High fashion meets high-tech

The department store Quartier 206 is presenting its new collection using innovative OSRAM lighting

The Berlin-based deluxe department store Quartier 206 has teamed up with OSRAM AG to infuse its display windows with special lighting, just in time for the autumn season. Located on the Friedrichstrasse, one of the top addresses in Berlin, organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs for short) are being used to create an impressive setting for the sophisticated fashions at the store. The light technology of the future transforms glass panels into luminous surfaces which emit a warm, very soft lighting. This permits the creation of light installations unlike anything seen before. The installation could be visited until mid-November.

The use of the OLEDs at Quartier 206 demonstrates how these lights are being incorporated into ever more different forms and applications. Until now, OLED panels were used primarily by light designers and artists. “The installation at Quartier 206 is a taster of what we will see at many sites in the future,” says Dr. Christoph Gärditz, Manager of the OSRAM project. “OLEDs offer fascinating lighting solutions in a wide variety of different areas like design luminaires, accent lighting or office illumination”. Steffen Schmidt from local project partner LUMES Licht is also enthusiastic: “OLEDs are a new medium with a great deal of potential”.

The fashion label Marni takes center stage in the window display. The autumn/winter collection of this Italian company met with high acclaim within the industry. The typical Marni patterns are reduced to a minimum and the expressive colors are broken down. The collection features delicate dots and subtle patterns, dark wools and breath-taking leather. Christian Mau, the Creative Director of the Quartier 206 department store, is convinced: “OLEDs are ideal for our display window design. The light sources emit very little heat and are therefore much less harsh on the products. Delicate products such as perfumes can also be showcased in the window without any damage occurring”.

In technical terms, the OLEDs are based on semiconductors, like their sister technology LEDs. These semiconductors convert power into light. Semiconductor layers are applied to a base material – in this case, glass. These layers are only as thick as a hundredth of a human hair overall. When switched off, the panels look like simple white surfaces or mirrors but when switched on, they become luminous devices.

OSRAM AG (Munich, Germany) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Siemens AG and one of the two leading light manufacturers in the world. In financial 2010 (ended September 30), it achieved revenue of 4.7 billion Euros. OSRAM is a high-tech company in the lighting sector and 70 percent of its revenue comes from energy efficient products. The company, which is very much internationally oriented, has around 40,000 employees worldwide, supplying customers in 150 countries from its 42 production sites in 16 countries (September 30, 2010). Additional information can be found in the internet at www.osram.com.

Press contact:

OSRAM

Nadine Kleinert
Tel: +49-89-6213-3769
Fax: +49-89-6213-3457
Email: n.kleinert@osram.com