Necessary Points

Actually, It is Easy Being Green: Apollo Design Technology

From Live Design Online

We asked readers what they’re doing to be green, whether in design, manufacturing, or just life in general.

Here’s what Monty McWilliams at Apollo Design Technology had to say:

“Apollo has obviously gone green in a big way by switching our gobo production process from chemical etching to clean laser technology. Please click this link to view our video on our going green. We are also transitioning into recycled or recyclable packaging for all our gobo products.” 

And Blair Parkin, managing director at Visual Acuity, notes:

“As lead technology consultant on the planetarium, visualization studio, and other technology heavy areas of the new California Academy of Sciences, the world’s largest green building, we have developed new design approaches. These in turn have driven equipment manufacturers to develop their technology with a much greater focus on sustainability.

At the Academy the entire building was designed to LEED platinum status which was a major innovation. The client team are passionate about climate change and biodiversity given the nature of their institution. As such the design team elected to take the sustainable design criteria further than would have been needed to achieve LEED status. The application of LEED principles beyond scoring the necessary points led to a major shift in traditional technology design practice. This, in turn, led to new design processes being evaluated and a number of new technologies applied in a public space that had not been used before. One example would be the wide use of special LED lights developed by Philips. Another example would be the creation by Visual Acuity of a heat and power ‘budget’ for the AV/media/technology systems which was used for planning and vendor selection. In short, it would be fair to state that this project has entirely changed the way Visual Acuity and all the other members of the design team plan, design and build projects.”

via Actually, It is Easy Being Green: Apollo Design Technology.