Specialty and Architectural Lighting — LED

Over two years ago, when we wrote this original post, there was general angst from lighting designers, contractors and owners about the usefulness of LED MR16 bulbs as viable replacements for halogen MR16 in commercial display lighting applications. At the time, we cited a USDOE report from 2014 that showed "very few of the LED MR16 lamps listed in the LED Lighting Facts program are comparable replacements for the popular 12V 50W halogen MR16". Only...

Effective lighting for retail stores focuses on two concepts: entice shoppers to enter the store and, once they are in the store, direct their attention to the merchandise. This basic formula gets more complex, depending on the store, with the need to find a balance with other important issues such as energy use, maintenance costs, heat and UV generated by the lighting. A winning lighting strategy accomplishes the primary goal of getting shoppers in the...

Facility managers faced with a lamp replacement project may want to consider the LED option but worry about the reliability of the technology, higher initial costs and a predictable return on investment. Bosses may require convincing that now is the right time to adopt LED lighting for their facility. While we are well past the "early adopter" phase of the new technology adoption curve, familiarity with the LED light source and its benefits may still...

Learn about the benefits and considerations of switching from metal halide and HID lighting systems to LED. While the energy savings and maintenance costs are better with LED HID replacements, does the technology live up to the promises of LED lighting manufacturers?

Lighting, one of the key components of the overall customer experience when dining out, provides the restaurant owner with the benefits of aesthetic appeal along with the hassle of ongoing maintenance requirements and potentially high energy costs. The emergence of LED lighting offers restaurant owners an opportunity to maintain or enhance the lighting environment in their restaurant while reducing operating expenses. In some cases this means only deciding to purchase equivalent LED bulbs instead of...

Learn about LED downlights, modules, and arrays. Before buying a fancy new LED light fixture, it would be a wise idea to find out how easy replacing the LED array will be. And with how rapidly LED technology is changing, find out how big a concern this really is.

A study by Rutgers University indicates that cheaper, more efficient lighting may lead to more lighting being used by consumers and institutions. One likely result -- people will use more lights if they are cheaper to operate, which won't reduce the overall energy usage. According to an article from InsideClimateNews summarizing the findings, the cost of LEDs will keep coming down due to a switch from rare earth elements (REEs) to earth-abundant materials that are...

Currently, T8 fluorescent tubes dominate the commercial and institutional lighting sector both in number of lamps and in lumen output. The USDOE estimated in 2010 that there were 1 billion fluorescent fixtures in the U.S. It is no surprise that LED manufacturers have focused on this potentially huge retrofit market with a large number of LED options. Unlike other LED replacement bulbs, T8 tubes have some subtle, but critical differences in how they are installed....

Cities and states can enjoy numerous benefits by switching from high pressure sodium to LED lights in street lighting fixtures and traffic signal lights. These benefits included better visibility for drivers, lower power consumption for street lights, and reduced maintenance when compared to the old lighting technology. On the negative side, switching from yellow light to the whiter LEDs has the effect of keeping people awake at night, depending on their proximity to the light...

We recently received an email from a reader pointing to the fact that many details are glossed over or left out in articles about how to buy LED bulbs to replace existing incandescent or halogen in homes. We'll give it another try in this article. With incandescent bulbs, when they burn out, you look at the watts printed on the bulb. That's basically all you need to know to buy a new incandescent bulb that...