Something to Think About

The Best One-Word Question to Ask in an Interview by Wayne John wayne@ecs.jobs - We’ve all been through the interview process and have been asked about our background, education and experience. The interviewers need to find the connection between a candidate and what they can bring compared to what the company needs. There are many ways to arrive at a mutual decision as to whether a fit exists. There is a ‘magic’ word that should be asked in all interviews. This word encompasses what one has achieved and can provide a good idea of future success. That word? How.

Asking a potential hire ‘how’ in front of many different questions will provide an astounding amount of insight into a person’s work ethic and drive. Let’s look at some relevant ‘how’ questions:

• HOW did you achieve those numbers? By asking this sales question, one will determine exactly the ways in which success was attained.
• HOW were you able to deal with challenging customers? We’ve all had tough customers but asking how they dealt with certain situations can provide an understanding of their approach to frustrating clients. How did they go the extra distance to service them and win them over?
• HOW are you going to be successful in this position? The candidate will relay their past experience in their position; whether sales, management, purchasing, etc. to give the interviewer a bird’s-eye view of what they did, how they did it and the end result.
• HOW did you bring your team together? Since a team will make or break a company, this is a key question for a Management candidate. Determining the lengths a manager will go to in bringing his team together will speak volumes as to how he will gain respect and get his new team to jell.
• HOW do you think that your past experience is a good fit with our company and position? The most critical of the HOW questions. The candidate should be able to provide past successes in similar roles in their career, how they were able to meet and exceed goals, and how all of that would be a perfect fit for the new position.

The HOW questions force the candidate to think quickly about their answers and offer results-oriented answers quickly. All candidates should be prepared for and expect questions into their background and how it all relates to the new company and opportunity. ElectricalTrends Group Members group-digests@linkedin.com.

News Updates for the Week of July 30

1.      U.S. Economic Growth Slows to a Rate of 1.5 Percent in the Second Quarter - High unemployment isn’t going away—not as long as the economy grows as slowly as it did in the April-June quarter.  Weak consumer spending held growth to an annual rate of just 1.5 percent, even less than the 2 percent rate in the first quarter. And few expect the economy to accelerate in the second half of the year as Europe’s financial woes and a U.S. budget crisis restrain businesses and consumers. The growth estimate Friday from the government suggested that the U.S. economy could be at risk of stalling three years after the recession ended. Economists generally say even 2 percent annual growth would add only about 90,000 jobs a month. That’s too few to keep up with population growth and drive down the unemployment rate, which is stuck at 8.2 percent. 7/27 Washington Post

2.      Universities Will Receive More Than $1M in Energy-Efficiency Grants - Mississippi universities will direct $1,175,000 toward increasing their energy efficiencies over the next few years. The USDOE will allocate $7.9 million to help 13 states develop cost-saving, whole-building retrofit programs in public facilities through its Advancing Energy Efficiency in Public Buildings category of competitive grants. Mississippi's grant was the largest in the category. 7/26 Mississippi Daily Journal http://energy.gov/articles/energy-department-announces-building-energy-efficiency-investments-twenty-two-states

 

3.      2012 Profile of the Electrical Contactor - For the past 50 years, Electrical Contractor has surveyed its readers every other year to get a snapshot of the industry and pinpoint emerging trends, opportunities and other changing dynamics. This 26th biannual survey, the 2012 Profile of the Electrical Contractor, reveals new markets, shows how once-emerging trends have become ingrained, and provides guidance. July 2012 Electrical Contractor http://www.ecmag.com/

4.      Will The Plastics Industry Kill LEED? - The latest skirmish in a decade-old battle broke out this week, as 20 trade groups announced a new coalition to challenge the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED rating system as the dominant standard for buildings. The new coalition, the American High-Performance Buildings Coalition, includes the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the American Chemistry Council, the National Association of Manufacturers, the Vinyl Institute, the Vinyl Siding Institute, the Flexible Vinyl Alliance, the Society of the Plastics Industry and 20 other industry associations. The group is lobbying the U.S. General Services Association, which requires the LEED standard for all federal buildings, to reconsider, opting instead to require the Green Globes standard (“The Practical Building Rating System,” according to its website), considered to be friendlier to industry, including the plastics industry, which has invested heavily in the building products space. http://www.greenbiz.com/blog/2012/07/19/will-plastics-industry-kill-leed

