiant heating and cooling , and a rainwater capture system that recycles rainwater for graywater and irrigation , reducing the demand on lower mainland reservoirs . The combined efficiency of these various systems has earned TELUS Garden the distinction of being Vancouver ’ s first Leadership in Energy and Environment Design ( LEED ) Platinum-certified office tower , having submitted the highest LEED score card ever received by the Canada Green Building Council . integration and , later , commissioning , Eos ’ fellow Senior Lighting Designer , Eugene Mendelev , took the reins . He worked closely with the equipment suppliers and the building ’ s electrical and general contractors regarding the details of the installation .
As far as any specific challenges they met during the actual integration phase , Bedard says they were minimal . “ There were a few physical limitations related to how to get things built and installed that met the various building codes and got everything working as efficiently as possible ,” Bedard offers . “ I really leaned on Eugene for that , because he ’ s really quite good at ensuring our systems are bulletproof . It ’ s mountains of documentation beforehand , building everything virtually to make sure that , when we ’ re actually onsite , everything lines up perfectly .”
Eos ’ work at TELUS Garden ultimately resulted in three separate control rooms being spread vertically through the office building . The soffit and Urban Theatre systems still necessitated boring through some support beams , though forgoing that measure would ’ ve resulted in a dozen control rooms . As is often the case on projects of this scale , inter-disciplinary collaboration and compromise were critical to its success .
The various media features are driven by Pharos Controls ’ LPC X . “ That allows us to basically automate the system to an extent that we don ’ t have to touch it unless they ’ re updating the content ,” Bedard explains . “ That gives us push-button control if need be for solid colours , effects , sweeps , that type of thing .”
Regarding the features ’ accordance with the LEED Platinum certification criteria , Bedard says that was never really a hindrance . “ The control systems and products we chose are obviously highly efficient , and the control systems are of a very high sophistication , so we ’ re maximizing the impact of the system without being a drain on resources .”
Eos collaborated closely with its clients after the systems were installed on the content creation side , identifying how the façades would be operating day-today . As it stands now , Eos has essentially programmed the shows for the next year with considerations built in for current event-related content .
The company also provided image and video specifications for the Pharos system to its client to relay to the building ’ s tenants , allowing them to create custom content as well – much of which is done in the onsite TELUS TV Studios .
The building ’ s ownership has made it clear that there will be no third-party advertising in any of the media content , but that some of the building ’ s tenants would be able to incorporate some brand recognition into the cultural and civic programming .
The messaging is typically subtle but sometimes very direct , like the aforementioned tributes to some cultural icons lost in 2016 . “ So when social media is rocked by , say , a passing or major world event , we can have a pretty iconic or important image up there . That ’ s a cool aspect – that you might have a 50-ft . picture of David Bowie above your head where yesterday you didn ’ t notice just an abstract moving cloud scene .”
That type of content is great for generating attention on social media and often gets picked up by the local news , offering TELUS and its tenants great exposure without ever treading into “ traditional ” advertising .
It ’ s clear that TELUS Garden ’ s ownership and tenants are happy with their feature installations , and the team at Eos considers it a job well done ; however , from the outset , this was a project meant to benefit the public , and it ’ s their feedback that ’ s paramount .
A quick search through some of the top social media platforms using the building ’ s handle and hashtag reveals just how engaging it ’ s been since being commissioned . As Bedard explains , the general public may not recognize the technology that ’ s gone into delivering the experience , but it ’ s their appreciation for the final result that counts .
“ We see it as a great success and a great example of integration into an every day urban fabric ,” says Bedard in closing . “ It was very seamless as far as its reception and operation , and it ’ s nice being reminded of that anytime we ’ re in the downtown core .”
Andrew King is the Editor-in-Chief of Professional Lighting & Production .
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