News tagged lighting

Last update: Thursday 9 February 2012 [205 news items]

More governments to set standards for LED lighting

Jan 16, 15:30

More governments around the globe are expected to set compulsory standards for LED lighting devices in 2012, which in turn will help reduce vicious price competition in the LED lighting...

LED lighting shipments to increase in 2Q12

Dec 28, 01:25

The LED lighting market is expected to shine in 2012. South Korea-based Samsung LED has recently been merged into Samsung Group to fully utilize the strong distribution channel of...

Lextar plans to enter LED lighting distribution

Nov 21, 15:44

Taiwan-based LED firm Lextar has been developing the LED lighting market and receiving OEM orders from international firms such as Philips, Osram and Mitsubishi. Lextar has been said...

Asustek launches Zenbook series ultrabooks

Oct 13, 01:30

Asustek Computer has unveiled its Zenbook series ultrabooks saying it is confident it has the closest performance/price ratio compared to Apple's MacBook Air.

GLT becomes supplier for Toshiba Lighting

Sep 20, 14:12

Taiwan-based light guide plate maker GLT has successfully cut into the supply chain of Japan-based Toshiba Lighting's LED ceiling lamps. Toshiba Lighting currently has the largest...

Aeon Lighting announces cooperation with Cree

Jul 29, 15:42

Taiwan-based high-power LED lighting firm, Aeon Lighting Technology, has announced cooperation with US-based Cree Lighting to secure supplies of LED chips. Aeon will adopt Cree's...

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Digitimes Research: High-brightness LED output value to grow by 13.4% and LED lighting penetration to increase to 11.3 ...

PEACHTREE CITY, Ga., Feb. 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Cooper Lighting, an industry leader committed to delivering innovative products and driving transformational technology in the lighting industry, announces that ten of its innovative products have been recognized by the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) Progress Committee as providing "an advancement in the art and science of lighting." Altogether, Cooper Lighting had nine products accepted - including eight LED luminaires - and Cooper Controls, a business unit of Cooper Lighting, had an additional energy-monitoring product accepted. The products are featured in the 2011 IES Progress Report, which presents significant developments and improvements in the lighting industry over the past year. 

(Photo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120210/DA51519)

(Logo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110513/DA01852LOGO-b)

The accepted products include:

Cooper Lighting's Neo-Ray Straight and Narrow 22 LED Luminaires, available in three color temperatures and offering a 25 percent energy savings over fluorescent sources, create slender lines of continuous, uniform illumination for recessed, suspended, surface- and wall-mounted applications. Cooper Lighting's Corelite R Mini LED Luminaire is a unique 1' x 1' luminaire that provides a 28 percent reduction in energy with a 10 percent increase in delivered lumens, when compared to a traditional 32W compact fluorescent fixture. Cooper Lighting's Corelite Loft/Element Micro LED Suspended Luminaire, which features independent dimming of the uplight and downlight components, achieves a high luminaire efficacy of 85 lumens per watt (lm/W). Comparable to a 54W T5HO fixture, this design provides a 17 percent reduction in energy with a 7 percent increase in lumens. Cooper Lighting's Halo Stasis LED Luminaire, designed for retail, hospitality and commercial spaces, features tight optical control with minimal spill light and multiple patented field-changeable optical distributions including Spot (15 degrees), Narrow Flood (25 degrees) and Flood (40 degrees). Cooper Lighting's RSA COMBOLIGHT LED Luminaire is the first airtight, IC-rated multiple-head recessed luminaire that offers one to six heads equipped with 18W LEDs and a double-gimbal design that allows the product to tilt 45 degrees in any direction. Cooper Lighting's IRiS® Linear Spread Lens Trim, designed for use in multiple wall wash luminaires including compact fluorescent, halogen and ceramic metal halide sources, utilizes a unique color neutral glass lens technology eliminating the green tint of light found in standard glass. The result is increased optical efficiency with smooth vertical illumination. Cooper Lighting's Metalux Accord LED Series, which evenly distributes the perfect amount of "softer" light, is available in two light levels, multiple color temperatures and boasts an efficacy of 88 lumens per watt (lm/W) with a 50,000 hour rated life. A quick disconnect feature allows for simple future LED upgrades. Cooper Lighting's Halo H4 LED Adjustable Gimbals, the first small aperture (4-inch) adjustable downlights with the appearance and performance similar to a low voltage MR16 gimbal, features interchangeable reflectors with beam distributions of 25, 35 and 50 degrees, four color temperatures and an adjustable 35-degree tilt. Cooper Lighting's Halo 4-inch and 6-inch LED Wall Wash Downlight Trims deliver uniform illumination and are the first residential and commercial grade LED trims of their kind, allowing these trims to be used for both IC and non-IC applications. The Cooper Controls advanced Venergy Advanced Metering System is a code compliant energy saving solution, which monitors energy consumption, is easy to use, specify and scalable across any enterprise.

