Plexineon makes a vital common space more modern and welcoming
International Finance Corporation (IFC) is the largest global development institution in the world. A member of the World Bank Group, IFC's stated mission is to create jobs, raise living standards, and build a better future for millions of people by offering investment, advisory and asset management services to encourage private sector development in more than 100 developing countries.
Looking toward its own future, IFC recently renovated the interior of its 1,100,000-square-foot headquarters in Washington, D.C. Nearly 2,000 staff members work in the triangular-shaped building that is located just blocks from the White House. Among the areas upgraded was the 18,000-square-foot cafeteria, which encompasses a kitchen, as well as a serving and dining area.
Modernizing the space included installing iLight Plexineon White 1X 3500K fixtures as a design element. The LED fixtures accent the vertical lines of structural columns that are located in the middle of what is now a more welcoming and contemporary common area.
Rather than ignore the columns, RTKL, the project architect, chose to embrace them. Careful traffic flow planning assures the columns are not a physical hindrance, but a solution was still needed to make them less visually obtrusive.
Working closely with RTKL, architectural lighting design firm MCLA suggested outlining the columns with Plexineon, which the firm had used successfully on prior projects.
"We talked about providing an illuminated reveal, but we decided a luminous line of light would be more interesting," says Frank Feist, Senior Designer at MCLA.
Plexineon not only provided the even line of bright light that the team was envisioning. It also helped that iLight was able to bend the fixtures to follow the four compound curves on each column.
"The Plexineon really does accentuate the hourglass shape," Feist says.
The result is transformative — Plexineon adds lightness to the heavy columns, accenting their sculptural nature.
Once installed, the design team was delighted that the fixtures provide a glow that's more contemporary than nostalgic.
Feist says, "Rather than look like neon, the Plexineon has a modern feel that's perfect for what we were trying to achieve."
