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2009-11-17
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Applications,
design and technology news from across the industry
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The
2010 Summit Series is ready to succeed... are you?
After the successful 2008 launch and 2009 continuation of the
Solid State Lighting Design Summit in
New Jersey, the feedback was consistent: Just what we needed, do it again soon.
The Summit brings together lighting decisin makers with industry thought leaders,
pioneers, and innovators from the across the solid state lighting eco-system.
Read the 2009 conference report... Following
or changes in 2009, 2010 will continue to be all about quality, quality, quality.
Showcase participants and sponsors are vetted to separate
the wheat from the chaff (have your IES LM-79 test reports ready!).
With revised dates for LA, the 2010 Summit has expanded to 3 venues, including
LA/Long Beach lined up for January, Mar/April for Taiwan and October for NY/NJ.
Look into the series information at www.SSLsummit.com
for the details. Sponsorships are available for the full series or just the US
events.
Solid State Lighting Design
is here to serve the information needs of lighting designers, specifiers, and
decision makers, along with luminaire designers, lighting system integrators and
lighting subsystem developers with application, product and market news updates
for this rapidly evolving technology. Our readership also includes LED packagers,
technology enablers and service companies seeking the the answers to how best
to meet their customers' needs. Solid
state lighting promises to create unprecedented changes in what we can do with
light. Simultaneously, it will deliver on a promise of massive global energy savings
and access to useful nighttime lighting that has not been conveniently available
to nearly 2 billion people around the world. We're glad to have you join us in
the revolution!
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November 17, 2009...Back in 2008 coffee shop chain, Starbucks reportedly began looking into LED lighting. At the time however, they could not find a commercially available product that met their aesthetic and functional needs. So, the company sought the assistance of GE to identify a solution. GE worked with input from Starbucks to develop an LED luminaire that Starbucks could use that fits its existing fixtures.
Since that time, Starbucks has completed implementation of its LED lighting conversion program in more than 1,000 of its U.S. locations. The company said it will expand the program to international markets, and by the end of 2010 it expects to have completed the conversion of the lighting in 8,000 company locations.
“Our team jumped at the chance to create a GE-quality LED solution that could meet Starbucks stringent efficiency and color-quality requirements,” said Michael Petras, president and ceo of GE Consumer & Industrial’s lighting and electrical business. “Starbucks aggressive moves on the conservation front will have far-reaching environmental and financial impacts. Other GE customers will benefit from these achievements.” Starbucks Press Release Sunovia 's Partnership Greatly Expands Its Lighting Market SSLighting Design News StaffNovember 17, 2009...Sunovia Energy Technologies of Sarasota, Florida, a maker of solar electric lighting, is partnering with Solar Electric Power Co. of Stuart Florida to produce thousands of solar powered LED lighting fixtures.
The partnership's first application is for “Cobra Head”-style LED lights that employ Sunovia’s proprietary “Aimed Optics” technology, which controls the direction of light onto a roadway, parking lot or other targeted area.
The new LED fixtures use low-voltage DC power generated by solar arrays combined with batteries from SEPCO so that the electric power generated during the day can be stored to light the LED fixtures at night. Sunovia points out that LED lights are ideal for solar-powered applications because they use much less input energy than metal halide or high-pressure sodium sources. Sunovia News Release
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Colorado Ace Hardware Stores to Accept Incandescent Holiday Lights for Recycling SSLighting Design News StaffNovember 17, 2009...Ace Hardware announced that its stores in Colorad will accept traditional holiday lights for recycling between November 23, 2009 and February 15, 2010. Participating stores will also offer discounts on the purchase of new energy efficient LED light sets for consumers who bring in incandescent lights for recycling.
Local Ace Hardware stores are partnering with Lights For Life, a non-profit organization that recycles the used lights and sells the copper components to raise money for children with cancer. Last year, Lights For Life reportedly collected nearly three tons of lights. Ace Hardware News Release
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PolyBrite International Announces Results in Borealis LED Streetlight Testing SSLighting Design News StaffNovember 12, 2009...PolyBrite International has announced the four month test results of an installation of its Brealis LED Lighting Systems in Naperville Illinois.
