During her electrical engineering placement with Webb Yates, chemical engineering student Iqra was introduced to lighting design through project work. Here, she reflects on how using DIALux helped her move beyond placing fittings on a drawing, and begin to understand how engineers test, refine, and evidence design decisions.
Author
Iqra Abbas
I didn’t know before that lighting design is more than just placing lights.
Before starting my internship at Webb Yates, I had some awareness of DIALux, but I had never used it in this much detail or as part of a real project. I initially thought lighting design was mainly about taking the lights shown on an architectural drawing and placing them in a model. Working on a real project quickly showed me there was much more to it.
From drawings to a lighting model
One of the projects I worked on involved developing the lighting for several rooms within a commercial building. I started by using the architectural drawings as the basis for my DIALux model.
I then recreated the spaces in DIALux, which allowed me to see the proposed lighting in 3D. As I worked through the different rooms, I began to understand that each space has its own lighting requirements.
Lux and illuminance helped me understand the amount of light reaching a surface, while uniformity showed how evenly it was distributed. This was challenging at first, as the required levels varied depending on the type and use of each room. Through this process, I also learnt how these results are used to assess designs against relevant UK standards and guidance, including BS EN 12464-1, BS EN 12464-2, BS 5266, and guidance from the SLL and CIBSE.
This was when I started to understand that lighting design is not simply about placing fittings. The design needs to achieve the right lighting levels and distribute light appropriately across the space.
Learning from the results
DIALux allowed me to test the design and see how changes affected the results.
The green and yellow areas on the image to the left show the distribution of light across the floor, while the results on the right show the calculated values against the required levels.
One of my early mistakes was setting the calculation surface at the wrong height, which gave me a much higher lux level than expected. Correcting it taught me how important it is to understand what you’re measuring and where.
I learnt that you don’t just copy the number of fittings shown on an architectural drawing. The design needs to be tested and adjusted to suit the space and I had to experiment with the number and position of lights to achieve the required lux levels and uniformity.
With support from the team, I also learnt how to interpret the results and adjust the design to work towards the required criteria for both normal and emergency lighting. Being able to make changes and see the results for myself was one of the most rewarding parts of the experience.
DIALux calculation showing illuminance and uniformity across a room.
A simple staircase
As I became more comfortable with DIALux, I started adding architectural elements to the models. I found this particularly interesting because the model can go beyond just walls and light fittings. Furniture, equipment, and other details can also be added, making it possible to visualise how the lighting might work within a more realistic space.
One of the clearest examples of what I learnt was a staircase. The architect’s drawing showed four light fittings. After modelling and testing the design in DIALux, I found that three fittings could achieve the required lux level and uniformity.
What I will take forward
Before my internship, I would have looked at a lighting drawing and asked, ‘Where are the lights?’ Now, I am more likely to ask, ‘What are the lights achieving?’
Coming from a chemical engineering degree, lighting design was completely new to me. Learning DIALux, working with real project information, and getting support from the Webb Yates building services team gave me the opportunity to learn something outside my degree and see how it is applied in practice.
For me, that is what made the experience valuable: being given something unfamiliar, learning by doing, and seeing my work contribute to a real design.
Architectural drawing showing the original arrangement (left) and DIALux models showing the tested arrangements (right).
Related News
Joining our recently launched Spanish entity, Usoa shares her thoughts on Webb Yates, opportunities in Spain, and the future of timber and low-carbon construction.
The recognition highlights a leading example of large-scale structural steel reuse and low-carbon retrofit in a central London workplace.
Designed for use in disaster relief settings, the first structures were recently exhibited in London and are now making their way to Aysaita camp in Ethiopia.
The recognition acknowledges the exemplar transformation of the historic Rhodes Trust HQ in the heart of Oxford, led by Stanton Williams.