5.      AD Encourages Affiliates to “Go For The Green” - AD held its second annual Clean Energy Summit July 23-25 in Chicago. The meeting featured a Clean Energy Expo, one-on-one strategy sessions, supplier training sessions and updates on AD’s Clean Energy Initiative, marketing, and program enhancements. http://www.tedmag.com/

6.      Lighting Efficiency Can Reduce Costs Up To 30% - New energy-efficiency requirements have created a large market for energy-efficient lighting equipment in the U.S., and can reduce electrical costs by up to 30% per month. Consumers are eager to not only adopt products that have the least impact on the environment, but also reduce energy consumption. Despite the vast opportunities in the market, intense competition and the higher initial costs of advanced lighting products are limiting revenue growth and market penetration. The slowdown in construction activity has further dampened the growth rate of the market. In the last few years, due to the challenging economic environment, customers have started inspecting more cost-effective systems. However, once the economy recovers, the market is anticipated to witness steady growth until 2016. 11. http://cleantechnica.com/2012/07/25/lighting-efficiency-can-reduce-costs-up-to-30/

7.      2012 Better Buildings Federal Awards - The Better Buildings Federal Award recognizes the Federal Government's highest-performing buildings through a competition to reduce annual energy use intensity (Btu per square foot of facility space) on a year-over-year basis. The Federal building that achieves the greatest percentage energy intensity savings for that year wins. The competition is on! Featured here are the eight finalists competing in this year's race to reduce their building's fiscal year 2012 energy intensity. The winner will be decided after September 2012, the last month of the competition. http://www1.eere.energy.gov/femp/services/betterbuildings.html

8.      Better Buildings Federal Award 2013 Guidelines for Entering - Agencies should consider nominating a building based on how well it expects the building to perform in 2013 as compared to 2012, taking into account a wide range of innovative or comprehensive energy management practices being undertaken by the building, including energy-saving projects and technologies as well as educational and outreach activities that encourage behavior change. The winner is the Federal building that reduces its energy intensity the most as compared to the previous year.  http://www1.eere.energy.gov/femp/services/bbfa_about.html

9.      SSL Market Introduction Workshop Presentations Posted - The seventh annual DOE Solid-State Lighting Market Introduction Workshop, was held on July 17–19 in Pittsburgh. Nearly 200 attendees gathered to share the latest updates and strategies for successful market introduction of high-quality, energy-efficient SSL solutions. The workshop was preceded by a series of tutorials for those new to SSL. The tutorial and workshop presentations and materials have been posted on the DOE SSL website at www.ssl.energy.gov/pittsburgh2012_materials.html 

10.  Avnet Opens Lighting Lab to Help Customers Test LEDs - Avnet Electronics Marketing Americas, a business region of Avnet Inc. and a distributor of LED components for use in general lighting applications, has opened a lighting lab in Chandler, Ariz., that will enable its customers to test and measure a wide range of LED applications. The Avnet Light Lab is a 900-square-foot facility designed to measure the key optical, electrical and thermal characteristics of high-power LEDs, modules and luminaires. http://avnetondemand.com 

11. Philips 2Q Revenue, Profit Rise Gains in Health Care, Lighting Divisions and Cost Savings - Improved sales of health care products and LED lighting at Royal Philips Electronics NV combined with cost-cutting measures to help the electronics giant post rises in revenue and net profit in the second quarter, LED light sales grew 37 percent compared to the second quarter in 2011 and now account for 20 percent of the company’s 2Q lighting sales of just over €2 billion ($2.44 billion). 7/23 Washington Post

Monthly Special Feature

Well July 14, 2012 is here and gone…….to help clarify the recent light bulb rules that went into effect on this date and the two-year exemption for the 700 series of T8 lamps IN YELLOW, let’s go back to the NEMA papers posted in July 2009:

Summary: New 2012 Standards for General Service Fluorescent Lamps (GSFL)                    

Effective Date of new DOE standards: July 14, 2012

Current exemptions continue [For example, lamps with CRI ≥87, cold temp. (CT), UV, etc.]

