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Acuity Acquires Renaissance Lighting and its IP Portfolio
SSLDesign News Staff
July 27, 2010...In what some see as a sign of a maturing industry, Acuity Brands, a lighting company and parent of Acuity Lighting Inc., has purchased LED luminaire maker, Renaissance Lighting and its IP portfolio.
Acuity Brands, Inc. announced that it has acquired for an undisclosed amount of cash the remaining outstanding capital stock of Renaissance Lighting, Inc. ("Renaissance"), a privately-held, innovator of solid-state LED architectural lighting. Renaissance of Herndon, Virginia, offers a range of LED-based specification-grade downlighting. Renaissance has also reportedly developed what Acuity calls an extensive intellectual property portfolio related to advanced LED optical solutions and technologies.
Previously, Acuity Brands formed a strategic partnership with Renaissance, which included a minority ownership in the company and a license to the company's intellectual property estate. Renaissance's IP portfolio includes the Renaissance's Constructive Occlusion optical system currently utilized in Acuity's rapidly growing Gotham Ecos downlighting family.
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FTC Label Guidlines Finalized, But Comment Sought on Certain Issues
SSLDesign News Staff
July 28, 2010...The U.S. Federal Trade Commission's new rules
on lighting labels have been finalized. (Ref: Coverage).
The goal of the new rules is to make the comparison of different lighting technologies easier for consumers. The labels include the number of lumens output of the light source, the estimated lifetime of the light source in hours, the estimated cost per year based upon a certain number of hours use per day with a specified electric rate.
CFL bulbs must have a information stating that the bulb contains small amounts of mercury.
The Commission is seeking additional comments on wether it should establish standards for watt equivalence claims. The FTC received a recommendation that the labels be applied to all screw-based bulbs. However, the commission decided that this would need further consideration.
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US Navy Completes Installations of LED Lighting from Lighting Science Group
SSLDesign News Staff
July 28, 2010...Lighting Science Group and the United States Navy have completed the retrofit of the streetscapes, parking lots, and the residence quarters with state-of-the-art LED fixtures at two separate sites at the Naval Base Ventura County (NBVC) California—Port Hueneme and Point Mugu. Lighting Science estimates that the installations will shave close to $60,000 per year off the base's energy bill. The project, announced in February (Ref: Coverage) is expected to save up to 440,000 Kwh, according to Energy Manager Naval Base Ventura County, Tom Santoianni, who raised his February estimate from about 317,000 Kwh.
According to Lighting Science, a total of 1,178 existing roadway, area, and parking lot lighting fixtures were replaced with LED luminaires built in the USA by Lighting Science Group.
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Philips Lumileds Announces Better Performing Luxeon Rebel ES Product Line
LIGHTimes News Staff
July 27, 2010...Philips Lumileds, Royal Philips Electronics' solid state lighting business,
announced advancements in its Luxeon Rebel ES product line that deliver higher efficacy and more light output. The company says that the LEDs enable new outdoor lighting solutions, shorten payback periods, lower the total cost of ownership, and enable LED systems to meet new efficiency standards being implemented around the world. The company indicates that the Luxeon Rebel ES is optimized for outdoor applications, including streets, roadways, tunnels, and high- and low-bay lighting, with correlated color temperatures (CCTs) centered at 4100K and 5650K.
The Luxeon Rebel ES delivers more than 300 lumens at 1000 mA. This translates to an efficacy of 100 lumens per watt. The company points out that when optimizing for system efficiency, current can be lowered and efficacy can exceed 125 lumens per watt.
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Commentary & Perspectives...
LEDs Continues Sign Industry Push
Tom Griffiths - Publisher
July 29, 2010...With two online news publications under one umbrella, Solid State Lighting Design and LIGHTimes, we strive for the right amount of overlap to address the audience interests. LIGHTimes covers the broader LED industry spanning the supply chain from materials and technology, through equipment, chips, packaged LEDs and modules. LIGHTimes also covers the applications space for the non-general lighting LED-based applications, including areas like backlighting and displays, transportation, industrial applications and signage. SSL Design is focused on LED lighting/solid state lighting designed for the built environment, starting from the packaged LEDs and running through light engines, replacement lamps, and fixtures/luminaires, as well as the applications stories that bring it to life.
Most of the LIGHTimes readers already know this, but not all the SSL Design readers might. Most of our commentary finds its way connected to SSL Design's space, but it's important to recognize that much of the LED volume is directed towards those non-general lighting arenas. The volume in those applications spaces are bringing down costs for all applications, and lower costs increase market opportunities. Whether you're on the lighting or non-lighting side of the LED market, it only makes sense to stay aware of the general happenings in all the arenas in order to keep ahead of the information curve so you can spot the trends in time to take full advantage of them.
