Hey everybody! I will be back in class with you next Monday. Please blog on the subject of reflected ceiling plans AND from this week's reading assignment (on your syllabus).
Remember to bring you photos to class next week for us all to share.
Also. Project I is due (see syllabus).
Off you go.
Thanks,
~T
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18 comments:
According to Fundamentals of Lighting, an RCP is “a contract working drawing that illustrates the design of the ceiling, including the location of luminaires, architectural elements, and any HVAC equipment, as it would appear if seen in a mirror located on the floor.” One thing I do know from experience, is that these plans are highly IMPORTANT! When my boyfriend had his house remodeled, the interior designer did not supply us with an RCP; now, on a daily basis, we are plagued by poor lighting placement. We were also shortchanged from her lack of performing calculations, based on the amount of light that would be required for each room (like those discussed in chapter 4). This is especially prevalent in the bathroom, closet, and areas of the kitchen where it is very difficult to see and function well. Unfortunately, I did not know then what I know now, so hindsight is 20/20, but I would certainly make some drastic changes and may still be able to in the future.
I agree with Jamie in the understanding that Reflected Ceiling Plans are extremely important to an interior. I look forward to being able to attempt and accomplish them more accurately not only as far as the specifics such as the correct symbols to use to convey a certain type of light or ceiling height but also to accomplish a quality lit environment.
As for chapters 4, 5 & 10, I enjoyed and agreed with much of the information discussed and provided in them. I found myself highly interested in Universal Design a few quarters ago and have unfortunately heard little about it again until now. I think it’s similar to sustainability in that so many people are amazed when they are provided with examples of how it is possible to “go green in style”. It is just as possible to achieve Universal Design without compromising the look or “normalcy” of a space.
Sustainability as well as Universal Design are two very important subjects to focus on. They aid and assist in protecting the health, safety and welfare of the public; and as Interior Designers, isn’t that what we are supposed to do?
If I can’t eventually help people through Interior Design than I see no purpose, so to me anything having to do with ways to do such things as create faster recovery times for patients or increase productivity in the work place is something to pay close attention to. Topics such as lighting and ergonomics discussed in chapters 5 & 10 are issues that affect people every day. It’s the Interior Designers job to make sure the affect is a positive one.
Commercial applications of lighting… I think we’ve probably all experienced the negative side of this. Try to recall the last time you were at a restaurant and maybe jokingly moved the hanging light fixture to see the person sitting across the table from you or had to hold the candle from the table up to the menu to read it. When’s the last time you were standing at a jewelry counter and left because on top of the anxiety you may have been experiencing just thinking about purchasing an expensive item, the lights that make the jewelry shine and sparkle were making you have hot flashes? And then there are the dressing rooms with little to no light and the furniture stores with lights that are supposed to highlight the furniture but again cause hot flashes and blind the employees as well as customers.
I appreciate the way our book, Fundamentals of Lighting discusses the purposes and advantages of certain types or techniques of lighting as well as the way to reduce, eliminate or counteract the negative effects they may cause on something else.
I wouldn’t mind continuing to focus in on the health benefits of light!
-Nicole De Anda
Nicole,
You are so right! We need to utilize our abilities and put them to good use towards sustainability and universal design!! It's a shame we do not learn more about in our design classes. I agree with you... that IS what we are suppose to do! Well said.
- Johna
Those are very acurate points you mentioned. In addition, I agree with you 100 percent, that if we are not in this profession to help the client(s)more than we are in it for ourselves, then we have a major problem on our hands. It is an honor to be able to use our skills in such a way that can positively impact a person's life...I feel so fortunate to have this opportunity. OK, I know that was a little sappy, but it's true! : )
Its O.K. to sound sappy. The point I think all of you are making is that if something is worth doing, why not do it well? Quality design with the client's needs in mind and with attention paid to sustainability will last far longer and be worth more in the long run.
I have to agree with all you and say that these facts are really important. I also remember just this week, going into a restuarant and having to hold up my menu just to see what i actually wanted to order, and it was morning. So as a becoming interior designer i really find it important to fulfill and assist to these litlle things. Not only universal but the health and safety of everyone.
Hey Tim or anyone who might know,
Are we suppose to bring all 100 pictures to class, or just the ten we picked???
Lighting is very important in so many ways, it never crosses our minds on how much it can truly effect someone. Nicole, you brought up a good point about the restaurants, jewerly stores and a department stores and the fact that their lightings techniques are intended for one reason, but yet neglect other important aspects of good lighting. Intentions such as highlighting a furniture piece, but at the same time causing bad light for the employees whom are constantly around this light. What does this say about this department store? We truly care about how we present our products to our customers, but neglect our employees concerns. Good lighting techniques could have prevented this.
A reflected ceiling plan shows the room as if looking from above, through a ceiling with a mirror installed one foot below the ceiling level, resulting in a reflection of the ceiling. They are used to demostrate lighting.
Sustainablity and universal design are very important topics, that apply to many different subjects. The health and safety of people (clients) should always be our upmost concern when designing anything, this includes lighting. There are so many side effects to bad lighting, it can become a long-term problem if not handled correctly. I do agree, that we are not taught enough about sustainablity...i believe this is a key element in "Good Design."
Universal design is presented in ID 4 (i think) we design a kitchen for a disabled person.
Lighting is part of the overall design for that project. Especially for way finding and delineating floor and surface changes, also the need to be aware of heights of lighting, switching and dimming controls, and useful placement to aid the needs of a disabled person, without hindering able bodied people living in the same house.
