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The most common form of lighting assessment is an illuminance check to see whether there is enough light on the desktop. It is a fair concern, and it is a very simple assessment that should be encouraged. On the other hand, it is only a small factor in achieving visual comfort, as shown in the number of other issues raised in this report. One of them is uniformity, which is often associated with illuminance.

An IEA research Task on Optimization of Solar Energy Use in Large Buildings established that the most important first step in designing a successful low energy solar building is to establish what metrics might be used to eastablish success. For example, with lighting quality, the client, the energy analyst and the lighting analyst and the architect (who may be one and the same person!) must establish how they are to measure success in the context of the work or activity in the building.