Impact for 4' & 8' Fluorescents Lamps ≤ 4500K and > 4,500K and ≤ 7,000K

• T12 4-ft. & 2-ft U-lamps with medium bi-pin bases

- Majority of F40 and F34T12 lamps and all FB40 and FB34T12 U-lamps FAIL.

- 4-ft. requires 3560 lumens @ 40W and 3030 lumens @ 34W to pass @ 89 LPW.

- 2-ft. U-lamps require 3360 @ 40W and 2856 @ 34W to pass @ 84 LPW.

- CWX/DX/DSGN50/C50 are exempt due to CRI.

• T12 8-ft. Slimline with single pin bases

- All 75W F96T12 lamps FAIL.

- All 60W F96T12/ES FAIL except for the 800/SPX Series & some 700/SP long life Series.

- CWX/DX/DSGN50/C50 are exempt due to CRI.

• T12 8-ft. 800mA HO with RDC bases

- All 110W F96T12 HO lamps FAIL. Requires enhanced coatings with 10,120 lumens to pass.

- All 95W F96T12/ES/HO FAIL except for enhanced 800 Series. Requires 8740 lumens to pass.

- CWX/DX/DSGN50/C50 are exempt due to CRI; CW/CT & D/CT are exempt.

• T8 4-ft. & 2-ft. U-lamps with medium bi-pin bases 

- All 4-ft. T8 basic 700/SP Series lamps @ 2800 lumens FAIL. Requires 2850 lumens to pass.

- All other 4-ft. pass.

- All 2-ft. 800/SPX Series U-lamps pass. Some 700/SP Series pass.

• T8 8-ft. Slimline with single pin bases

- All pass except some 700/SP Series. Requires 5723 lumens @ 59W to pass.

• T8 8-ft. HO with RDC bases

- All pass except some 700/SP Series. Requires 7912 lumens @ 86W to pass.

• T5 4-ft with miniature bi-pin bases

- All pass.

Summary: Energy Conservation Standards for Incandescent Reflector Lamps (IRL)

Effective Date of new DOE Standards: July 14, 2012

Impact: Only a few of today's halogen reflector lamps, e.g. PAR20, PAR30 and PAR38, can meet the standards in the Final Rule. In order to meet the new standards, reflector lamps will need to use new technologies such as advanced infrared (IR) coatings and optimized reflector coatings. IR coatings redirect wasted heat energy emitted by the lamp filament back to the filament, increasing the temperature of the filament, and thus enabling it to produce more light without increasing wattage. Optimized reflector coatings will more efficiently direct light produced by the lamp out of the lamp and into the space being illuminated. The few existing lamps that meet the new standards are more expensive than the standard halogen lamps on the market today. While the initial cost of the new higher efficiency reflector lamps will be higher, the consumer should see a payback through reduced electrical bills depending on the amount of time the lamps are "on."

News Updates for the Week of July 23

1.      Study: Energy-Saving Light Bulbs Can Cause Skin Cancer - Energy-saving compact fluorescent light bulbs popular among environmentalists are harmful to skin, researchers at a New York university have found.  Phosphor coatings on the bulbs wear off, the study from Stony Brook University on Long Island reported in the study published by in the journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology.  The scientists, led by Miriam Rafailovich, collected CFL bulbs from across Long Island to measure the amount of UV the bulbs gave off. They were alarmed thow many of the bulbs' phosphor coatings were lacking, causing them to leak significant levels of UVC and UVA.  Read more on Newsmax.com: Study: Energy-Saving Light Bulbs Can Cause Skin Cancer 

