LIGHTING SPECIAL HEAD TO HEAD
IN LIGHT OF THE COST FACTOR, I SAY...
The project manager and the lighting designer can have very different perspectives on a lighting specification. Steve Edouin and Dominic Meyrick give their respective views on the price of value engineering
THE PROJECT MANAGER STEVE EDOUIN
In commercial lighting, the front-of-house areas require an experienced independent lighting designer to provide the best options to complement the overall concept design. However, this requires a clear brief,
and an understanding of how the concept design will work with the final finishings. In my experience, this does not often happen because the time constraints involved in agreeing the overall build take priority. Once the design team starts working
through the detailed design, the structure and envelope are first on the priority list to ensure the project can be progressed. Within a typical three-year, start-to-finish programme, the first-pass designs for the front-of-house areas are usually available after the first six months. Building a set of mock-ups is very
important, and well worth the time and cost involved to ensure the client is clear what to expect of the finished article. The mock-up is also used to flush out coordination and buildability issues. When the lighting designer is providing his scope and specification, it should
42 CIBSE Journal December 2011
be based on the performance required, rather than a particular manufacturer. Although a picture giving a typical example is also important, so that there can be no confusion, when bidding it is important that manufacturers do not believe they are solely being specified for the project. On a few occasions, when two or three manufacturers have provided conflicting or confusing information about their products, I have set up a competition using either a separate – or the original – large mock-up. Then, with a judging panel made up of designers and managers, we have evaluated the products to ensure the best choice is made. To me, the idea that there should only be one bespoke manufacturer for a particular design implies a flawed design process. The electrical contractor is often on
board before the final lighting designs for the front-of-house areas are available. To ensure the value of provisional items is kept to a minimum, it helps to provide a basic design, plus an indication of the number of points and the method of control, enabling the engineering designer to set out the wiring installation. This price can then be firmed up at tender stage, with only the actual luminaires being a provisional item. To keep a project on budget throughout
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