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News Updates for the Week of March 24

1.      By 2020, LEDs May Rival Incandescent Bulbs in Cost without Rebates - New data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration shows how far the cost of LEDs has fallen since 2010. The agency projects that the technology will approach price parity with CFLs and incandescent bulbs around the end of the decade. A 2012 report from the U.S. Department of Energy, however, forecasts that LEDs will make up only 36 percent of lumen-hour sales in the lighting market in 2020, a figure that is expected to grow to 74 percent by 2030. But the DOE has already revised its projections upward three times in the past five years. The department now has a goal of 224 lumens per watt efficacy at $0.70 per thousand lumens by 2020. EIA’s projections would suggest that this is too ambitious a goal to achieve; its forecast is closer to 150 lumens per watt by 2020. http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/can-leds-be-nearly-as-cheap-as-incandescents-by-2020

2.      BP Forecast: US Is Destined to Be an Energy Giant Again - Domestic energy production is destined to outstrip consumption in coming years, led by natural gas and U.S. dominance as the world's biggest producer, so that the nation will stand totally energy independent by 2035, according to a long-range global study by oil giant BP. Worldwide, demand for energy will go up 41 percent by 2035, primarily because of use in emerging economies, BP estimated. During that time period, the U.S. share of global demand is expected to decline to 13 percent from the current 18 percent, and China's demand will go up to 27 percent from the current 22 percent. http://www.moneynews.com

3.      Toshiba Seeks Europe Lighting Tie-Ups to Take on Philips - Toshiba Corp. plans to sign at least three partnerships in the next 12 months to manufacture lighting fixtures in Europe as it seeks to become the region’s third-biggest supplier of LEDs. Tokyo-based Toshiba, which until 2009 only sold LEDs in Japan, plans to reach a top 3 spot in Europe by 2020, threatening the dominance of Royal Philips NV and Osram Licht AG in a global market forecast to reach $42 billion by 2019. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-03-18/toshiba-seels-europe-lighting-tie-ups-to-take-on-philips.html

4.      LED Industry to Enter 3 Golden Years, Says Epistar Chairman - Mainly due to fast growing global demand for LED lighting, the LED industry will enjoy three golden years during 2014-2017, according to chairman Lee Biing-jye for Taiwan-based LED epitaxial wafer and chip maker Epistar. Global demand for LED lighting as a percentage of all lighting products will increase to at least 30% in 2014, Lee said. LED lighting penetration in the Japan market will remain the highest around the world and is expected to rise from over 50% in 2013 to about 70% in 2014, while the US market will grow from about 10% to 20%, Lee said. Everlight Electronics, the largest Taiwan-based LED packaging service provider, expects double-digit growth in 2014, company chairman Robert Yeh noted. http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20140320PD213.html

5.      DOE Webinar: Maintenance Practices for LED Streetlights - On Monday, April 14, DOE's Municipal Solid-State Street Lighting Consortium will host a 90-minute live webinar entitled Maintenance Practices for LED Streetlights. The relative newness of LED streetlights naturally prompts important questions about maintenance and reliability, and how to take these issues into account when planning and preparing for a transition to LED street lighting. The webinar will begin promptly at 2:00 p.m. ET (11:00 a.m. PT) and will include a 60-minute presentation, followed by a 30-minute question-and-answer session. For more information / register, visit the DOE SSL website.

6.      DOE Webinar: LED Color Stability—10 Important Questions - On Tuesday, April 15, the U.S. DOE Solid-State Lighting Program will host a 60-minute live webinar entitled LED Color Stability: 10 Important Questions. The lumen maintenance lifetime of many LED products is 25,000 hours or more, but that doesn't mean products are guaranteed to perform the same over that time. One thing that could change is the color of the light, or chromaticity. This webinar will examine the causes of color shift, and look at existing metrics used to describe color shift/color stability in LED lighting. The webinar will begin at 1:00 p.m. ET; will include a 45-minute presentation followed by a 15-minute Q&A session with attendees. For more information / register, visit the DOE SSL website.

7.      LED Solutions Improve Lighting Performance and Efficiency at Detroit Metropolitan Airport Eaton has announced that its Cooper Lighting division’s Ventus LED luminaires are replacing 6,050 existing parking garage fixtures at the Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DTW) to improve efficiencies and optical lighting performance. The conversion will result in a 66 percent reduction in power consumption with an anticipated overall energy and maintenance savings of approximately $1.2 million annually. http://www.ledjournal.com/main/markets/applications/led-solutions-improve-lighting-performance-and-efficiency-at-detroit-metropolitan-airport/#more-9880

