Bright Strokes of Light In a Modern Office In Old Montreal

When Medina Food Assurance Services were ready to expand their headquarters in Old Montreal, they decided to move from their small 9^th floor office to the sprawling vacant 2^nd floor in the same building.   The new office was a blank canvas with only pigtails pulled for lighting, white walls and ceilings and sanded wood floors.  With the help of Aedifica, Dubo Electric and Foresight Lighting they transformed the space into an inviting open work area that promotes collaboration and the exchange of ideas.

Medina is a leading 3^rd party food quality auditing firm.    While their services are largely performed by field specialists, Medina’s growing business needed a larger space to house their headquarters.  The 2^nd floor of 240 St Jacques Street W in the former financial district of Old Montreal offered the firm the space it needed and an opportunity to design an open bright environment.  “We wanted to build an environment that promoted collaboration and cooperation among our team,” states Lily Knecht, General Operations and Marketing Manager for Medina.

The space was vacant and without any lighting installed when Medina took possession.  It features 3 large windows along one wall.  In order to maximize the natural light throughout the 4400 square feet area, the space was built out with glass partitions.  Medina worked with designers Denis Proia and Gina Laquinta of Aedifica and Elaine Poplemont from Dubo Electric to specify the right lighting to tie together the various functional areas of the offices.

Foresight Lighting’s Cozumel (model CZM) with specular parabolic louvers offered Medina and their designers the sleek, clean look they needed for at a price that was right for Medina’s budget. “Our goal was to create a bright environment without the glare of traditional office lighting.  The Foresight fixture was a good match for our concept,” indicated Ms. Knecht.

The Cozumel is a low profile 2-lamp T5 or T5HO fixture with specular louver.  The overall depth is just over 2-inches, which makes it unobtrusive, while it’s clean lines makes it a great fit in a modern office environment.  

Midori Market Boasts A Bright and Welcoming Convenience Food Store

Solution: "London" Surface Mount Fixture by Foresight Lighting

Midori Market, a one-year old grocery and food service chain, had the ideal site when they decided to expand operations and open a new location in the growing village known as Notre-dame des Champs, west of Navan, Ontario, Canada.  The L-shaped building provided the space Midori needed to house their grocery, convenience and food service operation.  However, the interior needed a make-over and relatively low ceilings, only 9-1/2 ft (2.90m), offered a real challenge.  “My goal was to create an open, bright and welcoming space.  I wanted to flood the store with light and make the ceilings feel higher than they are,” stated Edward Sawaya, founder and co-owner of Midori Market.

3689 Navan Road, Navan, Ontario was built in 1957, originally as a combined commercial and residential property. The L-shaped building consisted of a grocery and restaurant in the front and a residence running towards the back. Sawaya converted both structures to a commercial establishment.    Sawaya purchased the property to open the second Midori Market location and undertook a complete interior renovation before opening in June 2012.  The full 3,800sq ft space was opened up to make room for a convenience style grocery, fresh produce area and fresh cooked take out restaurant.  Midori Market will service the old neighborhood and the surrounding new developments around Navan and Chapel Hill South which are expanding by approximately 1000 new residents every six months. The catchment area for this location is closer to 10,000 residents.

In order to achieve the high light levels without lowering the ceiling, Midori Market required a low profile surface mounted fixture.  T5 high output lamps were a logical choice to pump-up brightness and maintain the slimness needed.  The right fixture was needed to minimize glare.

Sawaya worked with his Ottawa based distributor to identify the best fixture for the job.  “I wanted a slick-looking, modern fixture to compliment the up-beat style of the décor.  When my distributor told me about the Foresight Lighting London Fixture, I checked it out on their website,” indicates Sawaya, “It looked great and I couldn’t believe it was less than 2-1/2 inches deep.”

The London fixture, in a 2x2 configuration, with (4) F24T5 high output lamps, punches out up to 6600 lumens.  At the same time offering great glare control using a deep parabolic louver.  Midori put 57 fixtures into the space to create a beautiful bright environment.  Foresight representative Juergen Wiedermann visited the Navan site several times and worked with Sawaya to achieve the lighting he had in mind.  Wiedermann provided a complete lighting study for Midori that helped them determine the optimal number of fixtures and the placement of the fixtures in the store to achieve excellent merchandising and overall affect.