2.    ETS Focuses on Lighting Tax Incentives - Engineered Tax Services (ETS) www.engineeredtaxservices.com recently posted several lighting-focused articles on the 179D tax incentive program set to expire at the end of 2013.  179D was enacted by the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to stimulate investment in energy-saving technologies, though it remains widely unknown in the lighting industry. Non-public commercial buildings (both new and renovated) can claim up to $60,000 for every 100,000 square feet of building space where qualified efficient lighting is installed.  Surprisingly, building owners and designers and engineers are all eligible to take advantage of this incentive, which can improve the ROI of a prospective project. And if the incentive was missed during the design phase, past projects completed after January 1, 2006 remain qualified. http://lighting.com/ets-lighting-tax-incentives/

3.      New Light Bulb Rules Go into Effect July 14 - New U.S. Department of Energy regulations outlaw the manufacture of traditional T12 tubes, the most common fluorescent bulbs in the country.  T12 tubes are 4 feet long and 11/2 inches in diameter. According to a Department of Energy report, American homes in 2010 used more than 330 million old-fashioned fluorescent bulbs. An additional 410 million were lighting offices and shops. 7/14 The Kansas City Star

4.      DOE Releases CALiPER Application Summary Report 16 - The U.S. Department of Energy has completed Series 16 of testing through the DOE Solid-State Lighting CALiPER program. A summary of the results is now available for download on the DOE SSL website at www.ssl.energy.gov/reports.html.  Report 16 analyzes the performance of a group of 13 LED products labeled as BR30 or R30 lamps. Results show substantial improvement versus earlier CALiPER testing of similar products, and that many of the LED lamps could be effective replacements for conventional directional lamps in the right application. The report also indicates the need for a broader range of LED lamps within product families in terms of lumen output and distribution type, and questions the adequacy of existing reflector lamp categories for LED products.

5.      Energy Savings Draw Consumers to Energy-Efficient Lighting Systems - As lighting accounts for more than 20 percent of primary energy use in commercial buildings in the United States, there is an urgent need to upgrade existing lighting systems.  New analysis from Frost & Sullivan's Analysis of the North American Lighting Equipment Market finds that the market earned revenues of $17.3 billion in 2011 and estimates this to reach $20.8 billion in 2016.  7/19 PRNewswire http://www.buildingtechnologies.frost.com

6.      Fluorescent Lamp Shipments Dim During First Quarter - NEMA’s shipment indexes for linear fluorescent T5, T8, and T12 lamps decreased during the first quarter of 2012 compared to the same period last year. T5 lamps showed the largest decrease, declining 7.9%, while T8s and T12s declined by 5.5% and 5.0%, respectively. Despite posting year-over-year declines, shipments of T5 and T12 lamps grew by 6.8% and 4.9%, respectively, on a quarterly basis. Shipments of T8 lamps decreased 4.9% over the previous quarter. http://www.nema.org

7.      HID Lamp Shipment Indexes Show Growth for First Quarter - NEMA’s shipment indexes for high intensity discharge (HID) lamps returned to positive growth territory during the first quarter of 2012, with each lamp type showing year-over-year gains following negative growth to close out the final quarter of 2011. Sodium vapor lamps increased 2.9 percent, while shipments of mercury vapor and metal halide HID lamps increased 5.0 and 0.1 percent, respectively. http://www.nema.org

8.      DOE Municipal Solid-State Street Lighting Consortium - DOE created the Municipal Solid-State Street Lighting Consortium in 2010 to leverage the efforts of the many cities that are investigating LED street lighting products, often as a result of block grants and energy mandates--and increasingly with an eye toward creative financing arrangements. The Consortium provides a convenient way for cities to navigate multiple sources of information in just one stop, and offers such tools as the Model Specification for LED Roadway Luminaires and the Retrofit Financial Analysis Tool. To date, more than 350 municipalities, utilities, and government agencies have signed on as primary Consortium members, and momentum continues to build. http://www1.eere.energy.gov/buildings/ssl/consortium.html

