News Updates for the Week of October 7

1.      2013 ENERGY STAR Products Partner Meeting – Cancelled Due to the Government Shutdown -

2.      $10 LED Price War Heats Up the Lighting Market - Earlier this year, Cree dropped the price of its 40-watt equivalent (6-watt) warm-white LED bulb to less than $10. The incumbents were watching and have answered.

• Philips at Home Depot selling its 60-watt LED equivalent for $9.97 after utility rebate. Also at Staples. For regions without a utility rebate available, its 10.5-watt is $10.97. 
• Wal-Mart is selling its line of Great Value LEDs for $8.88 for a 60-watt-equivalent.  
• Wal-Mart will also offer a new dimmable 60-watt equivalent by GE for $11.  
• GE is also selling its Reveal LED for about $20 at other retailers.  
• Ikea said last year it would only sell LEDs after 2016

       http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/10-LED-Price-War-Heats-Up-The-Lighting-Market

3.      LED Products and Building Partners Wanted for All High-Efficacy Project - California’s current Title 24 requirements for building energy efficiency call for some high-efficacy lighting in a limited number of residential space types, such as kitchens and bathrooms. CLTC http://cltc.ucdavis.edu is working with Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E) and Davis Energy Group (DEG) to develop specifications for residential lighting packages that will consist entirely of high-efficacy LED lighting products. More details are available here

4.      DOE Publishes Updated SSL Manufacturing R&D Roadmap - The Roadmap complements the SSL R&D Multi-Year Program Plan that guides the Core and Product Development R&D programs. One of the goals of the Roadmap is to guide the Manufacturing R&D program and help direct funding solicitations for it. The Roadmap also provides guidance for equipment and material suppliers, based on industry consensus on the expected evolution of SSL manufacturing—thereby reducing risk, improving quality, increasing yields, and lowering costs.  To download a PDF copy of the updated Roadmap, see www.ssl.energy.gov/techroadmaps.html

5.      Hubbell Lighting Launches Create Change Upgrade Program for Commercial Buildings - Commercial buildings represent over 80 billion square feet of space in the U.S. and consume 36% of all electricity, making them one of the largest generators of greenhouse gases. Hubbell Lighting announced a new solution to cut electricity costs, enhance the quality of light and reduce the financial risk of upgrades–resulting in up to a 3% increase in net operating income while at the same time improving the property value and attractiveness for tenants. To learn more about the createchange® program for commercial buildings: www.hubbelllighting.com/solutions/retrofit/applications/

6.      NEMA Publishes Annual Standards and Products Guide - The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) has published the 2014 edition of its Electrical Standards &  Products Guide (ESPG), a comprehensive listing of NEMA electrical standards as well as an extensive directory of manufacturers and their products. A complimentary copy may be downloaded at no charge: http://www.nxtbook.com/ygsreprints/NEMA/espg_nxtbook/

7.     Lighting Systems Index Gains Continue During Second Quarter - NEMA’s Lighting Systems Index posted a modest increase of 2.4 percent on a quarter-to-quarter basis during the second quarter of 2013. This quarterly advance marked the LSI’s third consecutive increase. On a year-over-year basis, lighting equipment shipments climbed 4.9 percent. Increased demand for fixtures, emergency lighting and miniature lamps buoyed the index by compensating for decreases in ballasts and large lamps. http://www.nema.org/News/Pages/Lighting-Systems-Index-Gains-Continue-During-Second-Quarter.aspx

8.      NEMA Publishes ANSI C136.25 Roadway and Area Lighting Equipment—Ingress Protection (Resistance to Dust, Solid Objects, and Moisture) for Luminaire Enclosures - ANSI C136.25 details the requirements for ingress protection of luminaires in roadway and area lighting equipment. While these requirements are suitable for most types of lighting, it should not be assumed that all listed degrees of protection are applicable to a particular type of equipment. The manufacturer should be consulted to determine the degrees of protection available. View the contents and scope of ANSI C136.25-2013

9.      High Rebates for High Bay Fixtures - Whether replacing antiquated T12HO systems or inefficient HID systems, installing fluorescent, pulse start metal halide, LED or induction high bay fixtures can bring in high rebates. Across North America, rebate organizations offer a lot of money to customers upgrading to energy-efficient high-bay lighting. http://www.briteswitch.com/news/06113.html

Prescriptive Rebates for Highbay Upgrades

Type of Fixture	Minimum Rebate	Average Rebate	Maximum Rebate
High bay T8	$10.00	$65.96	$325.00
High bay T5HO	$15.00	$76.24	$325.00
LED	$19.00	$89.00	$225.00
Induction	$10.00	$84.50	$400.00
Pulse Start Metal Halide	$45.00	$46.50	$400.00

10.  Future View: Technologies That Will Transform the Electrical Industry by Jim Lucy - Lighting, HVAC and building automation companies are blending their products together into integrated building control systems that can dramatically slash the amount of energy a commercial building consumes. http://ewweb.com/electrical-economy/future-view-technologies-will-transform-electrical-industry

