Südwestdeutsche Medienholding (SWMH), a company based in Stuttgart that began life as Stuttgarter Zeitungsverlag [Stuttgart Newspaper Publishers] founded back in 1908, has grown in the course of more than one century of company history from a regional newspaper business into a diversified media corporation. Today, SWMH is one of the most significant media groups in Germany and it offers a broad and diversified network of high-quality published products. As well as newspapers that constitute the core business of the Group, the SWMH portfolio also includes numerous technical journals and promotional publications. In addition, the Group houses printing businesses, postal and logistics companies as well as several companies with activities peripheral to the publishing business. Various radio holdings and a TV production company round off the media offering. At the Stuttgart location, with its core brands 'Stuttgarter Zeitung' and 'Stuttgarter Nachrichten', the various companies within the Group employ approximately 1000 people.



In the newly designed newsroom of the Stuttgarter Zeitung and the Stuttgarter Nachrichten, the architecture of the building requires particularly good lighting to be provided. Therefore a decision was taken in favour of the LAVIGO VTL DPS 480/P, which proved very quick and easy to install. The light colour and brightness of the LED standard luminaires are adapted to suit the prevailing time of day. For this purpose, the light colour and intensity of the light generated indirectly by the luminaire vary between 6,500 Kelvin of light, similar to natural daylight, in the morning to awaken the body and all the senses and warm white light of 3000 Kelvin for a cosy atmosphere in the afternoon or indeed in the evening. This process comes closest to that of natural light and positively influences not only the hormone production but also the bio-rhythm of the staff. Manifestly, everyone benefits from this biodynamic form of lighting.

Architect: Pfeiffer, Ellermann, Preckel, Lüdinghausen (2002)

Lighting solution: Free-Standing Luminaire VTL

Images: © Daniel Vieser, Karlsruhe