Lighting News

2012 Lighting Trade Shows and Events

Lighting for Tomorrow is celebrating its 10th anniversary with the launch of the 2012 competition. Continuing the momentum from previous competitions, Lighting for Tomorrow will be looking at lighting control products including stand-alone, system-based, and whole house devices. Along with the promotion of residential lighting control devices, Lighting for Tomorrow continues to encourage innovation in the use of new light sources. Included in the 2012 competition are SSL fixtures for specific applications, replacement lamps, and for the first time retrofit kits. This international lighting design competition will be officially launched at the Dallas Lighting Market, January 19-23.

UL is pleased to announce the 'Energy and the Smart Grid Home' knowledge track, presented at The International Consumer Electronics Show 2012.

Labsphere, Inc. is pleased to announce the addition of goniophotometers to its light measurement product line. As part of a cooperative agreement with UL Verification Services Inc. of Northbrook IL, Labsphere will now promote and sell high quality Type C goniophotometers, a product which completes the company's full range of IES (Illuminating Engineering Society) LM-79 test and measurement solutions. In conjunction with this agreement, UL now will be promoting and selling Labsphere integrating spheres systems with proprietary Spectraflect(R) 99% diffuse reflectance coating. The combination of Labsphere's sphere-based systems and UL's goniophotometers gives customers worldwide the ability to equip their labs with one-stop shopping for best-in-class products.

As lighting technology and regulations continue to advance, UL is here to help. A series of educational progams designed to help educate lighting consumers on key technology and regulatory changes that will impact thier potential purchases. Two programs are available. - Lighting Safety 101 : a free webcast covering the basics of cuurent safety and energy efficiency regulations and thier impact to lighting consumers. - Brighter Future : an educational and sales-oriented program, including in-store collateral and sales guides for maximizing sales of solid state and LED based lighting products.

Underwriters Laboratories Canada is pleased to announce the publication of the First Edition of ULC/ORDC420-11, Light Emitting Diode (LED) Equipment for Use in Lighting Products, published under the date of August 2011. This Other Recognized Document (ORD) covers LED equipment that is an integral part of a luminaire or other lighting equipment and which operates in the visible light spectrum between 400 - 700 nm. These requirements also cover the component parts of light emitting diode (LED) equipment, including LED drivers, controllers, arrays, modules, and packages as defined within this ORD.

Environmental issues are a top priority for many consumers. These days, it's hard to watch TV without hearing about how you can help the environment by "going green." One increasingly popular way of contributing to the green movement is to install compact fluorescent lamps (CFL), a fluorescent bulb designed to emit as much light as traditional light bulbs while using less energy. CFLs use about 75 percent less energy than standard incandescent bulbs and can last up to 10 times longer. CFLs also produce about 75 percent less heat, so they're safer to operate and can cut home cooling costs. To put savings into perspective, if you presently use 50 lamps (100 watts), you're saving about $550/year in electricity. Each year, retailers sell approximately 130-150 million CFLs. But while consumers are highly receptive to these energy-saving products, conflicting messages about CFLs are leaving people confused about the safety of the lamps, specifically regarding mercury and end-of-life issues when the lamp burns out.

Among 39 SSL fixtures and a total of 52 products, the Lighting for Tomorrow panel of judges awarded superior energy efficient SSL fixtures, replacement lamps and lighting controls. In a ceremony held at the American Lighting Association (ALA) Annual Conference in Palm Beach, Florida on September 13, the winners of the ninth annual Lighting for Tomorrow competition were recognized for designing the best energy-efficient lighting products for the residential market. Of the fifty-two products submitted in the 2011 competition, the judging panel selected eight winners and six honorable mentions.

UL is committed to advancing and innovating safety, providing certainty to more people, businesses and governments. As a technical leader in Solid State and LED Lighting technologies, UL has created a Component Recognition program for LED packages under the Category Control Number (CCN) OOQL2 (LED Packages - Component). A parallel category, OOQL8, provides certification for Canada. Evaluation for LED Packages will be performed in accordance with UL 8750, 1st Edition- Standard for Light Emitting Diode (LED) Equipment For Use In Lighting Products. For Canada, additional considerations are made for any applicable requirements of the Canadian Electrical Code and C22.2 No. 250.0-08.