Separate from the cost/volume topic, while LED lighting is doing a better and better job of not looking like LED lighting, applications that do look like LEDs continue to help bring credibility to the technology. Traffic signals happily doing their reliable job, without dead strings and aside from the rare snow cover, are good industry PR. Similarly, adoption moves that can be perceived as "less risky" into the commercial/industrial space also help commercial/retail operators to believe in the capabilities of our technology to get the job done well, and to save them both operating and maintenance expenses, while contributing to enhanced revenues. Whether it is direct view billboards, internal or backlighting, or neon replacement approaches, signage is one of those applications spaces that help boost the industry credibility with the prime lighting decision makers.
Following is a quick Q&A with Carey Burkett, President of Lumificient Corporation. Founded in 2000 and subsequently acquired by Nexxus Lighting in 2008, Lumificient has made its name with LED illumination solutions for the sign industry.
The sign industry was an early adopter of LED technology, why?
LED technology addressed some of the challenges dealing with neon and fluorescent
lighting, including shipping and breakage issues, ongoing maintenance expenses
and high energy costs. From a sign company’s and an end customer’s
perspective, that was important. As LED technology has advanced, it has become
easier to make a strong business case for LED over neon or other forms of sign
illumination based upon the significant savings that can be attained from lower
energy and maintenance costs.
What is driving the movement to LED in signage?
There seems to be three factors that have led to the rapid adoption of LED technology
for the sign industry.
First, the ability for LED to meet the requirements of a sign company and its
end customers related to the level of brightness and the uniformity of illumination.
First and foremost, LED systems had to meet that standard. Today, there are
LED systems that can achieve excellent, even illumination and color consistency
that meet those requirements.
Second, the high maintenance costs of neon systems. End customers are often
required to sign up for costly maintenance contracts for these systems. To fulfill
the contracts, sign companies offer labor or service warranties at considerable
expense. With LED technology, maintenance requirements are limited. This will
lead to significant savings for the end customer.
Finally, it is also about the efficiency of LED illumination as compared to neon illumination. That difference represents substantial energy savings, and obviously that is a significant story these days.
What are the indisputable advantages of LED adoption, short and long term?
The advantages of LED illumination are many, most of which result in direct
savings. LED lamps produce brilliant light but consume significantly less electricity
when compared to neon lighting. They offer a much longer life in illumination
for the sign. As solid-state devices, high quality LED illumination systems
are durable and damage-resistant, requiring minimal maintenance. LED systems
are also environmentally sound.
What are the specific industry challenges that exist today within signage
that relate to LED usage?
With today’s economic uncertainties, signage as a whole has contracted.
Large big box retailers and multi-site retailers are not developing new sites
at the rapid pace that they once were. Retrofitting programs in some cases have
dropped off. Single site entrepreneurs or new business start ups have slowed
down, as well.
As a result, sign companies are chasing a smaller overall pie. It places a burden
on Sign Companies to respond with sound business solutions and services that
will allow them to grow during a difficult time. Sign Companies can win by offering
superior products and services that will significantly improve end customer
results -- results that can be quantified based upon the benefits that LED solutions
provide. It’s a solution that provides value to both the Sign Company and
the end customer.
We consistently urge sign companies to resist the temptation to consider lower-priced
LED solutions as a way to attain improved margins and/or business results. Low-priced
LED solutions will lead to higher overall costs, for the end customer and often
for the sign company. Having your end customer’s best interests in mind
is what will lead to long term success. Low-priced, high problematic LED solutions
will not lead to long term customer satisfaction or to long term success.
Where is LED signage not cost effective?
The up-front cost of LED illumination tends to be higher than that of neon.
That said, the total costs over the life of the sign will be substantially lower
for systems that are illuminated with LED. Neon will always have its place in
various more artistic or decorative signage where LED simply cannot play.
Are you finding that companies are adopting LED signage chain-wide or testing
in key markets? What kind of business category could benefit most from this?
LED adoption within signage is quite far along at this point. There are many
companies that have specified LED illumination for all of their new signs and
some companies that have come out with defined retrofit programs that involve
replacing neon in their older signs. So, there is broad acceptance within the
signage marketplace for LEDs.
All companies can benefit from the use of LED signage; the long-term savings
are significant even for an individual proprietor with one sign for a storefront.
Large multi-site businesses with a significant number of sites and signs stand
to save the most considering the overall cost-saving factors per sign, per overall
sites, times the years that the signs will be in service.
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Don't miss the SSL Summit Series, kicking off September 14-15 in New York City, conveniently in Manhattan. It's all about quality, so if you are a luminaire manufacturer that would like to connect with some of the top lighting decision makers in the area, you won't find a more efficient two days during this year. Any luminaire manufacturer receiving product visibility is being vetted for basic quality criteria, but if your company doesn't quite have those LM-79 reports and datasheets all matched up yet, fear not. You're absolutely welcome to attend for the top-level networking and "how to get it done" discussions that can make it even more critical that you find your way there. Visit www.SSLsummit.com for series details, or jump directly the NY overview here.
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