NATIONAL HARBOR, MD — With 2,000 guest rooms and 470,000 square feet of meeting, convention and exhibition space, the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center ranks as the largest combined hotel and convention center on the Eastern Seaboard, and LEDs are setting its exterior architectural features aglow.
Candela Controls Inc, specified and installed a total of 355 PixelArc R architectural LED luminaires at the resort. The four external corners and two towers of the building are lit with light boxes equipped with 200 of the units. The remaining 155 units are installed inside architectural façade light boxes located above the doorways on the inside of each of the four ballrooms.
The light boxes were a major installation challenge, according to Candela Controls’ Bill Ellis. “We had to take into consideration the whole design of the feature rooms, how the fixtures would perform in the constraints of the environment and the reaction of the frosted glass covering the rooms. In addition, we had to provide a tremendous amount of coordination with other trades as to what the end effect would be.”
“After many tests, we recommended PixelArc Rs to achieve the desired effect,” Ellis said. “The boxes were constructed to hide the fixtures, provide enough space to allow the spread of the color and the walls painted white, so the light could bounce around the room.”
The largest exterior light box measures 20 feet wide, 30 feet deep and 12 feet high, and houses 52 PixelArcs Rs on the floor, uplighting the three frosted glass walls. Each light box is controlled via a custom-built control system specified and installed by Candela Controls. There are 13 pre-programmed strings for the external boxes, including scenes that represent the colors of the seasons and specific holidays. The most recent was a red, white and blue theme to mark the Presidential inauguration.
The interior light boxes are 7 feet by 7 feet and are featured above the doors on the inside of the ballrooms. Each box is covered in an ornamental façade and can provide custom colors bespoke to the function being hosted in the ball room. All are individually controllable via touch pad screens and can be programmed to suit client requirements.
Gaylord National was designed to play a key role in the National Harbor development project, a 300-acre waterfront destination offering dining, shopping and entertainment.
PixelArcs are UL-appoved and IP65-rated LED luminaires. They are available as self contained units with circular (PixelArc C) or rectangular (PixelArc R) heads.
For more information, please visit www.pixelrange.com.
