Professors have been struggling with the lights in ten rooms on the south side Houston Hall’s second floor, which often wouldn’t turn on when they press the button.
“Back when Houston Hall was remodeled, and that was completed back in 2011, part of that remodel included a new lighting control system, and that lighting control system appears to be failing,” Director of Media Relations Dana Nunn said.
Unfortunately, the system, which may have once been easier to repair, has been discontinued since 2011.
Rooms 201-210, most of which are classrooms in a hallway at the back of the building, are included in the system malfunction. According to Nunn, Facilities had reached out to the faculty who teach classes in the affected classrooms and asked them what setting they’d prefer the lights to remain until a better solution can be found. At the time, it was hit and miss whether the lights would turn on at any given time.
Based on the responses Facilities received, they rigged the lights in the affected classrooms to stay permanently on Presentation Mode lighting, meaning they’re on at a low level so the projector images can still be seen properly.
“Right now, Facilities is reaching out and looking at both a short-term fix and a long-term fix,” Nunn said. The long-term fix is to replace the whole failing electrical system. A short-term fix, if one can be found, would restore the different lighting levels upstairs for the remainder of the semester.
The system was manufactured by Square D by Schneider Electric, an Australian company, as part of the Clipsal product line.
The actual malfunctions are in six classrooms, but since all the classrooms are connected, those six malfunctioning rooms caused issues with an additional four.
“One of the things that the state requires in state buildings is, as part of the greening effort, if you will, is that you have to, when you’re putting in new buildings or doing significant remodels, you have to have lights in the building that will shut off when there’s nobody in the room,” Nunn said. For this reason, Houston Hall can’t return to “old-school” on-off light switches due to modern regulations on power saving.
Facilities has assured that, though the problems may persist throughout the rest of the semester, the system will be replaced and the lighting system will be working one way or another.
