Lighting up the buildings of the future

Located in the heart of Melbourne’s south-east, Alencia is an impressive function centre where class, beauty and elegance take centre stage. Since opening in 2019, Alencia’s owners have created a space which offers a point of difference to other function centres. Using clever technology, as well as premium furnishings and finishes throughout, the versatile venue can be tailored to suit a variety of events.

Quality and impressive functionality

Looking for an electrical solution to match the style and sophistication of the venue, Alencia’s owners needed a system that looked impressive to their customers, while also being easy to use for their staff. Working with their electrical contractors, BH Electrics, and Schneider Electric certified system integrators, Integrated Electrical Technologies, it was decided that Schneider’s SpaceLogic C-Bus lighting control system would be most suited to the project. C-Bus provides control and energy-efficiency, as well as the functionality of programming in specific “scenes”.

For Alencia, scenes and schedules have been set in the C-Bus system including “bride entry”, “first dance”, “dancing”, “dining” and also “end of function”. Each of these scenes allows the venue staff to set specific light levels / configurations and select music and volume levels.

During the week, it is the office areas on the second floor of the building that are used more than the ground-floor function rooms. The function rooms are mainly left dark, but sensors have been installed in the entrance and hallway, as well as in the toilets, so that lights only turn on when a presence is detected. During an event, a scene called “event activation” can be set which over-rides these sensors, and the wall switches, so that lights are kept on for the entire duration. The settings can be altered by a custom-built interface that is accessible via the venue’s iPads.

Schedules are used to automatically turn on exterior signage and security lighting outside of the venue of an evening. These lights are controlled by the C-Bus automation controller, which uses a world clock to operate to sunset and sunrise times.

“Lighting automation is one way we can make sure the wedding couple are really the stars of the night,” Sam Zekiri, co-owner of Alencia says. “It makes it much easier to run the event knowing that several things can happen at once, and we can keep out of the way of our clients and guests. The automation gives us peace of mind that we don’t need to worry about all the small pieces, because it has all been integrated into one system.”

“Also, the automation allows us to be more energy efficient, because we know that everything has been turned off at the end of the night. We know that the lights in the hallways and toilets are only turned on when a presence is detected, and we know that we can turn on just the downlights in the function rooms when we set things up, rather than also turning on the nine chandeliers and the box lighting around the walls and the floor lighting. We estimate we are saving around 30 per cent compared with a standard lighting installation.”

Colour your world

RGB lighting has been installed both outside and inside the building, allowing Alencia to match corporate colours for work functions, or coordinate with colour themes for weddings. The lights are fully programmable, so they can be set to whatever colour desired by the venue’s clients. The exterior lights have been installed on perforated steel enclosing the building, while inside, a web of lights has been installed in the dance floor, lighting up the space with drama and ambiance.

“Not a lot of venues can offer the ability to match the lighting with their dresses,” Sam said. “The lights give us a unique selling point for clients, and the touchscreen access makes the system easy to operate. Ray from Integrated Electrical Technologies and BH Electrics were great. They made the recommendation to use Schneider Electric products and solutions, and we have been very happy with the results.”

To find a Schneider Electric certified system integrator to help with your new building or upgrade, visit se.com/au/ecoxpert.

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/Urupong