Sapphire scores demonstrate SSL is riding a new wave of innovation (MAGAZINE)

Back in the March issue, we reported at length on the winners in the 2020 Sapphire Awards program, explaining the key features that earned each product recognition at the sixth annual awards reception on Feb. 12. While hosting aboard the flight deck of the USS Midway that evening, chief editor Maury Wright observed that each year the judging gets more difficult due to the narrowing of the gap in performance of many solid-state lighting (SSL) products, and that innovation has evolved to represent form, function, and flexibility across all technology and application categories, as well as the quality of light necessary for a luminaire’s intended purpose. Here we outline the scoring of products that receive 3.25 Sapphires and above.

As in previous years, the judges were tasked with evaluating product submissions based on the quality of informational materials supplied as well as the described merits of the products, including datasheets, photometric reports, and other documents, and were scored from 0–5 Sapphires. Products were given a minimum of 3 Sapphires if they were deemed suitable for commercial deployment. For a product to receive a score of 3.25 Sapphires or above, it must perform efficiently and reliably, contribute to profitability, and demonstrate ease of use. Scores above 3.75 Sapphires were given to entries that were judged to deliver excellent performance via criteria such as high efficacy, effective beam distribution, and superior light quality, for example; and/or added value such as ease of installation, integration, and/or use, granular control, intelligent features beyond dimming and on/off scheduling in the case of smart components and controls, among others.

All products were judged solely on appropriate functions and features within each category — meaning that the same performance expectations would not be applied to a test tool, smart lighting system, and outdoor luminaire, and so on.

Judging by the submissions in this year’s program, companies in the LED and SSL sectors have heard their peers’ comments and demands for the industry to step up and move beyond traditional form factors and simply replicating the experience of conventional light sources. Many of the entries were judged to facilitate finished product quality, deliver high-quality illumination, enable the right type of light at the right time for the established application, or bring new levels of aesthetic achievement to lighting projects.

3.25

Keystone Technologies
Smart Port LED Sensors — Smart and Connected SSL Enabling Technologies

Keystone Technologies
Step Down Transformer — LED Drivers

Nichia Corporation
Tunable White 757 – NF2W757G-MT — Tunable White LEDs and Light Engines

3.50

Columbia Lighting
Versify — Indoor Troffer, Track, and Downlight SSL Luminaire Design

ConTech Lighting
Mini-Stealth Wall Wash Track Luminaire — Indoor Troffer, Track, and Downlight SSL Luminaire Design

Dialight
Reliant High Bay — Industrial SSL Luminaire Design

eldoLED
SOLOdrive 30W DMX — LED Drivers

ELR
NEST ND+ (50- and 70-mm) — Indoor Troffer, Track and Downlight SSL Luminaire Design

Enlighted
Enlighted One — Smart and Connected SSL Systems

ERP Power
LT3E LED Driver featuring Tri-mode Dimming with Integrated Tunable White Light Engine — Tunable White LEDs and Light Engines

Espen Technology
VersaDim RF — Smart and Connected SSL Systems

Finelite, Inc.
FineTune Tailored Control System (TCS) — Lighting for Health and Wellbeing

IllumiSci
IllumiTile Light Engine – Configurable LED arrays (Model IS-IT-89MM) — SSL Flex, Tiles, and Sheets

Lumileds
LUXEON CSP HL1 — Packaged LEDs and OLEDs

Lumileds
LUXEON Fusion — Tunable White LEDs and Light Engines

Lumileds
LUXEON IR ONYX — Packaged LEDs and OLEDs

Luminis
Multilux — Indoor Troffer, Track, and Downlight SSL Luminaire Design

Signify
Fortimo InstantFit (Model Number: 929001673906) — SSL Lamp and Retrofit Designs

Soraa, Inc.
Soraa HEALTHY MR16 Lamp — Lighting for Health and Wellbeing

3.75

A-Light
WGD9 — Indoor Decorative and Pendant SSL Luminaire Design

Bridgelux
Vesta Flex — LED Drivers

Elemental LED
NEON BLAZE RGB Diffused Linear LED Lighting — Outdoor Landscape and Architectural SSL Design

Healthe by Lighting Science
SunTrac Ecosystem, with Automated Scheduling — Lighting for Health and Wellbeing

Hubbell Lighting
SpectraClean — Specialty SSL Design

Igor
Nexos Linear Max Node Series — Smart and Connected SSL Enabling Technologies

Isollux LED Ltd
Soffito (SFO-IP65-UT-85-180W-ND) — Industrial SSL Luminaire Design

Kenall
TekLink TL2000PS Parking Suite — Smart and Connected SSL Systems

LEDvance
BIOLUX HCL System — Lighting for Health and Wellbeing

Lucetta Lighting
CELESTE Flexible Linear Lighting — SSL Flex, Tiles, and Sheets

Luminis
Lumiquad — Outdoor Street and Area SSL Luminaire Design

McWong International Inc.
TruBlu Bluetooth-DALI Wireless Fixture Controller — Smart and Connected SSL Enabling Technologies

Mean Well USA Inc.
HVGC-1000 — LED Drivers

Meteor Lighting
WHIZ 2.0 — Industrial SSL Luminaire Design

Osram Opto Semiconductors
OSCONIQ S 3030 Quantum Dot — Packaged LEDs and OLEDs

Samsung Electronics
LM302N (SPMWH3326FC5FBU0S0) — Packaged LEDs and OLEDs

Samsung Electronics
Samsung T-series (SPHWHAHDNH25YZWPT1) — Tunable White LEDs and Light Engines

