The modular headquarters of the Organizing Committee  for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic and Paralympic Games  is the first commercial building in Brazil to adopt GE Lighting’s Lumination™ ET Series Recessed LED Troffer, an ultra-thin fixture as thin as the width of a finger that brings modern styling to traditionally uninspired commercial ceiling spaces.

Ultra-thin in design, the ET Series Troffers offer indoor lighting solution with lower energy consumption, longer life and lower greenhouse emissions. (photo: GE Lighting Solutions)

Approximately 3,000 Lumination  ET Series Troffers offer an indoor lighting solution with lower energy consumption, longer life and lower greenhouse emissions resulting from power consumption compared with other options available in the market. The technology will help make the headquarters of 2,000 employees a benchmark in the search for more efficient solutions in the sports field and also will create an important legacy in infrastructure and technology for Rio de Janeiro and Brazil.

"LED technology plays a fundamental role in the model that sustains the environmentally conscious construction of the new headquarters for Rio 2016,” says Alexandre Ferrari, general manager of GE Lighting in Brazil. “We worked in partnership with Rio 2016 and the International Olympic Committee to create and enable a solution that combines energy efficiency, innovation and long-term, tangible benefits.”

By opting for the GE LED solution instead of a comparable fluorescent technology, Rio 2016 will save nearly half a million dollars on its energy bills over the four years the building will be used by the Organizing Committee. During this period, maintenance costs will be marginal, as the fixtures have an 11-year lifespan, approximately 120 percent longer than conventional fluorescent fixtures that last about five years.

"The headquarters of the Organizing Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games Rio 2016 is a project that seeks to use best practices in the adoption of energy-efficient technologies and solutions, creating an important and lasting legacy for the Brazilian society,” says Leonardo Gryner, operations general director for Rio 2016, “GE is certainly a strategic partner that contributed directly to achieving the goals of this initiative.”

The innovative design of the Lumination  Luminaires allows greater lighting uniformity with fewer lighting points. When illuminated, the Lumination ET Series Recessed LED Troffers produce a perfectly even glow, delivering exceptionally uniform light to fill the space. While off, they appear free of a light source, while fluorescent fixtures are typically visible. The ultra-thin panels (0.5 inches) fit seamlessly in most common T-bar ceiling grids and feature a built-in dimmable LED driver to help make installation less complex and time consuming compared to traditional fixtures.

Ultra-thin panels fit seamlessly in most common T-bar ceiling grids. (photo: GE Lighting Solutions

As the Rio 2016 headquarters is a modular construction, the LED solutions will be available for future use after the closing of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. The lighting design for this building was completed by Peter Gasper, a well-known lighting designer for several major Brazilian landmarks.

Efficient Technologies

LED technology is part of a range of energy-efficient and lower-environmental-impact solutions provided by GE for the Rio 2016™ headquarters. The company also is responsible for state-of-the-art technologies used in energy security and electrical distribution. The building also uses 25 Uninterruptible Power Supply units supplied by GE Digital Energy, which continue the energy supply for 10 minutes in the event of a failure while the generators are turned on, preventing the interruption of work. Electrical distribution components also have been installed in the building, including circuit breakers, relays, plugs and other equipment from GE Industrial Solutions.

Both the LED Lumination  Luminaires and the UPSs are part of GE’s ecomagination℠ initiative, which helps customers improve operational efficiencies while allowing a significant improvement in their environmental impact.

GE has been an official sponsor of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) since 2006. Its commitment to contributing to the quality of the Games led the company to announce, in August 2011, the extension of its sponsorship agreement until the 2020 Games. Since the beginning of this partnership, GE has done more than $1 billion in Olympic-related business.