The company says that the LED-based streetlights have reduced the City of Naperville energy usage on the street lights 60% in energy usage for each of the four months of usage. The City of Naperville reportedly has been monitoring Borealis LED streetlights since June and they will continue to do so until January 2010.
The seven 120 watt Borealis LED streetlights Borealis LED streetlights, which are reportedly equivalent to 350 W high pressure sodium streetlights, are installed along the south side of Diehl Road, between Country Club Boulevard and Fairway Drive. The city’s Department of Public Works is monitoring their performance. One meter in the streetlight controller monitors the power consumption of the LED lighting, with a second meter monitoring the power consumption of the HPS lighting. Thus far, Borealis LED streetlights have consumed 57.2% less energy than the HPS streetlights. Company News Release,
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LEDnovation Introduces Design White A19 LED Light Bulbs for 60W & 75W Incandescent Replacements SSLighting Design News StaffNovember 12, 2009...LEDnovation of Tampa Florida, has introduced its Design White LED A19 bulbs for 60W and 75W replacement.
The company contends that these A19 bulbs have the world’s highest lumen output and efficiency for replacement of LED-based 60W and 75W incandescent Design White bulbs.
The company says that the LED-based 60W incandescent equivalent delivers 640 Lumens, with a 93 Lumen/Watt efficacy, and the LED-based 75W incandescent equivalent delivers 730 Lumens, with a 90 Lumen/Watt efficacy. LEDnovation says the LED bulbs offer significant power reduction compared to incandescent and CFL bulbs.
LEDnovation boasts that its bulbs deliver high-performance in a number of critical areas: total lumen output, lumen per watt efficacy, color rendering, high power factor correction, stable Design White color temperature and a long operational life.
“Our proprietary technology and intellectual property keep paying dividends in the form of new offerings, these high brightness Design White solutions allow Solid State Lamps to go into sockets where they could not compete before,” stated Israel J. Morejon, CEO of LEDnovation.
The products are targeted at downlight and other indoor general lighting applications in the commercial and industrial markets. The bulbs are reportedly part of the EnhanceLite™ series of LED bulbs. LEDnovation’s 60W equivalent LED A19-60-1D-I and 75W equivalent LED A19-75-1D-I products are scheduled to be commercially available in December 2009 for the North American market.
Company News Release Texas A&M Chooses Infinilux Solid State Low Bay light for parking structure SSLighting Design News StaffNovember 12, 2009...Texas A&M located in College Station, Texas, has reportedly selected the Infinilux, Inc. new LED low bay light for the university’s first SSL feasibility demonstration. Texas A&M selected the LB36 for the trial installation to help Texas A&M meet energy conservation goals and lower the environmental impact of the campus-parking program. Texas A&M is an environmentally conscious university of over 45,000 students, faculty and staff. The new lighting project is expected to offer a number of benefits for the university as well as for the environment.
Infinilux points out that the demo installation draws less than 0.1W/sq-ft max, 68% below the ASHRAE target of 0.3W/sq-ft. Infinilux estimates that it will provide a reduction in overall power consumption of over 65%. Infinilux News Release,
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Lockheed Martin Employs Solar-Powered LED Street Lights from Carmanah SSLighting Design News StaffNovember 10, 2009...Lockheed Martin, a global security company based in Bethesda, Maryland USA, is reportedly upgrading its Lake Underhill Facility in Orlando, Florida with solar-powered streetlights from Carmanah Technologies. The new lights build on the company’s past successes with energy-efficient lighting. The street-lighting systems from Carmanah will be supplied by HD Supply and SESCO, Carmanah’s lighting representatives for the Central Florida region.