The Progress Report submittals, which include new products, applications, research, publications and design tools, are reviewed by the IES Progress Committee. The committee consists of industry experts from all different aspects of the lighting industry with the mission of keeping in touch with developments in the art and science of lighting throughout the world. The committee prepares a yearly review of achievements for the Society. Each submittal goes through a judging process and is evaluated for its uniqueness, innovativeness and significance to the lighting industry. Judging is not based on aesthetics, but focuses on and honors technical advancements.

The accepted products were presented at the IES Annual Conference in Austin, Texas this past November. The 2011 IES Progress Report was featured in the January issue of the Society's monthly magazine, Lighting Design + Application (LD+A). The Report is also posted on the IES website and is presented by IES Sections throughout the year at section meetings. To view the accepted products, click here to view the Report.

Cooper Lighting has made a significant investment in people, resources and technology to ensure the company provides first-class solutions to its customers' lighting challenges. The Company offers a range of indoor and outdoor lighting products and controls, all of which are specifically designed to maximize energy and cost savings. For additional information on Cooper's product offering, click here, and for information on Cooper Controls solutions, click here.

About Cooper Lighting
Cooper Lighting, a subsidiary of Cooper Industries plc (NYSE: CBE - News), is the leading provider of innovative, high quality interior and exterior lighting fixtures and related products to worldwide commercial, industrial, retail, institutional, residential and utility markets. As lighting technologies have advanced over the years, Cooper Lighting has been at the forefront of the industry in helping businesses and communities leverage the latest technologies to improve efficiency, reduce costs and enrich the quality of the environment. For more information, visit http://www.cooperlighting.com.

About Cooper Controls
Cooper Controls, a business unit of Cooper Lighting, is a market leader in energy management, architectural, and entertainment lighting controls. A subsidiary of global manufacturer Cooper Industries plc (NYSE: CBE - News), it was formed by its acquisition of Novitas Inc. in November 2005, Polaron plc in March 2007, PCI Lighting Control Systems in August 2007, and ALC Lighting Controls in November 2010.  Cooper Controls includes leading brands such as iLight (International), iLumin (North America), Greengate, and Zero 88. For more information, visit http://www.coopercontrol.com.

About Cooper Industries
Cooper Industries plc (NYSE: CBE - News) is a global electrical products manufacturer with 2011 revenues of $5.4 billion.  Founded in 1833 Cooper's sustained success is attributable to a constant focus on innovation and evolving business practices, while maintaining the highest ethical standards and meeting customer needs.  The Company has seven operating divisions with leading market positions and world-class products and brands, including Bussmann electrical and electronic fuses; Crouse-Hinds and CEAG explosion-proof electrical equipment; Halo and Metalux lighting fixtures; and Kyle and McGraw-Edison power systems products.  With this broad range of products, Cooper is uniquely positioned for several long-term growth trends including the global infrastructure build-out, the need to improve the reliability and productivity of the electric grid, the demand for higher energy-efficient products and the need for improved electrical safety.  In 2011 fifty-nine percent of total sales were to customers in the industrial and utility end-markets and forty percent of total sales were to customers outside the United States.  Cooper has manufacturing facilities in 23 countries as of 2011.  For more information, visit the website at http://www.cooperindustries.com.

Contact:

Karin Martin, Karin Martin Communications

(630) 513-8625

Kmartin41@aol.com

Originally posted here:
Cooper Lighting and Cooper Controls' Products Accepted into Prestigious 2011 IES Progress Report for Technical ...

Powell River residents have an opportunity to participate in design discussions for a new public library at an interactive design workshop. The event takes place from 6 to 9:30 pm on Tuesday, February 14 at Powell River Recreation Complex.