“In the first week we were open, we had an amazing response and an overwhelming amount of business.  Patrons actually stopped to comment on the lighting, they tell me it complements the space perfectly and they love how bright and open the store feels,” beams Ed Sawaya.

© Copyright Foresight Lighting/Khameleon Communications 2012

Avant-garde Austube linear lighting now available in North America

MONTREAL, Quebec (April 2012) — Système d’Éclairage Linéare (Linear Lighting Systems), a division of Foresight Lighting, is pleased to announce it has formed a strategic alliance with Austube, www.austube.com.au, to be the North American manufacturer/distributor of its Australian-designed linear aluminum extruded lighting systems.

Austube is known not only for its wide range of intelligent, high-impact and weather resistant lighting systems, but also for its architectural versatility in tying together custom-designed lighting elements for various building projects.
Austube offers an extensive array of extruded aluminum luminaire profiles which incorporate advanced controls and electrical components to create lighting solutions for any project.

Its impressive engineering and manufacturing capacity ensures the right product for every application. Austube is a subsidiary of the Gerard Lighting Group, the largest lighting manufacturer and distributor in the combined Australian and New Zealand markets.

Foresight's Linear Lighting Systems division is dedicated to collaborating closely with Austube technology and expert engineers with the purpose of offering exceptional tools to North American engineers, architects and specifiers to produce the most suitable solutions for their lighting requirements.

Austube is continually developing exciting new products in response to technology advances, as they become available.

For information regarding these new products, please visit the web, www.foresightlighting.com.

For help on how we can assist you with a specific project, please contact Foresight’s head office,
(866) 595-7177 / (514) 595-7177 or
by e-mail at info@foresightlighting.com.

Adam Davis -Making You Feel Like You Are His Only Customer

In a place just off the Trans Canada Hwy in St-Laurent, Qc, a few miles from downtown Montreal, lighting is about more than input voltage and photometrics.

Every morning Foresight Lighting’s Inside Service Representative, Adam Davis, starts his day by making breakfast for his two toddlers.  His next priority of the day is to make sure his co-workers have started their day on the right foot, so he checks in with the guys in the back of Foresight’s assembly and distribution facility. Adam believes in team spirit and practises it daily.  Before landing at Foresight he worked in his family clothing business; he still acts like he works with family.

Adam didn’t know a thing about lighting when he was hired to assemble fixtures at a much smaller Foresight five and a half years ago.  He credits the patience and “team” attitude of Foresight’s father and son team, Murray and Jonathan Saxe, for teaching him the business and helping him to be successful. “An order had to get out that day and so on my first day I learned how to wire and test a ballast in a light fixture,” remembers Adam. “I didn’t even know what a ballast was before that.” Even today he’s still learning the business from the wealth of experienced lighting folks that make up the Foresight team.

Adam has a lot more insight into the business now and recognises that meeting customer’s expectations for price and delivery are at the heart of it.  For his part, Adam also believes that respect and creating a relationship with his customers are important.  He’ll know your favourite team and ask you how your kids or parents are doing.  That’s who Adam Davis is.

Adam says he hopes each day brings more orders than Foresight knows what to do with and he digs into orders and quotes because he says, “Getting a quote out to a customer quickly brings in the orders and shows the customer we’re conscientious.”

“Because of folks like Adam and his customer service attitude, the statement “We make you feel like you’re our only customer” isn’t just a tag line,” says Jonathan Saxe.

