Oree’s involvement in project highlights importance of advanced technologies in commercial building retrofits

Oree announced its participation and contribution of planar lighting technology – the Oree LightCell™ – to the Fraunhofer Center for Sustainable Energy Systems (CSE) Building Technology Showcase, a first-of-its-kind research and demonstration building for sustainable technologies in the City of Boston’s Innovation District. Oree is one of 35+ partners contributing a combined total of $2.7 million in advanced building energy technologies and services for the new “living laboratory.”
 
“This project is a natural fit for Oree and our LightCell technology, which was designed to enable smarter, more efficient lighting design,” said Eran Fine, Oree’s Founder and Co-CEO. “We are proud to have our planar illumination products incorporated into this new building, and to be part of the solution for a ‘greener’ future.”
 
The Oree LightCell is a LED planar lighting device that reduces materials, weight, and volume of fixtures, which in turn reduces carbon footprint. This unique technology is the thinnest, most efficient and cost-effective planar lighting solution to date. The LightCell has a modular design, which enables design flexibility and makes it the ideal product for any widespread light source.
 
Fraunhofer CSE is performing a deep energy retrofit and renovation of the historic, 100-year-old building at 5 Channel Center in Boston to transform it into a research and demonstration facility for advanced building energy technologies. CSE researchers will evaluate the reliability and effectiveness of the technologies incorporated into the building, helping technology developers prove out their products with building-integrated and other applied research, and showcasing these technologies in a state-of-the-art exhibition and educational space open to the public. The building will be Fraunhofer CSE’s new headquarters, housing its advanced research labs and staff.
 
As part of its vision for making the building a center of learning that promotes clean energy workforce development, Fraunhofer CSE also announced its commitment to partnering with numerous Massachusetts and regional institutions and businesses on workforce development initiatives once the new building is completed. Working with these partners and others, CSE will bring in student groups and workers entering the clean energy sector for technology demonstrations and training, seminars, and other events.
 
“In addition to making the Building Technology Showcase the premier research and demonstration laboratory for clean energy technologies, we are committed to making the building a venue where everyone—from seasoned architects and construction executives to students still deciding their future career paths—can visualize the performance and potential of the technologies incorporated into the building,” said Nolan Browne, Managing Director of Fraunhofer CSE. “Our goal is to present the information in innovative ways that engage visitors and create demand for these energy-saving systems and sustainable products in the market.”
 
Fraunhofer CSE invites building energy product and system manufacturers and integrators to join those on the list of current industry partners. Please contact the Center with ideas for additional technologies to incorporate into the Building Technology Showcase.