Things seen and heard — LEDucation Day 1

Although I am planning to include this in the news section of our weekly newsletter, note that this is a “reporter’s notebook” style blog, jotting down some key highlights from the first day of LEDucation in New York City. If I didn’t mention you, please don’t be offended and know that much of the day is still percolating in my brain. 😊

1. CCT selectability on outdoor products

Early in the day, I visited with Modern Forms and WAC Lighting, where Tom Lillie showed me that Modern Forms has included adjustable CCT with the flick of a switch, set in the back of the latest outdoor offerings. The capability is available on indoor luminaires as well. It may seem basic to some, but not every customer wants an extended control feature set for CCT. “They can set it and forget it,” Lillie said, or change to warmer/cooler lighting as the occasion arises.

2. Tiny but mighty lighting

Next door at WAC Lighting, Jonathan Hoffman demonstrated the tiny ½-inch Aether Atomic downlight is every bit as capable of delivering precise directional lighting (at up to 1,000 lm, at that) while maintaining a very quiet ceiling. The downlight is also available in a 1-inch model.

Alloy LED launched a new architectural lighting brand called Optique, which utilizes what it calls “nano linear” optics to deliver uniform, edge-to-edge illumination (without shadowing) in modular linear forms. The UL rated fixtures, which can be combined into runs or various angular configurations, “reduce the assembly difficulty and costs required with [conventional] tape lights, while looking like high-end architectural linear lighting” without the higher price tag, explained co-founder Joe Flynn.

3. Acuity Brands pins success on the lighting experience and ESG

Over on the Acuity Brands “block,” A-Light’s Ryan Radke echoed recent discussion from the company’s ESG report and commentary you’ll see soon from CEO Neil Ashe in the pages of LEDs Magazine. “We have new [Stitch] luminaires that are 100% recyclable and have an 88% reduction in shipping [package] volume, which reduces the shipping weight and by association, carbon emissions” due to logistics and packaging,” Radke said. He also noted that the many acoustic-dampening luminaires offered across Acuity lines can help building managers, facilities owners, and employers tap into new demands for more comfortable spaces with noise management.

4. Connecting with non-exhibiting companies

An Italy-based company called Nextsense approached me for a conversation at the LEDs table, where I learned that the manufacturer has multiwavelength visible-light disinfection technology, called BIOVITAE, in play in Europe and some parts of Asia. It is now seeking opportunities for expansion into U.S. markets. The development team, headed up by technicians with expertise in medical devices and quantum physics, began tackling “superbugs” to address problems of antimicrobial-resistant pathogens before anyone uttered the word “pandemic,” they told me. I look forward to taking a deeper dive into the BIOVITAE technology and bringing more detail to our readers.

CARRIE MEADOWS is managing editor of LEDs Magazine, with 20-plus years’ experience in business-to-business publishing across technology markets including solid-state technology manufacturing, fiberoptic communications, machine vision, lasers and photonics, and LEDs and lighting.

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