3M Daylight Redirecting Window Film


Providing Natural Light for Commercial Spaces


Americans spend 90% of their lives indoors, and as such, we crave natural light. It has been proven to improve sleep patterns, productivity, patient recovery times, student test scores, alertness, mood, memory, and health. Natural light is free and available when we need it most – 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM, which is the typical work day. So why not use it to supplement or replace artificial light to positively affect our wallets and environment? With 3M Daylight Redirecting Film (DRF), you can.

Save Energy with Daylight Redirecting Film


Buildings consume 39% of energy in the United States. Lighting accounts for 28% of all energy used in commercial buildings, the highest of any other component including cooling, heating, and equipment. To reduce our carbon footprint and utility bills, we should use free and readily available daylight, something which we crave, to enhance the artificial light that we pay for.

3M DRF redirects the sun’s light from the floor to the ceiling as it hits the window. With that natural light on the ceiling, glare is reduced and so is the need for artificial light. 3M’s DRF redirects 80% of the sun’s natural light to the ceiling up to 40 feet into the room, resulting in electrical savings of up to 1.5 kwh / sq ft of floor area

3m daylight redirecting video

Comparing Daylight Redirection Solutions


There are other daylighting solutions besides films such as clerestory glass, light shelves, and light redirecting blinds. While appropriate for some applications, they tend to be more complicated and require more maintenance than DRF. Here is a side-by-side comparison:

Clerestory Glass Light Shelves Light Directing Blinds 3M Daylight Redirecting Film
Blocks light and sprinkler systems N/A N/A N/A
Costly N/A N/A
Occupies interior space N/A N/A N/A
Requires periodic clearing to be effective N/A N/A
Low angle bypass that causes glare N/A N/A N/A
Most sunlight still directed to floor N/A N/A N/A

Blocks light and sprinkler systems

  • Clerestory Glass
  • N/A
  • Light Shelves
  • Light Directing Blinds
  • N/A
  • 3M Daylight Redirecting Film
  • N/A

Costly

  • Clerestory Glass
  • N/A
  • Light Shelves
  • Light Directing Blinds
  • 3M Daylight Redirecting Film
  • N/A

Occupies interior space

  • Clerestory Glass
  • N/A
  • Light Shelves
  • Light Directing Blinds
  • N/A
  • 3M Daylight Redirecting Film
  • N/A

Requires periodic clearing to be effective

  • Clerestory Glass
  • N/A
  • Light Shelves
  • Light Directing Blinds
  • 3M Daylight Redirecting Film
  • N/A

Low angle bypass that causes glare

  • Clerestory Glass
  • N/A
  • Light Shelves
  • Light Directing Blinds
  • N/A
  • 3M Daylight Redirecting Film
  • N/A

Most sunlight still directed to floor

  • Clerestory Glass
  • Light Shelves
  • N/A
  • Light Directing Blinds
  • N/A
  • 3M Daylight Redirecting Film
  • N/A