The workshop is the second of three sessions providing the community with an opportunity to shape the design of a new library. At the first event in November, 75 people explored the major features of the library, which is proposed for the vacant lot on the corner of Marine Avenue and Abbotsford Street, known as the old arena site. The outcomes of the first session focused on core requirements, additional functionality, the environment and site use.

Architects from Miller Hull Partnership in Seattle, Washington, along with Public Design from Vancouver, have incorporated these ideas into preliminary designs. These drawings will be on display and will provide the basis for discussion and further development of the program.

A group of concerned citizens who are opposed to the location of the new library are planning to attend the workshop. “We’re telling people to come and see the sweetheart deal,” said Gaye Culos, one of the organizers. “We’re planning on a peaceful demonstration to show our opposition to the location.”

The group has collected over 1,200 signatures on a statement that opposes the proposed site. As well, people are concerned about the cost of a new library.

Culos pointed out that with Catalyst Paper Corporation’s unstable financial position, the community doesn’t know what the future holds. “We need to be fiscally responsible,” she said. “We need to differentiate between want versus need. We need to stand up and tell council enough is enough, we can’t spend anymore.”

A delegation representing the concerned citizens is planning on making a presentation to City of Powell River council on February 16.

Culos said she is not against libraries and the staff at Powell River Public Library are wonderful and helpful. She said she thinks the children’s area at the library needs to be improved, but the city has to live within its means. “I don’t want to divide the community,” she said. “We’re not saying no to the library; we’re saying no to Willingdon Beach.”

The concerned citizens have a table set up at Powell River Town Centre Mall where the statement opposing the site is available. “I encourage people to come out to the meeting on February 14,” said Culos.

The architects are also briefing city councillors and Powell River Regional District directors about the project at 11 am on Tuesday, February 14 at city hall.

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Architects unveil preliminary drawings for new library

(PRWEB) February 12, 2012

ICC-ES ESR# 3262 verifies“Tufdek” is code-compliant.

TUFDEK, manufactured by Tuff Industries Inc., received an evaluation report (ESR-3262) from ICC Evaluation Service (ICC-ES), providing evidence that “Tufdek Professional Series Walking Deck and Roof System” meets code requirements. Building officials, architects, contractors, specifiers, designers and others utilize ICC-ES Evaluation Reports to provide a basis for using or approving Tufdek in construction projects following the International Building Code.

ICC-ES President Mark Johnson explains why ICC-ES Evaluation Reports are so important. “Tuff Industries Inc. can now reference the evaluation report to ensure building officials, and the building industry, that Tufdek products meet I-Code requirements,” Johnson said. “Building departments have a long history of using evaluation reports, and ICC-ES operates as a technical resource for the building department. Final approval of building products is always in the hands of the local regulatory agency.”

ICC-ES thoroughly examined “Tufdek Professional Series Walking Deck and Roof System” product information, test reports, calculations, quality control manuals and other factors to ensure Tufdek is code compliant. ICC-ES Reports are seen as critical to validating Tuff Industries attention to quality products, says Company Owner, Bryan Hughes, “Our niche Products are not widely known or understood throughout North America, an ICC-ES report provides reassurance to everyone from Architects, Construction Professionals and Building Departments, that the Product has undergone stringent evaluation to ensure Code-Compliance by an organization well known and respected for its impartiality and technical expertise. Having this report removes the “fuzziness” that often exists with Standards and individual test reports, and alleviates the burden on all professionals involved, to decipher and make judgment calls as to the Products suitability. Hands down, an ICC-ES Report puts us head and shoulders above our Competition.”

About ICC

ICC-ES is the United States’ leading source of technical information on building products and building technology for code compliance. A nonprofit, public-benefit corporation, ICC-ES performs technical evaluations of building products, components, methods and materials. The evaluation process culminates with the issuance of reports on compliance with the major U.S. building codes, which are available at http://www.icc-es.org. ICC-ES is a subsidiary of the International Code Council, a membership association dedicated to building safety and fire prevention that develops the codes used to construct residential and commercial buildings, including homes and schools. Most U.S. cities, counties and states that adopt codes choose the International Codes developed by the International Code Council.

About Tuff Industries:

Through Branded membranes, Tuff Industries provides proven waterproofing and roofing solutions for balcony and roof-deck applications. As North America’s leader in pedestrian traffic bearing PVC deck and roof deck materials, our products provide a proven, attractive, low maintenance and low life-cycle cost solution to any building project. Tufdek membranes, coupled with industry leading system accessories make water intrusion problems on deck areas a thing of the past.