York Heritage Shows Off Historical Beauty With Amsterdam and Hong Kong

York Heritage Properties acquires, renovates, retrofits and manages architecturally interesting older buildings in Toronto to provide a dignified, sophisticated alternative to costly, conventional office space.  When Michael Cruickshank, Robert Eisenberg and their team take on a new building or a restoration/remodel of one of their existing properties, they use good sense, an eye towards aesthetics and their highly tuned intuition to make choices in materials.  The lighting is a key component of any space and they carefully choose the type of fixture based on the look, the cost and the efficiency.  York Heritage discovered Foresight Lighting in 2010 and has been putting Foresight architectural fixtures like the stylish Amsterdam in their buildings throughout Toronto ever since. “Foresight has been great to work with.  When I call, I get immediate attention from Adam in inside sales, and Juergen and the rest of team provide me with everything I need to make lighting decisions and get the job started.  I can quickly take the numbers to leasing which keeps our business moving,” praises Marc McKenzie, Senior Property Manager for York Heritage.

161 Liberty is one of York Heritage’s recent acquisitions in Liberty Village, Toronto’s most wired community. It’s a three storey, brick and beam structure with towering operable windows and high ceilings. When YHP decided to turn the lower level into a prime office opportunity, they were faced with a complete remodel and restoration.  The space offered great natural daylight so their lighting solution was designed around the optimal use of that natural light. 

There was no existing lighting to speak of so the lighting layout was wide open.  “The space has great wood beams in the ceiling, and features like that are always a focal point for the York Heritage group,” states Marc McKenzie, Senior Property Manager at YHP. “So we knew we wanted a lighting solution that provided an up-light component to highlight the beauty of the wood, while providing an urban/industrial look that is consistent with the style of the building and the area.”

York Heritage had installed the ForesightLighting Hong Kong fixture in a space on one of the upper floors.  The lighting layout and fixture were well received by tenants and offered a cost efficient solution for the restored lower level space.

10 Alcorn is a stylish building in a safe, residential environment. Located near the Summerhill Subway Station in Toronto Midtown, the property offers lots of space and an open atmosphere.  When nearly 20,000 square feet were vacated, York Heritage property and leasing teams had some decisions to make.  “The vacated space was very institutional with drop ceilings and bland open spaces where cube-farms once stood,” commented McKenzie.  The YHP team decided to divide the space.  They preferred dry-wall ceiling over the drop ceiling but found they had to maintain the drop grid to accommodate wiring and networking for the new tenants.  In a 7000 sq ft space, they were able to get rid of the grid 15-ft in from walls and windows around the perimeter of the space.  This added 3-ft to the ceiling height. 

The goal with their lighting selection was to create a modern look, and to have bright cool light shining up to reflect off the newly white drywall ceiling.  The Foresight Lighting Amsterdam fit the bill.  The Amsterdam offered contemporary styling with the up-light component.  As a T5 fixture, the Amsterdam is also an energy efficient solution that allowed York Heritage’s energy rebate specialist to apply for utility rebates on the project.

Overall the Amsterdam was used in over 15,000 square feet of the remodeled space with an average per square foot cost of $2.25.

3 Church Street is a carefully restored building, constructed in heavy timber at the turn-of-the-last-century featuring the warmth of wood columns and beams, with brick feature walls, operable windows and high ceilings in a lively environment.  The building has not seen much turnover in recent years, so when the top floor tenant vacated 3000 sq ft after 35 years, a complete overhaul was required.  The new tenant, a high-end clothing importer, had their own decorating concepts that reflected a modern flair and high-end styling.  For this space, York Heritage again chose the Amsterdam to compliment the proposed new décor.   The up-light of the Amsterdam highlights the high ceilings and the glare-free down-lighting is in perfect harmony with the new glass entryway and other elements added by the tenant.

“We have the choice of any major brand on the market, but when you find a fixture that works great, is economical and the supplier provides great customer service, you stick with it,” states Marc McKenzie.

NEW FIXTURE HIGHLIGHT- Berlin (BER)

Got Zeitgeist? The New Berlin Fixture for the Modern Age

When you’re looking for clean lines, and a strong bold look, check out the Berlin.   The Berlin (BER) is a truly versatile fixture, providing Direct and Indirect illumination, suspended T5/T5HO fluorescent lighting.  The photometrics of the Berlin are really impressive.  Maximum direct foot candles, without glare, and an up-light component that opens up the room alleviating the cave effect often associated with other direct suspended fixtures.