A primary expectation for any product listed in accordance with a UL standard is that it will 'do no harm.' One example is if a fire were to start within the product - the product is expected to manage the situation in a manner that will not allow the incident to spread to the building or other products in the vicinity. To accomplish this, most UL standards have vigorous and demanding requirements for the product enclosure. Polymer (plastic) materials used for an enclosure are typically required to comply with certain flammability ratings (such as 5V or V0, whose test methods are described in the UL 94 standard) that reflect the material's ability to self-extinguish when faced with a fire incident. This ability is often related to the amount and type of flame retardant content in the formulation of the specific polymer.

As Solid State and LED technology continue to progress, many manufactures are looking for ways to install LED components in existing built-environment luminaires. As many of these kits require modification to the existing luminaire, and potentially create risk of fire and shock, UL has created a program for LED Retrofit kits. The newest LED Retrofit kit requirements were published December 31, 2010 as Subject 1598C Light-Emitting Diode (LED) Retrofit Luminaire Conversion Kits. At this stage the document is referred to as an Outline of Investigation. Retrofit devices or kits consist of parts and/or subassemblies intended for field installation in UL Listed luminaires, office furnishing luminaires or portable luminaires.

As LED-based solid-state-lighting (SSL) technology advances and accelerates, regulatory bodies are working to develop and publish energy-efficiency requirements globally. Navigating this moving maze can be a real challenge for manufacturers. To facilitate transparency in these program changes, UL in conjunction with LEDs Magazine recently hosted a webcast on the 2011 Energy Star program requirements.

UL, a world leader in advancing safety, announced today that it has acquired Lighting Sciences, Inc. (LSI), a leading provider of photometric testing services, test equipment, and advisory services in support of the growing Solid State Lighting (SSL) market. LSI will become part of UL's Verification Services business, which provides performance testing, inspection and auditing for product manufacturers and retailers worldwide. "This acquisition allows us to further extend our global safety mission and better serve companies in the rapidly expanding Solid State Lighting markets," said Keith Williams, president and CEO of UL. "The lighting industry is undergoing a technology transformation. Global regulators are placing a much greater focus on the need to develop safe and energy efficient lighting products like LED. Combining the technical expertise and market positions of UL and LSI will allow the lighting industry to come to a single organization for testing and certification of their products to the applicable safety and energy efficiency standards.

UL and UL Environment, working with the California Energy Commission (CEC) and sign industry representatives, have developed a program to assist sign manufacturers demonstrate compliance with the energy conservation requirements within Title 24, of the California Energy Commission's Building Energy Efficiency Standards. The CEC adopted sign lighting regulations on January 1, 2010. The requirements for signs can be found in the 2008 Building Energy Efficiency Standards, Title 24, Part 6, Section 148 of the California Code of Regulations.

Northbrook, Ill. - Underwriters Laboratories, Inc., a global leader in environmental evaluation and certification, today announced that the organization has earned approval as a third-party certification body for the federal ENERGY STAR(R) energy efficiency program. Effective January 1, 2011, ENERGY STAR will require that any product seeking program participation have their energy performance validated by a third-party certifier prior to product labeling and undergo post-market verification testing to validate continuing energy performance. "UL is committed to supporting the EPA and the Department of Energy in strengthening ENERGY STAR's reputation for energy performance," said Stephen Wenc, president of UL Environment. "Accredited third-party validation improves the integrity of claims made under the program's umbrella, giving consumers further confidence in the validity of energy efficiency claims."

Michael Shulman has 30 years of product safety experience at Underwriters Laboratories. He has performed equipment investigations and participated in codes and standards development for a wide range of industrial, commercial, and consumer products.

