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Codes + Standards

DesignLights Consortium Releases Revised Draft Performance Standards for Commercial LED Lighting

The DesignLights Consortium (DLC) recently released the second draft of its Technical Requirements 5.0, which combines continued emphasis on persistent energy savings with new, greater focus on the controllability and quality of light demonstrated by products approved for the DLC’s Qualified Products List (QPL).

The DLC’s QPL is a major source for product qualification by utility rebate programs, with the criteria determined by technical requirements. In January 2019, these requirements were updated with a draft that produced more than 1,000 comments from 46 organizations. The comments informed the second draft, which is now open for comments until November 8. The final Technical Requirements 5.0 is expected to be released in January.

The DLC has boosted efficiency standards three times since publication of its initial QPL in 2009. More recently, it launched a “premium” designation worthy of higher utility incentives. SSL V.50 will again increase minimum efficacy requirements for QPL listing, this time by an average of 10.8% and up to 23% for some lighting categories. Other specifics of the policy include a requirement that virtually all indoor luminaires and retrofit kits are dimmable and that there are color quality requirements that promote consistency over time. It also provides for a DLC Premium classification to assure better confidence in the glare performance of listed products.

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author avatar
Craig DiLouie
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