New Lighting Newsletter

[meby]

EC&M is launching a new e-newsletter in early April on the topic of Lighting & Control. If you have any suggestions or recommendations for us on what to include in this twice-a-month newsletter I'd really like to hear them.

[rcac101]

I would like to know more about the 2007 energy laws that apply to commercial lighting and how LEDs will be
used to reduce lighting costs. I expect this market to be huge.

[acddc]

The whole culture of lighting procurement in the U.S. stinks like dirty bath water!

[meby]

I would like to know more about the 2007 energy laws that apply to commercial lighting and how LEDs will be
used to reduce lighting costs. I expect this market to be huge.

We'll definitely shed some light (sorry for the pun) on how new rules and regulations will affect future design and installation practices.

[AtticusFinch]

Greetings Acddc,

Your sentiment is similar to another post I came across which I cannot locate now due to my own memory lapse where there exists immeasurable frustration in regards to installing lighting systems in the US marketplace.

The ability to reasonably procure and install an open, interoperable lighting system seems a difficult endeavor for the US marketplace. I know of an individual now in the US from Europe who stated he spent many years in the US trying to advocate a more European way to market. After much frustration and losing much money some years in the US this individual decided it was better to do business in a more closed manner like everyone else in the US. Subsequently he tells me business is much better now he plays the game properly. Some choose not to play games. A very good lighting industry leader (408 million euro), pulled out of the US marketplace some years ago citing difficulty with the US business model climate and structures. It is easier for them to sell products to the rest of the world for many reasons, but it is not without notice that a secondary issue in the US for companies such as this large european company is the overwraught and very political distribution, regulatory and specification environment in the US.

Worldwide there is much natural acceptance for a lighting standard called DALI. DALI is part of the IEC 60929 standard. The communication structure for DALI is a two conductor free topology configuration. DALI allows for a multi-vendor installation for various luminaires, LED, fluorescent, compact flourescent, HID, halogen in addition to sensors and input devices. There is much available products for a DALI installation and I would contend that for scalability and interoperability this is the best current methodology available. This wide product selection is with exception to the US marketplace. In the US marketplace the selection is severely limited for DALI and this is a word more rarely seen in a specification.

I can envision where you surmise from that the US marketplace indeed has this procurement culture of the dirty bathing water. A newsletter may focus on such things; forthwith my conclusion is the advertisers for this site owner would not be appreciative of such candid assessments. There is no sweetness contained in such a message. Perhaps a better venue for your concerns would be the end user community for edification. I wish you well in your endeavor.