Hi Vivian, You can turn in all 100 but we are only going to look at your top 10.
Hello all! Somehow my post did not show up before, so I will repost it.
Our reading for this week basically reviewed our reading from prior weeks and entered us into the final stages of lighting design: the contracts and installation. I think it is important to notice that the process is cyclical, including 7 steps, and involves reincorporating learned information into new projects as well as improving existing ones. I guess you would have to budget for post occupancy adjustments. Also to make your client aware that will be done.
RCP or reflected ceiling plan is the contractual document that the designer uses to express the design in a technical way.
While reading through the “Educational Facilities” section in chapter 10 of Fundamentals of Lighting, I started thinking about my educational history. Here at the Art Institute we all realize what is wrong with the lighting and we are free to complain and realize nothing is going to change. But, when I was in the lower grades of high school we were located in an old building my grandmother actually attended high school in. There were no fluorescent lights, only pendants hung from the ceiling and amazing natural lighting. Guess what? The building was horrible and old but we were one well lit environment. As a whole the school performed well. In the upper grades, we had a new building built & it was stocked full of florescent lighting and nothing else. I’m pretty sure there was little to no concern about the lighting, possibly from not knowing or deciding it wasn’t as important as the price. (sadly) Test scores went down and no one knew why. I know this is all proven but I wanted to share my personal experience. We have talked about it so much and I had not thought about it, but the chapter set a light bulb off in my head.
Jacqueline, that is a great example of quality lighting vs. cheap lighting.
I was really glad to learn more on the measurements of lighting, since our first quick introduction to it with the video from the first class. Also from the reading, I'd like to say something about the healthcare institutions. I never realized how important the daylight can be for someone in the hospital, recovering from surgery or being disoriented. Although I have experienced this first hand from being stuck in a hospital room without windows and very, very poor lighting. Its a horrible feeling not only being in pain, but having no idea what time it is, how long you've been there, and no clue if its even day or night. Also.. I have never had a good experience trying to find ANYTHING in a hospital.. proper signage is so important.
As Jamie said about her boyfriend's apartment.. I also live in a townhouse in which absolutely no ceiling fixtures are connected to an outlet. I have fixed the issue in only three rooms in my house so far. But it didn't seem to be too much of a concern of the interior designer/architect and I'm sure if a correct RCP had been made (if one had) then I would not have to be living with this problem everday. I sure hope we cover doing RCPs really well in this class!
RCPs are one of the most neglected of the tools at our disposal as interior designers. Especially here in school, where all of our projects are stuck in 2 dimensions. An RCP can help us explain our thoughts in 3 dimensions. Have you ever created a formal analysis that is beautiful in it's own right? what better way to show it off than to build it into you ceiling design and lighting placement? I don't know if many of you are familiar with the Sendai Mediatheque library,(Click Here) but on the 7th floor the seemingly random placement of the fluorescent fixtures highlights the freedom of circulation, as well as the nodal hierarchy in the space. There is also a formal analysis in one of the books that I have on the Sendai that looks very like this. I will try to remember to bring in the book on monday.
Seth
That is true Seth. I have to say that I think I personally enjoy doing the RCP the most because of this. The "Freedom" you mentioned not only in the design but a personal feeling of freedom. I feel the most "at play" when designing the RCP because the possibilities seem endless; Ceiling heights, lighting, materials, walls... it is as in depth a design as the floor plan.
It is an often overlooked element in design. An afterthought in many cases or at least it appears to be due to abundance of uninteresting elements and lack of design. A reflected ceiling plan when abstracted to its most basic level is a diagram that shows the view of a room as if from above, through the ceiling at a mirror installed at a given point below the ceiling. It shows the reflected view of the ceiling above. It is used to demonstrate lighting, visible mechanical features, and ceiling forms as part of the documents provided for construction. There are many wasted opportunities in this integral part of the design. It provides the most obvious locations for lighting. Lighting can often become artistic in nature when the time is actually taken to design it. There are many factors to consider in a reflected ceiling plan often referred to as a “lighting plan.” First there is the standards that must be adhered to such as the average foot candles over a given space for things such as safety and egress. But we can sure drop basic fluorescent lamps or recessed cans in on a grid and call it a day. Sure that will allow you to get the certificate of occupancy, but how bland and uninspiring. There is a term called “light layering” that provides the user to manipulate the space to conform to his or her needs. Light layering refers to the combination of the four lighting classifications, although many fixtures can provide more than one. Those classifications are ambient, accent, task, and decorative. Ambient also called general lighting is your fill light. It does what the name describes by providing your general illumination of the space. Accent lighting is lighting that is directed towards something like artwork or maybe an intriguing architectural element. It as the name describes, accents something. Then there is the task lighting, which is equally important. This provides illumination specific to a specific job or task. For example, the under cabinet lighting in your kitchen can be considered task lighting as well as your desk light. Then there is the decorative lights, the beautiful chandelier in the foyer, or the hand blown glass pendants over your kitchen bar. But couldn’t those pendants double as task lighting? Absolutely! Most lighting will spill over more than one classification.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floor_plan
The importance of a reflected ceiling plan is just as imporant as a floor plan.Most apartment buildings of the past just put a fan with a single light in the living room and make the renters get floor lamps and table lamps without trying to use natural light in the spaces. Now they are adding more light into the spaces of the newer models for condos and apartments.Having good lighting design helps to sell the place alot faster too.
More importantly they key HVAC grilles,fire protection sprinkler heads,lighting fixtures,ceiling height changes and other custom work.
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