The development by Hallmark's trade associations of sophisticated computer modelling and building performance is now enabling the company to demonstrate the effects of efficient shading more simply. On a typical building model it shows that effective solar shading can recover the cost of installing the blinds in just over two years, compared to the running costs of an air-conditioned building without shading.

The savings are substantial and that doesn't allow for the saving on the capital expenditure for the air-conditioning plant in the first place.
As energy costs continue to rise the contribution that effective shading can make to reducing them is far more than could be imagined.