During December 2009, Underwriters Laboratories' RTP Office was a proud host and sponsor for the Next Generation Luminaires (NGL) Solid State Lighting Design Competition. This event is an opportunity to recognize and promote excellence in the design of energy efficient LED Commercial Lighting fixtures. The Department of Energy (DOE) partnered with the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America, (IESNA), the International Association of Lighting Designers, (IALD), and UL to organize and present the entries for the competition this year. This year's competition included over 150 entries in both indoor and outdoor LED fixtures. Volunteers from UL's facility and Lighting team installed the products for exhibition at UL's RTP office. While the judging was taking place, the exhibit was opened to local authorities and specifiers who were interested in seeing the state of the art of LED luminaires. The indoor exhibit included recessed commercial products, cove lights, down lights, wall washes, parking garage lights and security lighting. At sunset, outdoor fixtures including street, parking lot, pathway and architectural lighting were displayed for judging.

UL subsidiary intends to assist consumers, designers, architects, and building operators identify more sustainable options for interior and exterior lighting, LED modules, and related components. A global leader in environmental evaluation and certification, UL Environment has kicked off a standards effort that will help buyers identify and understand sustainable lighting options including LEDs. The agency will address the entire luminaire including reflector, aperture, outer shell, and connection to a power source. "According to the U.S. Department of Energy, an average household dedicates 11 percent of its energy budget to lighting," said Stephen Wenc, president of UL Environment, Inc. "LED modules alone have potential to reduce lighting electricity demand in the U.S. by one third and deliver savings of $265 billion by 2027 - but lighting solutions can go beyond energy and cost savings. This effort supports the development of more sustainable options for consumers based on a holistic evaluation of environmental performance in a variety of areas beyond efficiency."

The International Accreditation Service (IAS) has accredited the Underwriters Laboratories (UL) test facility in San Jose, California, to test products for compliance with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ENERGY STAR(R) requirements. IAS accreditation provides UL with formal recognition of its competence to test products for ENERGY STAR compliance, to ensure that products are compliant with their energy efficiency requirements. The scope of the IAS accreditation lists the EPA test that UL conducts for determining the energy efficiency and power consumption of several high tech and consumer electronics products, including computers, imaging equipment and power supplies. During the accreditation process, UL went through rigorous assessment based on the IAS Accreditation Criteria for Testing Laboratories (AC89), including quality management system requirements and technical demonstrations, under ISO/IEC Standard 17025:2005 and ENERGY STAR program testing standards.

UL, a product safety certification organization, has acquired a laboratory approved for Energy Star qualification testing of LED lighting products. Underwriters Laboratories Inc. (UL), an independent product safety certification organization based in Northbrook, Illinois, has acquired Luminaire Testing Laboratory (LTL), based in Allentown, PA. LTL is an independent testing laboratory that provides performance testing of lamps and luminaires, and is one of five laboratories approved by the Department of Energy (DOE) for Energy Star qualification testing for LED lighting products.

After nearly three years in development, the standard covering product safety of LED lighting equipment has now been published. Underwriters Laboratories (UL), an independent product safety certification organization based in Northbrook, Illinois, has published ANSI/UL 8750 "Safety Standard for Light Emitting Diode (LED) Equipment for Use in Lighting Products." The first-edition standard creates a global platform of safety requirements for LED lighting equipment as well as the entire supply chain of components used in lighting products employing LED technology.

Light emitting diode (LED) technology is being used in an ever-increasing number of lighting products including luminaires, electric signs, lamps and even flashlights. Although LEDs are typically powered by low voltage sources, there are a number of potential safety hazards that must be addressed so products containing them can be installed and used in a safe, code-compliant manner.

Underwriters Laboratories (UL) announce their presence at the up coming Light+Building 2008 as the world's primary global certification body. Frankfurt - 06 - 11 April 2008 - Pav. 4.2 - Stand G38 - Technical Lighting Area At Light+Building 2008 UL will be presenting their product certification and safety testing service portfolio for global market access, in addition to several special promotional campaigns and a new certification services preview.