Like many call centres, the IBM Call Centre at Greenock is housed in a large hangar-like structure.

To their credit IBM has made every effort to improve the working environment for their staff. In this they have been very successful. A combination of colourful furniture, carpets and plenty of living green plants has been used, the whole complemented by an innovative lighting scheme by Apollo. The huge area, the sloping roof line, the multiple VDU screens, all presented difficulties to be overcome, but the Apollo design team likes nothing better than a challenge!

The usual solution to the lighting of large cavernous indoor areas is to use floodlights in one way or another, often reversed to reflect light off the inner surfaces of the roof. This system is also compatible with the use of VDU's. However the cost of this method would have been prohibitive in this particular location.

As is so often the case in these situations, the solution came in response to the old age question.... "What if....?"

Apollo's CORSO luminaire, originally designed for the illumination of large sports halls, could certainly provide the light levels, but how to achieve control of that light?

The answer lay in a silvered parabolic cell controller with 38mm square cells. This system had been used previously by Apollo in a large newspaper office but with a much lower ceiling height.

Calculations showed that the system was only viable in the enormous call centre when the number of luminaires per row was increased in proportion to the changing roof height.

Further control of the light output was provided to cope with those days when strong sunlight upsets the balance. The luminaires were designed with a switching arrangement to allow either 2, 4 or 6 of the 55W lamps to be in use in each luminaire.

This level of control gives a much more amenable light level whatever the conditions of time or weather. Incidentally, having this controllability also results in much lower energy consumption and therefore running costs.

Client

• IBM Call Centre, Greenock

Architect

• The Parr Partnership, Dundee

Consulting Engineers

• Graham Mather Associates, Edinburgh
• Electrical Associate, Graham Gibson

Luminaires

• Apollo Corso 655
• Zintec steel body
• High Frequency gear
• Silvered parabolic 38mm square cell controller

Lamps

• 6X55W PLL Polylux 4000k lamps switched to give 6, 4, or 2 lamps on.

Installation

120 luminaires suspended in rows at a uniform drop from the sloping roof line, the number of luminaires per row increasing with the height above the working plane to maintain uniformity.

The separate switching gives average lux levels of around 500 (6 lamps), 300 (4 lamps), and 155 (2 lamps)

The results achieved are impressive. The uniform level of light across the whole of the main communication hall, regardless of the switched level selected, is superb. The specified light levels have been achieved, but most important of all, the client and their workers, are happy.