Lighting FIXTURES | CONTROLS | MOTORIZED SHADES Lighting Designers & Builders Must Get Along Instead of butting heads, a collaborative design process will yield better communication and better results. By David Warfel CUSTOM RESIDENTIAL lighting design - the way it is normally done - can be the enemy of a builder's desire to complete the project on time and on budget. Great lighting requires more planning (adding cost and time), better fixtures (adding cost and time), more of those fixtures (adding cost and time), and more complicated installs (adding cost and time). But what about the rest of the homes? Do lighting designers just sit around and blame builders for fighting against our efforts? Or do we consider the builder's needs and redevelop our services to suit? Builders make choices with lighting that will decidedly impact the design outcomes. Here are four examples: Put a Roof Over Their Heads... or Help Your Clients Live Better Lives. My first job out of college was essentially as a general contractor building homes, but I moved into lighting long before I became a good builder. Now our team works with builders across the country and across a wide spectrum of capabilities, but every one of them can build a house better than any lighting designer I know. That does not seem to stop me and other lighting designers from telling builders how to do their job - which is not exactly a collaborative or Thoughtful planning and collaboration between lighting designers and builders can lead to homes that not only stand out but also enhance clients' lives. 20 | CE Pro July 2024 cepro.com PIAI/STOCK.ADOBE.COMhttp://www.cepro.com