Light Bites: What’s happening in programs and associations — Feb. 15, 2023

LEDs Magazine brings together the latest activities and opportunities for lighting industry professionals and lighting stakeholders regarding a time-sensitive Zhaga Consortium job opening, upcoming information sessions on how to be involved in the Integrated Lighting Campaign, and a compelling session on outdoor lighting from the DesignLights Consortium.

Zhaga Consortium seeks Secretary General

Zhaga Consortium, a global organization for standardizing LED interfaces for luminaire components, announced an opening for the position of Secretary General in January, expected to close on Feb. 17. Zhaga continues to evolve its focus on interoperability of components for lighting end products and systems, and seeks a strategic thinker to work alongside the marketing manager in promoting Zhaga’s mission as a certification authority, standards authority, and advocate for circularity in the lighting industry.

Indeed, in 2021, current Secretary General Dee Denteneer summarized the implications of Zhaga Book 20 and how complementary specifications from Zhaga and the former Digital Illumination Interface Alliance (now the DALI Alliance) could ensure interoperability between an indoor LED luminaire and sensing or communications module used to deliver smart, connected lighting. The organizations’ joint certification program, based on standardizing the interface between these products, is intended to ease connectivity and offer a replacement strategy for modules rather than entire luminaires.

The key role will act as the consortium’s official spokesperson, liaise with other organizations, help grow membership, and contribute to industry thought leadership via conference presentations and papers, among other duties. Interested parties can email Dee Denteneer for additional information, and email applications to Francesco Martini by Feb. 17.

Visit zhagastandard.org for a PDF of the full position description.

Integrated Lighting Campaign kickoff

The U.S. Department of Energy will kick off its annual Integrated Lighting Campaign (ILC) with two informational webinars for parties interested in becoming supporters of or participating in ILC.

The DOE introduced the ILC to encourage building owners, operators, and facility managers to adopt novel sensors and controls that allow lighting to interact with other building systems to save energy, lower costs, and create comfortable spaces for occupants.

On Thursday, Feb. 16, utilities, energy efficiency organizations, community-based organizations, lighting manufacturers, energy service companies, and nonprofits involved in the procurement, installation, and financing of lighting technologies can learn from program manager Axel Pearson and the DesignLights Consortium, an ILC organizer, how to become a supporter of ILC, with details on recognition eligibility. Supporters help identify potential projects for recognition, but will also be eligible for two recognition categories this year.

Pearson will also host a webinar for potential ILC participants on Thursday, Feb. 23, during which he’ll walk through how to submit a successful recognition application. Both webinars will share campaign highlights and resources, as well as time for questions.

Every year, the ILC revisits the recognition categories to capture emerging industry priorities and new technology trends. In January, the ILC launched its annual program with new recognition categories that highlight the potential of novel lighting technologies to contribute to energy equity, sustainability, and indoor air quality in commercial and public buildings. There are 10 recognition categories in total:

• Supporter categories – Exemplary Supporter; Energy Justice, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Champion
• Participant categories – Advanced Use of Sensors and Controls for Lighting; Advanced Lighting Solutions for Small Projects or Buildings; Integrated Controls for Plug Loads and Lighting Systems; Integrated Controls for HVAC and Lighting Systems; Other Integrated Systems and Lighting; Integrated Lighting and Horticultural Controls; Germicidal Ultraviolet (GUV) Systems for Energy Savings and Improved Indoor Air Quality; Innovative Maintenance, Operation, and Financing Service Models; Sustainability in Lighting; Energy Justice, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Advanced Lighting

The deadline to submit projects for recognition is March 31, 2023. Visit the main ILC page for access to participant and supporter information, and register for the webinars at the linked dates above.

*Special thanks to Elsie Puig-Santana, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, for contributing to this report on behalf of the Integrated Lighting Campaign.

DLC, partner panelists detail outdoor lighting impacts

On Feb. 1, 2023, DLC collaborated with the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) Honolulu Section, Hawai’i Energy, and the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) to present to both live and virtual audiences “Impacts of Outdoor Lighting: Considerations to Reduce Energy, Save Money and Minimize Light Pollution for People and the Environment.”

DLC executive director Christina Halfpenny noted that although the impact of light pollution on the Hawaiian Islands is critical to the islands’ ecosystem and in turn its unique environment, “the implications of outdoor lighting are not totally unique to Hawaii.” The overall tenor of the event was to demonstrate the importance of proper lighting practices and how those compelling findings of conditions in Hawaii can be applied to improve lighting design and usage all over the country, and even the world.

Local astronomer Richard Wainscoat explained that research into near-Earth objects at Hawaiian observatory sites has been affected by increasing night-sky brightness. “If we allow the night sky to become 10% brighter [as a result of artificial light], then our telescopes effectively become 10% smaller,” Wainscoat stated in his presentation. He described the University of Hawaii’s efforts to keep observatory sites dark to maintain the necessary contrast and reduce noise from the sky background for telescopes to perform as engineered, supporting an important field of study that can help protect the planet’s future.

Ecologist Sheldon Plentovich relayed observations of lighting’s influence upon wildlife mating behavior, habitat loss, and typical day/night activity by species from turtles to seabirds to bees and other insects — which can negatively affect many other species, including plant life. Low-wattage amber and red lighting, she said, deliver longer wavelengths that are less harmful to wildlife; such a change in lighting types could make a big difference in highly impacted areas.

DLC senior lighting scientist Leora Radetsky connected energy efficiency efforts and overlighting outdoors, and summarized DLC resources to aid in selecting energy-efficient lighting products and controls to manage the “unintended consequences” of excessive light at night. As Radetsky said, “It doesn’t matter how good quality a light source is ... if you don't apply it correctly, if you overlight, then it’s not really energy efficient at all.”

Finally, Hawai’i Energy Efficiency Program county manager Graceson Ghen explained Hawaii standards for dark-sky lighting and how the informed adoption of LED-based public lighting allowed the region to reduce maintenance costs, decrease energy consumption, and determine best practices to “plan your LED project with light pollution in mind” by selecting bi-level dimming, night-sky and animal-friendly models, and limiting lumen output to what is strictly needed.

Access the full recording and slides via the DLC website.

CARRIE MEADOWS is managing editor of LEDs Magazine, with more than 20 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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