It’s well established that daylighting—controlling the amount of natural light transmission into buildings—is an essential element in building design.

While windows have long been the chosen method for bringing natural light indoors, daylighting leader John Mardalievic calls them “the ‘weak links’ in any facade—both in terms [of] heat loss and solar heat gain.”

As an alternative or supplement to windows, only translucent fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) panels offer superior diffuse daylighting and thermal performance that preserves the benefits of natural sunlight while controlling heat transmission.

Environmental Considerations in Daylighting

Daylighting is now held as an early, critical component to building design, as studies have found it has benefits in a wide array of environments. For example, healthcare facilities report better patient outcomes, less pain, lower stress levels, and reduced stays. In education, good daylighting results in better alertness, test scores, and decreased absenteeism.

The Education Funding Agency in the UK made daylight modeling compulsory for submission into the Priority Schools Building Programme (PSBP). The strict regulations were introduced after buildings funded by the PSBP experienced incidents of students passing out as a direct result of overheating due to glass being used as the glazing material in the project. The oversight in solar heat gain considerations caused the agency to reassess its priorities: While adequate daylighting is crucial to student performance, useful daylight and thermal performance are key to student wellness.

Energy Benefits

Today’s buildings are more tightly constructed, and mechanical and electrical systems have added complexity to the mix. As a result, code developers, design professionals, construction teams, and product manufacturers focus on the best balance of daylighting benefits and how thermal properties and solar heat gain will impact overall energy performance in buildings.

It’s essential to balance daylighting with the effect additional solar heat gain in the building will have on cooling requirements. The overall intent is for energy optimization and a notable reduction in the carbon footprint of the building.

Research has determined:

• Optimized daylighting strategies can reduce total energy costs by as much as one-third.

• An excellent daylighting design can save up to 75 percent of the energy used for electric lighting in a building.

• Building cooling energy usage can be reduced by 10 to 20 percent.

Recommendations for Daylighting

As increasingly more studies show the benefits of daylighting, the design community has responded.

Kalwall, a pioneer of best-in-class daylighting products, has revealed 175CW, the first in a series of translucent insulated glazing units (TIGUs) that fit into most third-party curtain wall systems.

As a new product that combines the best of Kalwall’s panel technology—perfectly diffuse daylighting, lightweight nature, best-in-class thermal performance, and superb solar heat gain control—with the flexibility to integrate into most curtain wall systems, 175CW fits seamlessly into any project. Plus, daylight modeling allows you to take the guesswork out of a new product. Kalwall offers complimentary daylight modeling services, allowingscience and art to combine in creating perfect daylighting for your project design.

Learn more about Kalwall 175CW at Kalwall.com.