Located in Buford, Ga., the newest BrandsMart USA store took advantage of the savings offered by a useful daylighting system. Compared to other BrandsMart franchises, the av- erage monthly electrical bills for this Georgia store are between $14,000 and $17,000 lower. Project architect, Kevin McGee of McGee Architects, Daytona Beach, Fla., specifi ed 16 6- by 24-foot
SolaQuad units with Quadwall double panel poly- carbonate glazing from CPI Daylighting, Lake For- est, Ill. The 118,000-square-foot store uses CPI’s IntelaSun daylighting skylight system to diffuse, transmit, block or angle the sun’s light based upon the sun’s position in the sky and its intensity. “The product often allows us to turn all the
lights off during the day,” explains Larry Levine, BrandsMart USA’s vice president of operations. “The aesthetic part of the system is really the hidden part. It brings daylight into the building and that’s a big positive.” The facility’s electrical lights automatically shut
off when an internal sensor determines that the built-in sophisticated rotating SolaBlades within the skylights have harvested 100-foot candles of natural light into the space. In addition, an external sensor adjusts the SolaBlades position, light transmission and shading coeffi cient to maximize daylighting and comfort in the space. The Buford location also takes advantage of
other sustainable initiatives, such as a CO2 recap-
ture system, a pre-heating and pre-cooling system tied to make-up air and a rainwater retention system. A return on investment for all green initia- tives is scheduled for four years. W.S. Nielsen Co., Alpharetta, Ga., was the installer.