For more information Contact

Mr. Grant Lawton

Ph: 587.999.5930

###

See the rest here:
TUFDEK Balcony Waterproofing and Exterior Flooring System Receives IBC Building Code Approval

The home renovator is well served on the iPad and iPhone, with apps that do everything from measure square footage to provide information on more than 150 kinds of wood. But what about the architecture geek, who longs to spend hours scrolling through the blueprints of a Case Study House?

In recent months, several new apps have focused on specific works of architecture, like Richard Neutra's VDL Studio and Residences, Pierre Koenig's Case Study House #22 and Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater, bringing those masterworks into the digital age. The latter two were created by in-D media, a California-based company that has been producing architecture videos and CD-ROMs since the late-'90s and last year began transferring its wealth of content into mobile app form.

With videos, sumptuous color photography and virtual room tours, the company's apps, which sell for about $5 to $10 at the iTunes store, are so transporting you may find yourself looking for the gift shop afterward.

The company's founder, Timothy Sakamoto, who created the apps with his business partner, Jochen Repolust, recently talked about the small but growing niche of i-architecture.

Given how detailed these apps are, I'm curious if you have a background in architecture.

I'm a licensed architect in California. I discovered early on that working for one architect limits you in learning about other types of architecture being created. By making videos and interactive CD-ROMs, I thought I'd be able to visit historically significant buildings, learn from them and convey that knowledge. When the iPad came out, I started researching what making an app would entail.

Do you think apps are a better way to experience great architecture than the videos you produced?

I think the ideal platform is a mobile app: it gives you intimacy, a connection. You interact with it more like a book, but it comes with advantages that you just don't have with books, like being able to watch video or take an interactive tour.

Another thing is the color quality of the photographs. The colors are luminous. Even an art book with high-quality printing doesn't compare to the iPad.

One of the best features about the Fallingwater app is the way you can zoom in and out on the home's floor plan and select photos.

I think the big difference is how you interface with the iPad. With a CD-ROM you use a mouse, so you're two feet from the computer screen, removed from the process. On the iPad, by swiping your finger, you get this tactile experience that's closer to experiencing the tactile world of architecture. It feels that much closer to being there.

Who is downloading these apps? Architecture students? Design geeks?

The users tend to be architects and people in the design field. Often they haven't been to these buildings, even though they've been to architecture school.

You get some people saying, "Nine ninety-nine for an app, that's outrageous!" People think of apps as games, and they want to pay 99 cents. But a book of this nature would be $50. If anything, with the Fallingwater app, we put too much content on there.

Zaha Hadid has released an app to showcase her firm's work. Do you think other architects will follow suit?

I think architects in general are into gadgets, and some have approached us about making an app for them. The reality is the cost is prohibitive, and it doesn't make sense right now because it wouldn't do much more for them than having a Web site.

Yes, there's the cachet of being on the iPad, instead of saying, "Go to my Web site." But there's also an ongoing maintenance cost, an upgrading cost. And because you need an iPad to view the material, it has a limited audience.

What other buildings or architects do you plan to give the app treatment to?

We're working on one for Taliesin West. It's an update of the DVD we produced and should be out in a month or two. I think we might be heading to Europe. There are some early Modernist architects like Le Corbusier that have a lot of appeal.

There are a lot of fantastic buildings all over the world, and only a few people can visit many of them in person. But we could make a super app.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

First published on February 10, 2012 at 12:01 am

Read the original here:
Architects' Works Find a Niche in the Digital Age

JOPLIN, Mo. — Reaction appeared mostly supportive Thursday night among the roughly 50 people who attended a community meeting at which architects presented their preliminary site plans for the future combined Joplin High School and Franklin Technology Center.

Architect Chad Greer of Corner Greer & Associates, of Joplin, and Kevin Greischer of DLR Group, of Overland Park, Kan., consultants to CGA, presented design plans that were approved by the Board of Education in a meeting Wednesday night. The firms are the same ones that designed the temporary campus at Northpark Mall, which was the site of the community meeting.

“I’m really liking the layout and the separate buildings,” said JHS sophomore Preston Miller. “I’m hoping that although they have the covered bridges, we can walk on the grounds from building to building because that was just a nice part of the school. At the rose garden, you could just take a breath of fresh air.”

