THE ULTIMATE SHOPPING CENTRE

It has been crowned the “Shopping Centre of the Year” and has been visited by 13 million people in only 15 months – the Sun Plaza in Bucharest is truly the ultimate event mall. WE-EF lighting ensures a pleasant atmosphere for walks through the outside facilities and provides an eye-catching view of the carefully thought-out entrances to the mall, even when seen from a distance.

Investor Austrian Sparkassen Immobilien AG, together with French-Romanian project developer EMCT, has created a new type of shopping centre with an area of more than 200,000 m2 in the south of Bucharest. Enthusiastic consumers visit the centre not only for the attractive mix of international brands and local retailers, but also the offering of entertainment and recreational services. With an event arena, playground and sports field, cafés, restaurants and a cinema centre, the Sun Plaza offers the virtual equivalent of a city district. Office space, medical facilities and a kindergarten are also available, and the centre even has its own metro station. The international architecture firm Chapman & Taylor designed a modern building structure to accommodate this diversity of use. It is incorporated into a diversified landscape design that includes green space and fountains.

Stairs, paths and ramps create urban connections between the different building sections. Once it gets dark, recessed wall luminaires from WE-EF underline the structure and add interesting accents. The STI274-DL-24 recessed wall luminaires were integrated into the risers of the stairs as well as in the metro station and the retaining walls for the ramps. With their asymmetric ‘forward throw’ glare-free light, they create a flow-like rhythm for the paths and guarantee sure-footedness.

The two main entrances to the mall receive special lighting attention with the use of WE-EF ETC130 inground uplights, FLC240 floodlights and RAIL66 rail systems with FLB141 floodlights. They illuminate the prominent lines of the roofs over the north and south portals without creating shadows, while at the same time illuminating the roof supports and floor in the entrance area. Seen from afar, this light solution points the way for visitors to the shopping centre.

WE-EF FLC240 and FLC230 floodlights with different wattages and distributions also set the stage for other architectural elements of the shopping mall, such as a pergola on the large summer terrace and a high pylon in the open area.

Architects: Chapman & Taylor, Bucharest, Romania
Light planning: SCOTT Beleuchtung GmbH, Berlin, Erkan Çakmak, Doreen Stephan