Portfolio | Projects & Clients | Awards | Design Process

Chapman University BIT Building

Orange, California

HLB collaborated with Cannon Design on the Chapman University Business Information and Technology Building in Orange, California.   Our scope of work included exterior façade, site, lobby, corridors, stair tower, lounges, café, conference rooms, and multiple classroom types.

The focal exterior element is the glowing stair tower ‘beacon' element adjacent to the lobby.   The design team wished to differentiate the upper portion of the tower from the lower tower.   Metal halide lamps were chosen to illuminate the upper tower section providing a crisp white accent light onto the bronze metal work, while the green glass below is illuminated with fluorescent wall sconces, consistently located at each landing, resulting in an even glow when viewed from the exterior.   The metal halide fixture selection and mounting details were critical in keeping the fixtures from being seen by observers on the ground.

The lobby of the facility greets visitors with floating planes and patterned rectilinear articulation, a theme that is repeated throughout the project.   A key design goal was to accentuate these articulations, while not creating distracting elements thus, lessening the impact of the patterning. Linear fluorescent fixtures were incorporated into these elements providing general illumination and complimenting the architecture.   A major challenge was detailing fixtures into the architectural slots so that socket shadows were not visible, lamps were easily accessible for maintenance, and lamps were not visible from the lobby or upper level adjacent corridors.

The classrooms are illuminated with a combination of bi-level switched linear fluorescent troffers and incandescent downlights.   This arrangement allows for flexible lighting levels, and a preset dimming system provides easy switching of lighting scenes for typical room usages.   The layouts of the recessed lighting fixtures, were again, conscientiously coordinated to emphasize the architectural patterns on the ceiling.

This lighting design has been recognized with a Lumen West Award of Merit.