In addition to providing significant savings on installation and wiring, the stand-alone lighting alternative is expected to return significant energy savings during the next 20 years. Carmanah News Release
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Albeo’s C-Series LED High Bay lighting Saves Dole 95% in Energy Consumption SSLighting Design News StaffNovember 3, 2009...Albeo Technologies Inc. of Boulder, Colorado USA, a leading LED lighting manufacturer, announces the retrofit of a Dole cold storage warehouse with the Albeo's C-Series solid-state high bay. Dole, the largest producer and marketer of high-quality fresh fruit and fresh vegetables, replaced 400W metal halide fixtures with Albeo C-Series High Bay fixtures. Albeo says that at the cold storage warehouse light levels nearly doubled with the fixtures mounted at 28 feet and temperatures below zero degrees Fahrenheit.
Albeo says its high bays with integrated motion sensors provided 95% energy savings.
Since the Dole installation in January of 2009, Albeo has upgraded the C-Series High Bay to provide over 13,000 lumens at 175 Watts. Albeo says that optics for racked isle warehouse applications provide optimized horizontal and vertical light distribution.
“Cold storage with sub-zero temperatures is a demanding environment for lighting,” said David Shankel, Engineering Director at Dole. “There is continuous activity inside the warehouse moving and staging product. To maximize worker productivity, safety, and energy efficiency we require high light levels with no start delay, and motion sensors. We selected Albeo’s High-Bay because it was the only solution that met our needs.”
“Independently certified by LM-79 testing, Albeo’s C-Series High Bay surpasses any fluorescent, HID, or other LED solution available for efficacy, light output, and low temperature performance,” said Paul Winker, Product Manager, Albeo Technologies, Inc. “The lifetime of our LEDs in a motion sensed cold storage environment can be measured in decades, making our product the obvious choice for any value-minded customer, especially progressive industry leaders like Dole.” Albeo News Release LEDnovation, Inc. introduces 100 lm/W LED Bulb SSLighting Design News StaffNovember 10, 2009...LEDnovation of Tampa Florida USA, has introduced a 5000K LED bulb with a typical efficacy of
This 5000K LED lamp delivers 350 Lumens, with a typical 100 Lumen/Watt efficacy. The company contends that the bulb offers significant power reduction compared to incandescent and CFL bulbs. The company also boasts that the bulb it calls the Design White bulb consumes 91% less electricity than a standard 40W incandescent bulb and 65% less than a standard CFL bulb which has been considered the standard for greener lighting. The lamps reportedly feature Recycle Reflectance optics technology, which the company says reduces overall glare and delivers an extremely uniform and smooth light output.
The product is targeted at downlights and other indoor general lighting applications in the commercial and industrial markets. This bulb is part of the EnhanceLite series of LED bulbs. LEDnovation’s 40W equivalent LED A19-40-1D-I product is scheduled to be commercially available in December 2009 for the North American market.
“This is a continuing milestone in our energy efficiency brought to life solutions,” stated Israel J. Morejon, CEO of LEDnovation.
“We are very excited about this product, it offers so much potential to conserve precious electricity,” Mr. Morejon added.
"We will continue to deliver products for the North American market and eventually roll out our solutions world-wide,” Mr. Morejon stated.
Company News Release EPA Sets New Timeline for Energy Star Program Enhancements for 2010 SSLighting Design News StaffNovember 5, 2009...Alex Baker, the Energy Star program manager with United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sent a letter to Energy Star stakeholders which states, that before November 30, 2009, DOE and EPA will release a more detailed proposal outlining
anticipated Energy Star program enhancements for 2010. These program enhancements will include a proposed method of integrating various elements of the Energy Star lighting program.
He stated in the letter, "Among other things, it is
EPA’s intention to streamline the qualification process and paperwork related to ENERGY
STAR qualification of lighting products, as part of the process of integrating potentially
duplicative and overlapping specifications. Please note that it is also EPA’s intention to retain
key elements of the DOE-developed Energy Star specifications for Solid State Lighting and
Integral LED Lamps, including testing according to the IES LM-79 standard, as appropriate." Letter to Energy Star Stakeholders,
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Our news features are reported
by the SSL Design staff writers.