9.      New York City Goes Green with Retrofit Lighting to Maximize Energy Savings - Commercial buildings in New York City including hotels, university housing, multifamily housing, medical and outpatient facilities, and commercial offices now have an opportunity to cut their energy costs and consumption. Building and property managers, building owners, facility engineers and directors, electricians and contractors can take part in a free webinar to learn more about new retrofitting technology and rebate programs on July 30, 2012.  TerraLUX Inc., an industry leader that designs, patents and manufactures LED-based lighting solutions for portable and general illumination applications, will be leading the webinar with retrofitting experts from UL, Con Edison/Lockheed Martin, and Smart Energy US.  Scheduled to take place at 10 a.m. EDT on July 30th, 2012 at:  http://www.terraluxillumination.com/2012/maximize-energy-savings-in-lighting-retrofit/

      10.  What’s New in HID Lamps and Ballasts by Craig Dilouie -Similar trends as fluorescent are driving innovation in high-intensity lighting, which is dominated by HID lighting. Within this segment, there has been a major technology shift from mercury vapor to metal halide over the past 10 years, and the market is trending in favor of white light. Innovation has focused on energy efficiency, longer life and controllability among higher-wattage lamps, and miniaturization and improved color performance among lower-wattage lamps that compete with halogen. Installed base of high-intensity discharge lamps in the United States, 2001 versus 2010. The HID lighting market has seen a significant technology shift in the past decade or so from mercury vapor to metal halide as a more-efficient, higher-performing white light source. Low-pressure sodium has also declined in popularity. Images based on Department of Energy data.  http://lightingcontrolsassociation.org/whats-new-in-hid-lighting/

 

11.  Drive to Standardize Outdoor & Street Lighting Controls - Several outdoor and street lighting industry players have allied to form a new global consortium with the aim of creating a globally accepted standard for a management software interface for outdoor lighting networks. Named TALQ www.TALQ-consortium.org the founders/participants are Harvard Engineering, Kingsun, Philips, Schréder, Streetlight.Vision and Thorn/Zumtobel. http://lighting.com/standardize-outdoor-controls/
 

12.  Lutron to Retrofit Empire State Building’s Lighting - Lutron Electronics, Coopersburg, Pa., will provide lighting controls for a major renovation of pre-built tenant spaces in the Empire State Building. The lighting controls are expected to provide total lighting energy savings of up to 65% and a reduced installed payback period of 2.75 years. The Empire State Building is undergoing a building-wide retrofit to improve energy efficiency and financial performance as part of the Clinton Climate Initiative’s Building Retrofit program. The project is designed to reduce the building’s energy use by 38% and energy bills by $4.4 million a year. http://www.lutron.com

13.  The Market for Wireless Power Systems Will Triple over the Next 8 Years, Surpassing $15 Billion by 2020 - Originating with simple inductive charging mechanisms that require a direct point of contact between charger (transmitter) and device (receiver), wireless power systems are evolving toward devices that connect to the wider power delivery infrastructure. As the technology matures and the industry consolidates, wireless power is beginning to see greater acceptance across a range of applications, and will become an increasingly common form of charging in the coming years. According to a new report from Pike Research, the market for wireless power systems–encompassing mobile devices, consumer electronics, industrial applications, infrastructure devices, and electric vehicles–will triple over the next 8 years, growing from $4.9 billion in revenue in 2012 to $15.1 billion in 2020.  http://www.pikeresearch.com/research/wireless-power

14.  Register for the AdVenture Marketing Conference - August 20-22, 2012 | Chicago, IL | Renaissance Blackstone. This conference is your chance to catch up on the latest marketing techniques while mingling with fellow marketers from the channel. Warren Janes, Maurice Electrical Supply Co., recently described one of the best reason to attend: "The beauty of AdVenture is that it is an audience of both Distributor and Manufacturers discovering how to market together." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eawBXUmnSkk

15. Housing Starts Show Yearly Gains in June - Housing starts increased to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 760,000 in June, up 6.9% from the revised May estimate of 711,000 and 23.6% above the June 2011 figure. Single-family housing starts in June were at a rate of 539,000, a 4.7% increase from the revised May figure of 515,000. The yearly comparisons showed gains across the country, with the West coming out on top with a 38.3% spike compared with June 2011. In the Midwest, single-family starts rose 15.7% and in the South, 14.2%. The Northeast showed a 19.4% increase. 7/19 HCN