The Board of Education has approved a $62 million bond issue for the April 3 ballot. The bonds, district officials say, would offset costs not covered by state and federal aid, insurance and donations for the rebuilding of schools destroyed in the May 22 tornado, along with community safe rooms across the district, and renovations and repairs to undamaged elementary schools. The total project cost is estimated at $185 million. The high school project cost is estimated at $104 million.

Some who attended the meeting said they liked the vision of the district, but they want to know more and are worried about the bond issue’s possible impact, especially on the elderly with fixed incomes, those directly affected by the tornado and those affected by the economy in general.

“It’s a big concern we keep hearing over and over,” said Virginia Denham, a member of the JHS class of 1951. “We have always supported the schools, and we probably still will. But there are a lot of questions out there about the bond. I think they need to get more answers out. There are whole sections of houses gone, and (the schools) aren’t getting that revenue.”

Denham said the preliminary designs were too vague to really imagine, but she liked that the new school is to be integrated into a hillside, possibly affording it more protection.

Assistant Superintendent Angie Besendorfer gave a presentation about the school district’s vision for the new career-cluster curriculum that will focus on five career paths: business/information technology, technical sciences, human services, arts/communication, and health sciences.

One attendee, Paul Mosbaugh, of the JHS class of 1957, said he thought the integration of JHS and Franklin Technical Center was a good idea, and likely would change the outlook of some JHS students regarding the students who attend trade classes at the technical center.

“I went to the vocational school when I was in high school, and at that time, everybody kind of looked down on us,” Mosbaugh said. “So I dropped out of vocational school and went just full time as a student for senior high. I think this will help people relate to them, and they won’t look down on them.”

Several high school students who attended the meeting said they were excited about the new direction of the school’s curriculum, and how the building design was influenced by it. JHS senior Nontapoth Vongkittiargorn, who someday wants to be a biomedical engineer, said he likes the idea of students trying out careers while they’re still in high school so they can be prepared for the real world. He also has a more personal reason for his interest in the future school.

“The very first thing I’m really interested in is seeing the new ideas,” Vongkittiargorn said. “Also, my brother, who is 2 years old right now, may be participating in this whole program eventually, so I’m here for my family.”

Greer said he hopes to have more conceptual images to present to the school board by the end of the month. From there, he said, the architects will present those images and gather more feedback from students, staff members and residents.

Temporary campus

AFTER THE MEETING, attendees could tour the temporary 11th- and 12th-grade campus at Northpark Mall.

Continue reading here:
Architects present preliminary JHS plans at community meeting

Summary: ‘It’s no longer enough for EAs to put a shared infrastructure in place and stand back and declare the business to be enabled.’

Some of the best service orientation case studies have been built on changes to the way enterprises view their business: transitioning from cultures centered around products to cultures focused on customers.

Jeanne Ross, director and principal research scientist at the MIT Center for Information Systems Research, recently spoke with SearchSOA’s Jack Vaughn about the impact that enterprise architects can make on corporate culture:

“A large insurance company such as Aetna, for example, may have built up thousands of products and all of their systems were organized around insurance products. And what they realized is that was not how they were going to ever satisfy their customers. They wanted to know their customers and the customers’ products, not the Aetna [view of] products and all the customers that bought it. If you want a single face to the customer you think of the customer as the center of universe, not the product.

Now, that’s a huge transition - to say, ‘I’m going to fix that. I’m going to change my capabilities so instead of knowing products I’m going to know customers.’ You basically turn your company upside down.”

Ross says it it’s no longer enough for EAs to put a shared infrastructure in place and stand back and declare the business to be “enabled.” EAs need to follow through on the process, she advocates. “People are too busy. They don’t take it on. Architects are going to have to take on greater responsibility and/or concern for the exploitation of capabilities.” That means a lot of follow-up with end users as they roll out new capabilities.

Many companies have built up rigid silos and structures built around products. The move to service orientation shouldn’t be limited to exchanging services between siloed systems, it means becoming service oriented toward the customer.

Joe McKendrick is an author, consultant and speaker specializing in trends and developments shaping the technology industry.

Disclosure Joe McKendrick

Joe McKendrick is an independent consultant, editor and speaker.