Signify
ELI-S-10 10VA Pure Sine Wave Emergency Nano Inverter — Emergency SSL Luminaires, Modules, and Drivers

Universal Lighting Technologies
EVERLINE PWX LED Drivers — LED Drivers

4.00

Agnetix
A3-1200-HERO — Horticultural Lighting

A-light
Absorb H — Specialty SSL Design

Bridgelux
Thrive — Packaged LEDs and OLEDs

Cooper Lighting Solutions (formerly Eaton Lighting Division)
Metalux Industrial WaveLinx Wireless Connected Lighting System Solutions — Industrial SSL Luminaire Design

Dow
DOWSIL EI-2888 Primerless Silicone Encapsulant — SSL Enabling Technologies and Test

ERP Power
LTM3 Tunable Color Light Engine — Tunable White LEDs and Light Engines

Evo-Lite, LLC
Auragami Flexible LED Light Sheet — SSL Flex, Tiles, and Sheets

Fluence by Osram
VYPR 2P — Horticultural Lighting

Fluxwerx
Rails — Indoor Troffer, Track and Downlight SSL Luminaire Design

Gamma Scientific
940 LED-200 Series Goniometer — SSL Enabling Technologies and Test

GVA Lighting
HL-DL-BLADE — Outdoor Landscape and Architectural SSL Design

Igor
Nexos Linear Network Node – Max — Emergency SSL Luminaires, Modules, and Drivers

Inventronics
EUM-DT Series, Next Generation Class P LED Drivers — LED Drivers

Kenall
LuxTran LTSI-A1 — Outdoor Street and Area SSL Luminaire Design

Kenall
MedSlot Family of Luminaires — Lighting for Health and Wellbeing

KIM Lighting
KFL Collection — Outdoor Landscape and Architectural SSL Design

MaxLite
PhotonMax LED Spot Light — Horticultural Lighting

Meteor Lighting
Duo 4 Up/Down Pendant — Indoor Decorative and Pendant SSL Luminaire Design

Nulite Lighting
Regolo1 — Indoor Decorative and Pendant SSL Luminaire Design

Samsung Electronics
Samsung ITM-Resi (ITM-D-BZ) — Smart and Connected SSL Enabling Technologies

Selux Corporation
Mistella — Outdoor Street and Area SSL Luminaire Design

Signify
Advance FlexTune System — Smart and Connected SSL Systems

Soraa, Inc.
Soraa VIVID Warm Dim MR16 Lamp — SSL Lamp and Retrofit Designs

4.25

Cooper Lighting Solutions (formerly Eaton Lighting Division)
Shaper Sense Acoustic LED Lighting (BOX and TRAP) — Specialty SSL Design

Diode LED, an Elemental LED brand
HYDROLUME SLIM 24V IP68 RGB Strip Light — Outdoor Landscape and Architectural SSL Design

eLumigen
LED Rough Service A19 Lamps — SSL Lamp and Retrofit Designs

Fluence by Osram
SPYDR 2i — Horticultural Lighting

Fluxwerx
Profile Mini — Indoor Decorative and Pendant SSL Luminaire Design

Glint Photonics, Inc.
Glint Hero — Indoor Troffer, Track, and Downlight SSL Luminaire Design

LED Linear USA
NEXUS – Ultra High Definition LED Flex Tape — SSL Flex, Tiles, and Sheets

Nichia Corporation
Vitasolis (NF2W757GT-V3F1 Rv—-) — Packaged LEDs and OLEDs

Vektrex
SpikeSafe SMU (Model Number: 10A SpikeSafe SMU) — SSL Enabling Technologies and Test

4.50

ANP Lighting
EQ Collection – Post Top Luminaires — Outdoor Street and Area SSL Luminaire Design

Circadian ZircLight Inc.
CIRCADIAN Zirc Day-Night Mid-Power LED Set — Lighting for Health and Wellbeing

Cooper Lighting Solutions (formerly Eaton Lighting Division)
Ephesus Lumadapt 8 LED Sports Lighting System — Specialty SSL Design

Eureka Lighting
Arena 8200 and accessories 8290-8291-8292-8293 — Indoor Decorative and Pendant SSL Luminaire Design

4.75

Cree Lighting
Cadiant Dynamic Lighting Experience — Lighting for Health and Wellbeing

2020 Sapphire Awards Judging Panel

Jim Benya, Benya Burnett Consultancy

Carl Bloomfield, Intertek

Chris Brown, Nextgen Lighting

Deborah Burnett, Benya Burnett Consultancy

Monica Hansen, LED Lighting Advisors

Eric Haugaard, Cree Lighting

Duncan Jackson, Billings Jackson Design

Brad Koerner, Koerner Design

Clifton Stanley Lemon, Clifton Lemon Associates

Steve Paolini, Telelumen

Kris Sandheinrich, KGM Lighting

Wilhem Sillevis-Smitt, Lumileds

Philip Smallwood, Fluence Bioengineering

Aaron Smith, Finelite

Erik Swenson, Nichia

Robert Steele, Strategies in Light

Carrie Meadows, LEDs Magazine

Maury Wright, LEDs Magazine