 

11.  New Construction Can Get Rebates Too - New construction programs often base the incentives on the savings over a building code, most commonly a version of ASHRAE 90.1. Programs can cover equipment such as HVAC systems, interior lighting, exterior lighting, refrigeration, kitchen equipment and more. With new construction, it's important to consider rebates early in the planning process. http://www.briteswitch.com/news/01133.html

12.  ENERGY STAR LED Bulb Challenge http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=lighting.pr_lighting_landing

 

13.  Energy Department to Award $100 Million for EFRCs - The DOE currently funds 46 Energy Frontier Research Centers, which were selected for five-year funding in 2009. With support for those centers set to expire in July 2014, DOE has announced a competition for a second round of funding. The competition will be open to proposals both from existing EFRCs seeking renewal of support and from institutions seeking to establish new EFRCs under the program. Universities, national laboratories, nonprofit organizations, and private firms are eligible to compete and are encouraged to form multi-disciplinary research teams that may include partnerships with other institutions. Awards are expected to range from $2 million to $4 million per year per center for each of five fiscal years. http://energy.gov/articles/energy-department-award-100-million-energy-frontier-research-centers

14.  The Five Rules of Retail – LD&A http://www.ies.org/PDF/Archives/2013_10.pdf - When viewed on the bigscreen of total estimated U.S. retail sales in 2012 of $3.57 trillion, online transactions account for less than 15 percent, or $53 billion. A National Retail Federation survey found that brick-and mortar retailers are displaying solid staying power. Lighting, as part of the store experience, is playing an increasingly important role in creating visually distinctive selling spaces. Five ways that light can be deployed in retail environments:

1)      TO ENHANCE THE SHOPPING EXPERIENCE

2)      FOR MERCHANDISE DISPLAYS

3)      FOR ENERGY EFFICIENCY

4)      AS ART

5)      TO COMMUNICATE IMAGE

15.  CMA Launches Electrical Marketing Program Sparket - Creative Marketing Alliance (CMA), a full service marketing firm located in Princeton Junction, New Jersey, announced the launch of Sparket, a dedicated program powered by industry-experts to provide tailored marketing strategy and services to all electrical industry professionals. Designed to ignite the marketing efforts of companies within the electrical industry, Sparket is a customized program with tailored marketing solutions leveraging CMA's dynamic track record in the industry. Honing in on its expertise working with manufacturers, distributors, suppliers, contractors and ESCO's, Sparket delivers customized solutions for companies in this niche marketplace. www.SparketMarketing.com  

News Updates for the Week of June 10

1.      New BMW Adaptive LED Headlights - The Adaptive Headlights cast their beam in the direction of the curve and ensure better visibility and more safety during night drives on winding roads. Sensors measure speed, steering angle and yaw (degree of rotation around the vertical axis). Based on this information, small electric motors turn the headlights left or right so the beam falls on the road ahead, guiding you into the bend. Headlight beam throw control (a model-specific function) means the front headlights are raised at high speeds and lowered at slower speeds, which results in a wider beam for inner-city driving. The result: every single curve is illuminated and the oncoming traffic isn’t dazzled unnecessarily. Driving at night is even safer, particularly when visibility is poor. See the video: http://www.wimp.com/headlighttechnology/

2.      Number of the Day: $675 Million in Saved Energy Costs During 2012 Thank to LED Lights -The U.S. DOE did a study of how much electricity was saved last year thanks to the use of LED in nine kinds of applications (various kinds of indoor lights, streetlights, etc). "In 2012, about 49 million LED lamps and luminaires were installed in the nine applications. LEDs in these markets saved approximately 71 trillion British thermal units (tBtu), equivalent to an annual energy cost savings of about $675 million"!  But what's even more impressive is the potential for improvement. The DOE estimates that if the nine markets included in the estimate above were to switch to LEDs overnight, this would be the equivalent of about $37 billion in annual energy costs! http://www.treehugger.com/energy-efficiency/number-day-675-million-saved-energy-costs-during-2012-thank-led-lights.html

3.      Lighting Rebates Now Cover 74% of US - The landscape for active commercial lighting rebates and incentives continues to transform as new programs are announced and older ones run out of funding. Some notable changes that have occurred over the past few months are EnergyRight Solutions in the South East starting a wait list for funding, SureBet Nevada's program getting new money, and utilities in Pennsylvania relaunching their programs for Phase 2 of their efficiency campaigns. http://www.briteswitch.com/newsletter/Jun13-1.html

4.      More Rebate Opportunities for LEDs - Looking at all LED categories, the number of prescriptive rebates has increased 22% since January this year. The biggest increase occurred for fluorescent replacement fixtures (such as 1x4, 2x4, 2x2 fixtures) which more than tripled since January. Rebates for LED high bay fixtures have also grown by 162% and for LED replacement lamps by 33% as programs continue to embrace these new technologies. http://www.briteswitch.com/newsletter/Jun13-2.html