Joe has performed project work (white papers, articles, blogs, research and presentations) for the following companies in the IT marketspace:

CBS Interactive/CNET/ZDNet (this blog) ebizQ Evans Data Gartner IBM Informatica IDC Microsoft Systinet/HP Teradata Unisphere Reseach, a division of Information Today, Inc. WebLayers

Joe has also performed research work for the following sponsoring organizations in partnership with Unisphere Research, a division of Information Today, Inc.

IBM Luminex Noetix Oracle Corp. Teradata Informatica International Oracle Users Group Oracle Applications Users Group Professional Association for SQL Server International DB2 Users Group International Sybase Users Group SHARE (IBM large systems users group) Biography Joe McKendrick

Joe McKendrick is an author and independent analyst who tracks the impact of information technology on management and markets. Joe is co-author, along with 16 leading industry leaders and thinkers, of the SOA Manifesto, which outlines the values and guiding principles of service orientation. He also speaks frequently on Enterprise 2.0 and SOA topics at industry events and Webcasts. As an independent analyst, he has also authored numerous research reports in partnership with Unisphere Research, a division of Information Today, Inc. for user groups such as SHARE, Oracle Applications Users Group, and International DB2 Users Group. Joe is also an active SOA contributor for ebizQ/TechTarget. In a previous life, Joe served as director of the Administrative Management Society (AMS), an international professional association dedicated to advancing knowledge within the IT and business management fields. He is a graduate of Temple University.

Read the rest here:
Enterprise architects: 'turn your company upside down'

Architects live and breathe design, blissfully losing themselves in details most people would never notice — the bevel of a trim, the way light falls across a room, squared legs or curved.

So what happens, we wondered, when two such aesthetes come together under one roof?

Do they lie awake at night, pondering three-inch moldings or four? Is there a prenup for the Eames chairs? Do they fight tooth and nailhead?

Judging from the example set by these married Baltimore architects who live and work together, it all comes together much more smoothly than any of that.

These couples each share a style philosophy. Considering how essential such matters are to architects, one can imagine them writing it right into their vows … for richer, for poorer, for mid-century modern …

Their homes are not just harmonious; they speak to the principles their inhabitants live by.

One of the couples, Laura and Jeffrey Penza, have a piece hanging in their entryway, a poem written in calligraphy and framed, that gets to that very point.

"If two should architect one house, what would happen when the two should join? And one imagines wires and mortar and pipes that never somehow quite do meet. But when it comes to building a dream and a life of two in one, ah, then indeed the two must architect together and build their home of love."

Laura Thul Penza and Jeffrey Penza

Penza Bailey Architects

They met, as so many architects seem to, studying their field. Laura Penza can pinpoint her first brush with Jeffrey nearly down to the minute. It happened during their fourth year at the University of Cincinnati, the first day of spring quarter, to be precise.

"The eyes locked," she says, as he nods in agreement. "It was one of those."

They married in 1983, not long after graduation, and migrated to Baltimore. They weren't working together right away, but when Jeffrey began took charge of a firm, it wasn't too long before Laura was at his side.

In the office, they complement one another but have their own roles. But at home, it seems to be a tandem project.

The couple looked at nearly 200 houses before deciding on a 1930s deceptively large stone cottage on a corner lot in Homeland. They had wanted a fixer-upper, something they could gut and revive, where they could put into practice everything they had learned in school. They got a near-faultless house but spent years making it their own anyway.

They like to say they touched every side of it, adding a bay window to the front, a breakfast nook on one side, a family room for the back.

But it's in other, smaller, touches that one really gets a feel for the Penzas — in the vibrant, creative accessories.

"It's a very traditional house in a very traditional neighborhood," Jeffrey says. "It stayed traditional, but it has a contemporary flair."

The living room started with an Azeri rug from Turkey that they found at Alex Cooper. Big and bold, with reds, pinks, and blues, they balance it by keeping the rest of the room neutral.

Read the original here:
SUN MAGAZINE COMING SUNDAY When architects build a marriage — and design a home

Architects live and breathe design, blissfully losing themselves in details most people would never notice — the bevel of a trim, the way light falls across a room, squared legs or curved.

So what happens, we wondered, when two such aesthetes come together under one roof?

Do they lie awake at night, pondering three-inch moldings or four? Is there a prenup for the Eames chairs? Do they fight tooth and nailhead?

Judging from the example set by these married Baltimore architects who live and work together, it all comes together much more smoothly than any of that.

These couples each share a style philosophy. Considering how essential such matters are to architects, one can imagine them writing it right into their vows … for richer, for poorer, for mid-century modern …

Their homes are not just harmonious; they speak to the principles their inhabitants live by.