For submissions or content suggestions, you can contact us using
editor -at - solidstatelightingdesign.com
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Info7 -at - solidstatelightingdesign.com
or call +1 (512) 257-9888
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Commentary
& Perspectives...
Summit 2009: What we learned Tom Griffiths - PublisherNovember 5, 2009...The 2009 SSL Design Summit just wrapped up its November 3-4 run in Jersey City,
New Jersey, on the shores of the Hudson river, right across from Manhattan's
world trade/financial district. Delivering a few beautiful evening views of
the New York City skyline, it isn't hard to soak in the big picture of just
how massive the opportunity for solid state lighting is. There are a lot of
fixtures on that island, with many of them on 12 to 24 hours a day, 7 days a
week. We also saw an economy in pain. New building is negligible, vacancies
are clearly visible good ideas that save operational expenses are being welcomed.
We took the hint from a number of beleaguered end of year travel budgets, and
in consultation with our planned speakers, we have shifted the LA/Long Beach
Summit out into early 2010, specifically Jan 20-21. We like water, and the venue
we're finalizing with the shift is very "on the water". Logos and
announcement changes are in process, so if you spot a leftover December date,
fear not. (or, in the words of our hotel's "security command center"
on Wednesday morning blared out nearly continuously from 5:45 to 6:15 am....
"please disregard the alarm"... may I disregard your "disregard"
announcement and please go back to sleep now?). It's all good.
At this 2009 Summit, thought leaders came together and elements of the industry
shared and learned. That's what it's all about, because frankly, there aren't
all that many individuals involved in the process of leading a market. While
80/20 applies in many "numbers and results" types of analysis, when
it comes to "the human factor", the "3% rule" is more the
norm. That rule simply postulates that when 3% of the people have the passion
to lead something, and it rings true with, the majority of the other 97%, the
3% can then proceed to make something happen. Revolutions come from the 3%.
It happened in India with Ghandi and his followers, around the 1920s, and still
earlier, with the 13 colonies that formed the United States when they had had
enough with excess taxation and lack of representation to address their grievances.
(Nothing personal against Great Britain, they just had a bit of a run going
on. Similar numbers were in play when czarist Russia turned over, and when the
French monarchy fell). It's human nature. Think about your high school prom
planning committee, or the number of "superstars" in the typical sports
organization, and you get the idea.
The Summit, as with our other conference events, has always been about the
strength of the agenda. It's never just a list of topics and speakers thrown
up based on whoever says "yes" to an invitation, or as a response
to a "call for papers". It's a topic flow, based on the assessment
of our informal advisory board, including the co-chairs, key contributors and
our network of industry friends, all aimed at making the industry stronger and
moving it forward faster. As one of our lighting decision-maker attendees wrote
this morning, "This was the only seminar that I have had attended on SSL
other than at Lightfair, and feel that it was not only complete in scope, but
that the speakers really wanted to be there. As a past employee of [three huge
names in lighting/lighting componentry], I just wanted to tell you that your
effort, attitude and professionalism are world class." So what did we learn?
One big thing was that these LED things are working really, really well. LED-based
luminaires are still tricky to get right, but the LEDs aren't the sticking point
any longer.
If we agree that the most fundamental burden of progress in solid state lighting
falls upon the shoulders of the LED manufacturers, their understanding of where
the technology can go, and how to get there, we're looking at a pretty select
group of industry leaders that make a big difference. Sure there a few other
smaller LED innovators that might bring forward such a good idea that they eventually
join the leaders, but as it stands, if you have Osram, Nichia, Cree, and Lumileds
in the same room, you're looking at the companies that are shaping the fundamental
message of the LED lighting industry (no slight intended on Toyoda Gosei, Seoul
Semi, or Epistar who are all big volume players, they're just not as prominent
in shaping the impressions that a market such as ours is built on). What we
heard from that group at the 2009 Summit was not so much what they were doing,
but rather what they are learning in areas such as standards development, long
term testing or while pushing the technology to it's limits (and guess what,
the LED is definitely no longer even close to the weak link in the chain when
it comes to luminaire color consistency or lifetimes). Be sure to check into
the agenda to see what Osram's Jian Jiao and Cree's Ralph Tuttle, were there
to share... and keep in mind the backstory that those learned gentlemen are
also the past two chairs of the NGLIA.