5.      Energy Efficiency Rebates Projected to Grow - A recent report by the Berkeley National Laboratory projects that spending on energy efficiency programs will continue to grow and will reach between $6.5 - 15.6 billion by 2025. The study looked at efficiency programs as reported by the CEE in 2010 and then created low, medium and high scenarios for future years based on the potential outcomes under the current policy environment. Most of the increase in funding is attributed to state legislative savings requirements and regulations, although some of the increase is also driven by utility DSM planning. This increase would mean a growth of 2-8% per year. In comparison, spending grew at 5% per year from 1997-2006 and 26% from 2006-2010. http://www..briteswitch.com/newsletter/Jun13-3.html

6.      DOE to Support Next Generation Efficient Lighting R&D - Building on his strong focus on energy efficiency in his first few days in office, U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz announced five manufacturing research and development projects to support energy efficient lighting products. The projects will focus on reducing manufacturing costs, while continuing to improve the quality and performance of LEDs and OLEDs. The Energy Department’s $10.1 million investment is matched dollar for dollar by private sector funding. DOE investments:

• Cree Inc. (Durham, N.C.; $2.3 million) 
• Eaton Corp. (Menomonee Falls, Wis.; $2.4 million)
• OLEDWorks LLC (Rochester, N.Y.; $1 million) 
• Philips Lumileds (San Jose, Calif.; $1.8 million) 
• PPG Industries Inc. (Pittsburgh, Pa.; $2.3 million)

http://www.onlinetes.com/doe-lighting-research-development-energy-manufacturing-6513.aspx

7.      OLED vs LED Lighting 2013-2023: Forecasts, Technologies, Players - OLED and LED lighting are both solid-state technologies and offer overlapping value propositions per market segment. They will therefore compete directly in many instances. LED lighting has come a long way and offers a better performance than OLEDs, and that at a lower cost. OLED lighting will therefore only gain market success if it clearly defines its unique selling points and carves out initial market niches. IDTechEx Research finds that in its “most likely” forecasts scenario, OLED lighting will become a $1.3 billion market in 2023 – equating to 1.3% of the market size of LED lighting at that time.This report is divided into two parts: (a) technology and (b) market assessment. http://www.idtechex.com/research/reports/oled-vs-led-lighting-2013-2023-forecasts-technologies-players-000339.asp

8.      Occupancy Sensors Boost Savings at Dept. of Labor Parking Garage - The U.S. DOE recently released a GATEWAY report on a parking-garage demonstration conducted at U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) headquarters in Washington, DC, which serves as a classic illustration of the savings that can result from switching to SSL-- and how the use of occupancy-sensor controls can increase those savings. Parking garages often present attractive energy-saving opportunities when safety and security demand that they be lighted 24/7, regardless of actual building use. http://apps1.eere.energy.gov/buildings/publications/pdfs/ssl/2013_gateway_dept-labor.pdf

9.      NREL Highlights 2012 Utility Green Power Leaders - The Energy Department’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) released its assessment of leading utility green power programs. Under these voluntary programs, residential and commercial consumers can choose to help support additional electricity production from renewable resources–such as wind and solar–that diversify our nation’s energy portfolio and protect our air and water. 6/05 http://www.nrel.gov/news/press/2013/2211.html

10.  Comcast and OSRAM SYLVANIA Announce Agreement to Bring Remote Controlled Smart Light Bulbs to the Xf  - Comcast and OSRAM SYLVANIA announced the companies have entered into an agreement to offer energy efficient light bulbs that can be controlled remotely from anywhere through the Xfinity Home platform. Sylvania's new energy-saving LED smart light bulbs can be plugged into any standard light bulb socket, and can save up to 83 percent in energy costs and last up to 17.5 times longer than standard incandescent light bulbs. Specifically, the SYLVANIA ULTRA iQ^TM LED BR30 flood light bulb has a life of 35,000 hours. In addition by partnering with OSRAM SYLVANIA, Comcast becomes the first service provider to offer an integrated remote controlled light bulb. Ultra iQ LED BR30 6/06 Business Wire

11.  Top 40 List of Electrical Design Firms for 2013 - The nation’s top U.S. electrical design firms weathered the storm during the economic slowdown with slim margins, fierce competition, and drastically reduced opportunities. By diversifying their services and expanding into new areas, however, the companies are now reporting a brighter outlook ahead. Overall, the companies on this year’s listing reported total electrical design revenues of $1.348 billion in 2012. http://ecmweb.com/top-40-list-electrical-design-firms-2013

12.  Lighting Equipment Shipments Continued to Improve During the First Quarter of 2013 - NEMA’s Lighting Systems Index increased in the first quarter of 2013 following a 3.4 gain in the fourth quarter of 2012, growing 5.4% on a quarter-to-quarter basis and by 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. http://ecmweb.com/lighting-amp-control/lighting-equipment-shipments-continued-improve-during-first-quarter-2013