One of the couples, Laura and Jeffrey Penza, have a piece hanging in their entryway, a poem written in calligraphy and framed, that gets to that very point.

"If two should architect one house, what would happen when the two should join? And one imagines wires and mortar and pipes that never somehow quite do meet. But when it comes to building a dream and a life of two in one, ah, then indeed the two must architect together and build their home of love."

Laura Thul Penza and Jeffrey Penza

Penza Bailey Architects

They met, as so many architects seem to, studying their field. Laura Penza can pinpoint her first brush with Jeffrey nearly down to the minute. It happened during their fourth year at the University of Cincinnati, the first day of spring quarter, to be precise.

"The eyes locked," she says, as he nods in agreement. "It was one of those."

They married in 1983, not long after graduation, and migrated to Baltimore. They weren't working together right away, but when Jeffrey began took charge of a firm, it wasn't too long before Laura was at his side.

In the office, they complement one another but have their own roles. But at home, it seems to be a tandem project.

The couple looked at nearly 200 houses before deciding on a 1930s deceptively large stone cottage on a corner lot in Homeland. They had wanted a fixer-upper, something they could gut and revive, where they could put into practice everything they had learned in school. They got a near-faultless house but spent years making it their own anyway.

They like to say they touched every side of it, adding a bay window to the front, a breakfast nook on one side, a family room for the back.

But it's in other, smaller, touches that one really gets a feel for the Penzas — in the vibrant, creative accessories.

"It's a very traditional house in a very traditional neighborhood," Jeffrey says. "It stayed traditional, but it has a contemporary flair."

The living room started with an Azeri rug from Turkey that they found at Alex Cooper. Big and bold, with reds, pinks, and blues, they balance it by keeping the rest of the room neutral.

See the original post:
SUN MAGAZINE When architects build a marriage — and design a home

Architects live and breathe design, blissfully losing themselves in details most people would never notice — the bevel of a trim, the way light falls across a room, squared legs or curved.

So what happens, we wondered, when two such aesthetes come together under one roof?

Do they lie awake at night, pondering three-inch moldings or four? Is there a prenup for the Eames chairs? Do they fight tooth and nailhead?

Judging from the example set by these married Baltimore architects who live and work together, it all comes together much more smoothly than any of that.

These couples each share a style philosophy. Considering how essential such matters are to architects, one can imagine them writing it right into their vows … for richer, for poorer, for mid-century modern …

Their homes are not just harmonious; they speak to the principles their inhabitants live by.

One of the couples, Laura and Jeffrey Penza, have a piece hanging in their entryway, a poem written in calligraphy and framed, that gets to that very point.

"If two should architect one house, what would happen when the two should join? And one imagines wires and mortar and pipes that never somehow quite do meet. But when it comes to building a dream and a life of two in one, ah, then indeed the two must architect together and build their home of love."

Laura Thul Penza and Jeffrey Penza

Penza Bailey Architects

They met, as so many architects seem to, studying their field. Laura Penza can pinpoint her first brush with Jeffrey nearly down to the minute. It happened during their fourth year at the University of Cincinnati, the first day of spring quarter, to be precise.

"The eyes locked," she says, as he nods in agreement. "It was one of those."

They married in 1983, not long after graduation, and migrated to Baltimore. They weren't working together right away, but when Jeffrey began took charge of a firm, it wasn't too long before Laura was at his side.

In the office, they complement one another but have their own roles. But at home, it seems to be a tandem project.

The couple looked at nearly 200 houses before deciding on a 1930s deceptively large stone cottage on a corner lot in Homeland. They had wanted a fixer-upper, something they could gut and revive, where they could put into practice everything they had learned in school. They got a near-faultless house but spent years making it their own anyway.

They like to say they touched every side of it, adding a bay window to the front, a breakfast nook on one side, a family room for the back.

But it's in other, smaller, touches that one really gets a feel for the Penzas — in the vibrant, creative accessories.

"It's a very traditional house in a very traditional neighborhood," Jeffrey says. "It stayed traditional, but it has a contemporary flair."

The living room started with an Azeri rug from Turkey that they found at Alex Cooper. Big and bold, with reds, pinks, and blues, they balance it by keeping the rest of the room neutral.

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From Sun Magazine: When architects build a marriage — and design a home