Designed to accommodate 2 efficient or high output T5 lamps, the Berlin’s direct illumination features Parabolic Aluminum Louvers with a specular high reflectivity finish. The louver is installed in the fixture by spring tension, allowing easy access.  Lamp replacement is tool-free making maintenance easy and less costly.  The indirect light is provided by a smooth opal acrylic lens which lies in groves of the extrusion and acts as a dust cover.

The bold look of the Berlin is available in 2 dimension styles; 9.5” wide for 1-lamp application and 12.75” wide for 2-lamps application. The housing is extruded minimum 1.5mm thickness aluminum profile with natural aluminum appearance.  The ends are constructed of steel, electrostatic powder coated to match the housing finish.  You find beauty and durable quality in a sleek package.

Foresight believes you shouldn’t have to waste time sourcing mounting hardware and cable components.  These units are shipped complete with canopy kits including 4’ aircraft cables and clear metal braid electrical cord (50”) for turn-key installation.

When you “look under the hood” you’ll find the highest quality UL approved/recognized electrical components.  The electronic programmed rapid start ballast provides long life to the lamps.  Available Universal voltage (120-277V) and 347 voltage input options means this fixture is the perfect solution for any commercial application.  If you need dimming, you can order the Berlin with a dimming ballast. 

Modern and functional are key principles of the Foresight Berlin Fixture.   Check out the fixture specification sheet and photometric files for your next commercial project.

PERSONNEL PROFILE- Owner Murray Saxe

(an article written by Pamela Stowers)

Murray Saxe, owner and founder of, Foresight Lighting, has an eye for opportunity and a drive for success that has lead him to grow, Foresight Lighting, into a focused and thriving lighting fixture company.  Murray graduated Sir George William University with a Commerce degree and spent his early career as an accountant.  It wasn’t long before Murray was looking for other avenues to advance his career and earn a living to support his growing family.  He credits a family member, an electrician, for giving him the idea of  lighting products as a business.  Starting with commodity, fluorescent lamps, his  business grew into a full electrical and lighting wholesale distributorship.

The real turning point for Murray happened in 2003 when he identified a niche opportunity providing T5 fixtures to the local display market and opened Foresight Lighting.  Murray realized that he could offer an attractive solution to the furniture and display makers by providing a local source for T5 lighting fixtures, whereas they had been importing these from the West Coast of the US or overseas.  Foresight’s first location was opened in Ville Lasalle, a suburb of Montreal   Canada, with a small office area and a few pallet located in a metal fabricators warehouse.  Utilizing the metal bending source and assembling onsite, Foresight started to build a solid reputation for quality products and on time delivery.  The company added an imported under cabinet system called “T5 Interlink” to his offering.

Murray credits his wife Janet for naming the company, Foresight Lighting, and says “We were looking ahead and hoping for a bright future for the business and our family; The name fit.” 

Murray expanded the product offering by adding architectural and decorative linear fluorescent fixtures, T5 Highbay fixtures up to 10 lamps, decorative sconces and recessed fixtures.   Just a few short years later Foresight expanded into a larger space in Ville St-Laurent  (2007) with offices for a growing administrative staff and a full warehouse and assembly area.  Foresight has recently moved into an even larger space to accommodate the growing business and expanding product lines.

One of the most important decisions Murray has made for his business was to bring his son Jonathan onboard in2005.   Murray has a real pride in his son’s abilities and says working together has been a real joy.  “He brings fresh ideas and understands the modern business principles in a fast changing industry,” praises Murray, “Jonathan is progressive and methodical;  People recognize his business talent when they work with him.” 

Murray and Jonathan share a key business philosophy: Taking care of the customer is the number one priority.  He claims his customer service focus and the idea of making things right comes from his years as a wholesale distributor.  Murray says, “I encourage the customer to tell me about any problem they have.  The customer shouldn’t have to worry; we’ll always do our best to make it right.”

When asked where Foresight will be in 10 years, he says he hopes that growing gradually, purposefully and never losing sight of the customers’ needs will put Foresight in a position to become an important supplier to the Canadian and North American market.  “I want the company to be needed by our customers and seen as a key supplier and partner,” explains Murray, “And at the core of it, I want Foresight to provide a good living for the people who work for us.”