May 2010

Those looking for signs that the U.S. economy is rebounding can find encouragement in the fourth annual Energy Efficiency Indicator released by Johnson Controls. A survey of more than 1,400 North American executives and managers responsible for making investments and managing energy in commercial buildings found that planned investment in energy efficiency is expected to [...]

Energy consumption in buildings is a complicated set of interactions among building components. When it comes to understanding energy efficiency opportunities, it’s useful to see how changing one component affects the whole. Energy engineers at the Energy Center of Wisconsin developed the Back-of-the-Envelope Calculator to provide greater initial insight into the energy usage and environmental [...]

Last month, LightNOW reported here that Reed Elsevier would be closing 23 magazines, including Building Design+Construction, Chain Leader, Construction Bulletin, Construction Equipment, Consulting-Specifying Engineer, Plant Engineering, Professional Builder, Professional Remodeler and Restaurants & Institutions. While at LIGHTFAIR, I learned that some of these publications have been bought by their publishers. Consulting-Specifying Engineer, Control Engineering and [...]

The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation (DDCF) has issued a call for proposals for innovative energy efficiency retrofit programs and policies that can address specific barriers. Individual grants range from $100,000 to $350,000. Projects may be 12 to 24 months in duration. Applicants must be U.S. nonprofit organizations with approved IRS 501(c)(3) status. Pre-proposals are due [...]

Last Friday, the Plain Dealer reported here that attorneys for GE Lighting are contending that a proposed agreement between the City of Cleveland and Sunpu-Opto Semiconductor Ltd., is bad for the city and could even be unlawful. The proposed 10-year deal gives the Chinese manufacturer exclusive rights to sell millions of LED lights to the [...]

Authors of papers regarding the art, science and practice of illumination are invited to submit their papers for possible presentation at the 2010 IES Annual Conference scheduled to be held in Toronto, Canada from November 7-9, 2010. Paper presentations provide a valuable vehicle for educating the membership about important technical advances in lighting. The Papers [...]

The public, as well as lighting industry experts, are invited to attend a lighting trade show and educational conference set for Tuesday and Wednesday, September 21 and 22, 2010 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia. UPDATE: Note that the website says the event will be held Wednesday, Sept. 22 & Thursday, Sept. 23, not [...]

Learned about the artist at JimonLight and had to cover it here. Here is a sample of her work–more here. Great Japanese TV show segment about the artist:

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has reached agreement on a five-year integrated media partnership with Hanley Wood, LLC, publishers of Architect Magazine. The existing agreement with McGraw-Hill, publishers of Architectural Record Magazine, expires at the end of this year. Effective January 1, 2011, the agreement creates an integrated media offering that encompasses print, online, [...]