Gensler Announces Breakthrough “Green” Lighting Technique

EFO™ Fiber Optic Lighting Provides Energy Savings For Commercial, Retail, and Government Applications Gensler, Architecture, Design & Planning Worldwide and Fiberstars Inc. (NASDAQ:FBST) cooperatively launch the EFO™ Fiber Optic Lighting System, an application of a revolutionary fiber optic lighting technology that enables greatly reduced energy consumption. Gensler, an active proponent and designer of sustainable building and design solutions, formed a strategic partnership with Fiberstars as design consultant to advance the technology as a practical application for commercial use. EFO is designed as a direct replacement for recessed ceiling downlights, track and display case lighting. It is particularly applicable in retail settings, commercial buildings, museums, pools/spas, as well as for government and military uses.

“Gensler has long been at the forefront of the movement for green design, and it is our goal to embrace and foster technological developments that can help our clients be more environmentally responsible,” says Arthur Gensler, Gensler’s chairman. “The Fiberstars EFO technology presents a remarkable opportunity to increase energy efficiencies for companies and help retailers meet new energy regulations. As designers, we felt our knowledge of end-user needs, and our ability to translate them into functional applications, could help businesses adopt this green lighting solution.”

The EFO™ technology marks the first significant breakthrough in commercial lighting since compact fluorescent lamps and MR-16 halogen lamps became commonplace over the past 25 years. Fiberstars EFO yields as much as 80 percent greater energy savings over halogen or other incandescent light sources in downlighting applications. One 68W EFO is capable of replacing eight 50W halogen lamps totaling 400W.

Additionally, EFO emits no heat or UV, making it an optimal solution for limiting food spoilage in supermarkets and protecting sensitive documents and artifacts. EFO provides more efficient light than compact fluorescent lamps for commercial building accent lighting.

“The technology of Fiberstars EFO—which delivers superior lighting at a very low cost—is definitely revolutionary,” says Jeffrey Brite, director of product design for Gensler. “Additionally, EFO enables a powerfully progressive fiber optic technology to be easily implemented, customized, and adjusted for a variety of commercial settings.”

Fiberstars EFO combines several patented innovations in lamp design optics, power supply, fiber, and fixtures. The large-core EFO OptiCore fiber is the result of 11 years of research and development and is the only continuously extruded large-core fiber in the world. This ensures excellent quality at a low per-foot cost. The result is a high-performance, energy-efficient light source that also allows individual, directional, highly luminescent, small-scale downlights in a price-competitive market.

Fiberstars’ in-house product engineering and development team is lead by John Davenport who comes to the company with 26 years experience with GE Lighting. Fiberstars has been awarded more than $11 million from the U.S. Government in DARPA contracts, based on the EFO technology. The DARPA program seeks to develop the highest efficiency interior light system in use. Near-future generations of EFO will be capable of delivering the same light, using less energy, than existing fluorescent systems in ships and in other military applications.