One portion the engendered some lively discussion concerned Cree's findings
that have come out of their LM-80 testing program, which in a nutshell is suggesting to Cree that depreciation curves for LEDs in their first 5000 hours may potentially be meaningless when it comes to predicting the ultimate (or 70% lumen maintenance aka "L70") lifetime of their devices. In Cree's testing, they found that while a number of factors will affect the variance and depreciation (or appreciation in some samples) of their power LEDs in the first 5000 hours, that after things settle down, they may be seeing a different, and much flatter depreciation curve. If that bears out in testing across their future product lines, and if other manufacturers see the same type of "2-step" curve down the road, it may ultimately cast some doubt on the specific relevance of the Energy Star commercial requirement requiring 94.1% lumen maintenance to be a presumed predictor of that minimum 35,000 hour lifetime that Energy Star is looking for. We don't intend to suggest that if a manufacturer can't make the 94.1% cut-off that the industry should simply "trust them" that things will flatten out later on and everything will be fine. The point is that such a 2-step curve, which appears to be there in some other manufacturer's LM-80 data, and which Cree reports it found when testing other manufacturer's products, might imply much longer lifetimes that any of us have imagined. I would throw in the personal analogy of when I purchased my first music CDs. It was brand new technology, and the best manufacturers of the day could offer was an expectation that "they should last at least 5 years", but that ultimately they didn't know if the materials would hold up over the long term. 20 years later, I haven't had a single CD from that original collection bite the dust due to material degradation.
At the luminaire level, we were pleased to hear from Lightolier (now Philips
Lightolier), and Elumen, two companies that made the cut with regard to our
vetting criteria, earning a place to talk product, not just theory. Both were
able to offer keen insights into product consistency over time. In the case
of Lightolier, VP of Strategic Development and Innovation Ken Czech, shared
details on the Calculite product which was last year's "Most Innovative
Product" winner at Light Fair International. The Calculite takes a remote
phosphor approach as the way to isolate the customer from generational changes
so that tomorrow's available downlight matches the brightness and color consistency.
The theory is simple, blue emitters are very efficient, and constantly getting
better, so shoot as many of them as you need to at a phosphor target that effectively
acts as the "lens" of the downlight. As blue LEDs get brighter, Lightolier
uses less of them or drives them more gently to produce a product that puts
out the same amount and color of light, while simply using less power, from
generation to generation. The same principle applies to making brighter versions
as well (just keep the same number of LEDs and you get more lumens from the
same power in).
Elumen, produces roadway and area lighting products, shared a bit on how their
streelights have placed a lot of intelligence into the driver functions (driver
= power conversion + control functions), to basically allow them to take whatever
approach the market is most desiring. Ben Frank shared that as currently implemented,
they use their built-in feedback mechanisms to maintain the overall lumen output
within the prescribed range throughout the life of the product. As the LEDs
output degrade on hot nights or over their many tens of thousands of lifetime
hours, they tweak up the current, as needed, to maintain a constant light level.
If the market is demanding longer life rather than constant output, they could
just as easily allow lumen depreciation to a certain pre-set level before beginning
the compensation, which tends to mess with the whole concept of L70 types of
lighting design approaches. Plus with the intelligence built in, there are obviously
a range of options in how to handle such things as "end of life" notfication,
including shut-off, dim or later, "phone home". Right now, those aren't
user programmable functions, but when one of the kick off speakers was Margaret
Newman, Chief of Staff of the New York City Department of Transportation, is
it just maybe possible that one of the largest streetlight consumers in the
world shared some of their vision of what the market needs?
It's good to have those 3% willing to invest in the industry's knowledge base.
More reports to follow, but don't expect all the details here... Long Beach
will be the place to be.
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