British lighting technology company amBX has teamed up with lighting consultancy IT Does Lighting to develop the concept of a Wellbeing Dashboard that can enable building managers and employers to monitor how well the lighting in their spaces is supporting employees.

The Dashboard, a prototype of which will be on show for the first time at this week’s Lux Live show in London, analyses various aspects of how a lit space is performing including, for example, how well lighting follows the natural circadian cycles of occupants; how the intensity of lighting supports the tasks being carried out in a given space, and how natural and effective the lighting is in creating an optimum working environment. The Wellbeing Dashboard enables building managers and employers to monitor lighting performance in a similar way to energy efficiency and space utilisation through a building management system.

(Image: amBX)

The Wellbeing Dashboard concept takes advantage of the latest smart connected lighting technologies including a much wider range of sensors, which will be integrated with lighting networks in buildings of all types.

“Our understanding of lighting is advancing rapidly, particularly as it affects the human body and our productivity,” explains David Eves, CTO and founder of amBX.

“The quality of light can deeply affect the physiology of the human body. Better lighting can improve your natural daily cycles, your circadian rhythms, and help you feel more healthy and invigorated. Different forms of human centric lighting, therefore, influence how you work, how you rest and how you relax. We want to improve the ability to easily monitor and understand how lighting is improving the environment for people working within it.”

Lorraine Calcott MD and Founder of It Does Lighting “It’s exciting to see lighting technology starting to be capable of implementing sophisticated human-centric lighting properties. Initiatives such as the Wellbeing Dashboard will raise the profile of the topic within the industry and advance the thinking on how these capabilities can be harnessed to improve lit environments of all kinds.”

(Image: amBX)

In illustrating the quality of the balance of the lighting to your natural circadian rhythms, how good the intensity of lighting is for the tasks being performed, the Wellbeing Dashboard can help quantify what a good working environment at a lighting level should be.

“amBX technology allows you to take control of your lighting both in terms of its efficiency and how much energy it uses and how the space is lit when it is required and when it is not. But it also provides better lighting for those who are sitting under it, helping to make employees more productive and to make them feel better and generally healthier. As an employer, by far the largest part of your costs is the cost of your employees so even a small improvement in productivity or an improvement in the absenteeism rate can make a radical improvement to your bottom line.”