What is it?

Overshadow Management, or Shadow Management, is a term used for a solution that is applied to a Shading Management System to ensure that areas of a facade that are over shadowed [not effected by sun] keep the blinds open.

Why

The objective is to maximise natural light within the building and reduce the dependence on artificial lighting, this reduces energy use, maintains the view and along with it a host of other benefits including improved well-being and increased productivity.

The Technical Background

The source of the ‘problem’ is a typical Shading Management System employs sun sensors on the roof of a building. Therefore, a sensor [on the building’s roof] reports sun whilst sections of the building below are overcast from adjacent buildings – the Shading Management System, without Overshadow Management, would close all blinds across that facade and not account for overshadowed areas that are not in sun.

How

Over-Shadow Management is typically applied using one of 3 methods:

• Additional sun sensors across the facade at different levels of the building
• Basic logic modules applying azimuth and distance calculations in combination with real-time roof sensor values
• 3D modelled analysis and database creation in combination with real-time roof sensor values

Support

The value analysis for each solution is not straight forward, with potential impact to the installation, hardware, commissioning and maintenance. Each has a place and no single solution is ‘best’.

Budgets can vary greatly and not always proportionate to the quality of the result with small changes and adaptions to specification having major cost implications.

ShadeLogik supports this analysis and can advise the best value solution and how best to apply Overshadow Management as part of a new concept, a project mid-delivery or an existing solution looking to upgrade.