Draper shades have been installed throughout the facilities of the new Heifer International Centre in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Among the features of the international charity’s headquarters are large, energy-efficient plate glass windows for passive solar heat and indirect light, and a curved shape to capture the maximum amount of sunlight.

These and other sustainable construction practices eventually helped the building achieve a Platinum LEED® certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. But when the facility first opened, a glaring problem emerged: Workers couldn’t use their computer stations on the South side of the building due to the sun load coming through those extra-large windows.

Despite all the positives of natural daylighting, glare can be a huge problem. Glare can reduce productivity, cause discomfort, and make it difficult to complete tasks—especially visually-oriented ones.

There are motorized shades located in a conference space and tied into AV equipment, and many of the shades are manually-operated to keep cost at a minimum.