 8.      Ameresco Begins Implementation of ESPC as Part of GSA's National Deep Energy Retrofit Program Challenge – The GSA's $45 million Energy Savings Performance Contract (ESPC) is underway. The GSA selected Ameresco to develop a comprehensive ESPC addressing over one million square feet of office space at the New Carrollton Federal Building in Lanham, MD and the Silver Spring Metro Center 1 building in Silver Spring, MD. Both buildings will be modernized with the installation of 11,000 individually addressable LED lighting fixtures controlled by a network of sensors. Over 2,000 sensors will be installed in the two buildings. Capable of sensing occupancy and ambient light, the system will automatically adjust light output to match current conditions. The new lighting control systems will integrate into existing and new DDC control systems allowing the HVAC systems to heat and cool only occupied spaces. 3/18 BUSINESS WIRE

9.      Benton City, WA Gets New LED Street Lights - Benton City is one of six small towns in the state of Washington to receive new, power-efficient LED street lights for free.  Swapping out incandescent bulbs for LEDs is a pilot program of the state Transportation Improvement Board.  Benton PUD will be replacing 119 of the lights and Benton Rural Electric Association will replace 11 of the street lights.  Benton City also has 53 street lights and has contracted with Sun River Electric of Kennewick to replace those with the new LEDs. 3/12 Tri-City Herald

10.  Will the US Choose the Right Road to a New Energy Future? - The United States is currently facing a very unique situation—the first of its kind—as we decide how to upgrade and expand our energy infrastructure. Many are afraid that investing in a new energy system is too expensive and would cost trillions of dollars. The truth is that the investment choices we make today will determine whether we build a resilient, reliable energy system. What we need is a modern system that will maximize economic benefits, put the consumer in control, and utilize innovation and technology all while attaining steep reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. http://www.renewableenergyworld.com

11.  Lighting Systems Index Gains Traction During Fourth Quarter - NEMA’s Lighting Systems Index gained traction during 2013 Q4, increasing by 1.8 percent compared to the previous quarter. The index increased 4.7 percent on a year-over-year basis. Index components for emergency lighting, fixtures and miniature lamps posted gains, while ballasts and large lamps retreated q/q. Overall performance during calendar year 2013 placed the index nearly 17 percent above the depressed level of the Great Recession during 2009. http://www.nema.org/news/Pages/Lighting-Systems-Index-Gains-Traction-During-Fourth-Quarter.aspx

Training Programs

1.      NAED: Develop a Culture of Learning - The NAED Learning Center http://www.naed.org/NLC/ is a web-based learning management system that provides a central location for all employee training in the electrical industry. NAED members have free access to this robust learning management system and the experts that run it. Watch the short video:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzVmVLyR9ng

2.      Hubbell Lighting Announces 2014 Lighting Education Schedule - Hubbell Lighting, announced the release of the 2014 lighting education course schedule at its state-of-the-art Lighting Solutions Center (LSC). The LSC courses are available to almost anyone (newbies and seasoned pros alike) whose profession is architecture, illuminating engineering, lighting design, or electrical contracting or distribution. The schedule is available at www.lightingsolutionscenter.com

3.      Training Sessions by Attardi Marketing - Customized training to satisfy your educational needs:

• Create Demand Selling 
• Advanced Strategic Sales Workshop 
• Solution Selling in a Diverse Marketplace 
• Upselling the New Lighting Technologies

Case Studies/Whitepapers/Research

1.      Memoori Publishes Report…Smart Buildings: The Lighting Controls Business 2013 to 2017 - The world value of lighting control products in 2013 was approximately $1.67 billion at factory gate prices. Memoori forecasts that the global market for lighting controls from 2013 to 2020 will grow at a CAGR of 12%. By 2017, it will reach a value of $2.54 billion. At 156 pages with 34 charts and tables, this report filters out all the important conclusions, supported with facts, as to what is shaping the future of the lighting controls industry. http://www.memoori.com/portfolio/smart-buildings-the-lighting-controls-business-2013-to-2017/

2.      Zhaga Aims to Enable Independent Interchangeability of LED Modules and Drivers - The Zhaga Consortium, which develops specifications for interchangeable LED light engines, has decided that it will also aim to enable LED modules and drivers that are independently interchangeable. This is in addition to Zhaga’s stated aim to enable interchangeability of LED light engines. http://www.zhagastandard.org/

 

3.      Solid State and Other Energy Efficient Lighting Systems, Application and Market Trends (2010-2015) - The global solid state and other energy efficient lighting systems market is expected to grow from $28,248.7 million in 2010 to $53,469.5 million in 2015, at an estimated CAGR of 9.7%. Amongst all the market segments, CFLs command the largest share in terms of revenues, while LEDs are the second largest market contributed 31.2% to the global market revenues in 2010, the OLEDs market is expected to have the highest CAGR of 44.0% from 2010 to 2015. http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/emerging-lighting-technologies-and-global-market-120.html