Energy Efficient Lighting in Retail Spaces - Case Study Evaluations

Energy efficient design gains in importance for reducing of both CO2 emissions and high energy costs. The electricity used for lighting needs have a large percentage of the buildings' total energy consumption; therefore lighting systems should be designed carefully. There are several certification methods to assess the sustainability of the buildings which differ according to the lighting related categories and the percentages of these categories in the overall building assessment. In this context, Lighting and Energy Consumption requirements of BREEAM Retail 2009 and LEED Commercial Interiors 2009 are investigated for retail spaces. Retail buildings are important energy users because of their long-period and common usage. As a case study the parameters determined by the methods are evaluated on a retail centre in Turkey. This study aims to emphasize the parameters of sustainable lighting design for retail spaces, which should provide the visual comfort conditions while minimizing the energy consumption.