An observation on daylight inclusion in the lighting of offices in Dhaka

This paper reports the findings of a study of existing office buildings in Dhaka City aimed at an understanding of their luminous environments. It was found that artificial light is the main contributor to the visual environment, even though there is an abundance of daylight during office working hours. Daylight should be encouraged in office spaces because, not only would it save on lighting energy, but it would also carry immense physiological and psychological benefits. This paper highlights the findings of the study and compares them with internationally accepted lighting standards for office activities. Measurements of illumination levels were taken in the surveyed offices and found to be much lower than international standards. Space usage by users seemed to indicate their unawareness of light issues. Design strategies to improve the luminous environment under daylight, artificial lighting and supplementary lighting have been discussed explaining design strategies to achieve standards, followed by a discussion of the extent these practices are followed in the surveyed offices of Dhaka.