Craig DiLouie interviewed Eric Jerger, VP/GM of Cooper Lighting Solutions, a Signify business, about field-adjustable luminaires. This interview will inform an article by DiLouie in the January 2026 issue of tED Magazine.
DiLouie: How would you define a field-adjustable luminaire?
Jerger: A field-adjustable luminaire is designed to give contractors, distributors, and end users flexibility in how a space is illuminated. It allows changes to lumen output, color temperature, or light distribution—typically through an onboard switch, digital interface, or wireless control. The result is a single product that can meet multiple design and performance requirements in the field, without needing to change fixtures.
DiLouie: How would you characterize demand for field-adjustable luminaires and this category as an ongoing trend?
Jerger: The demand for field-adjustable luminaires continues to grow as distributors look to maximize limited warehouse space and streamline operations. Field-selectable luminaires effectively offer multiple products in one, saving distributors money by stocking less inventory while still meeting customer needs. What began as a convenience feature has now evolved into a mainstream expectation across commercial, residential, and outdoor categories. Today, adjustability also aligns with sustainability goals—reducing waste, improving logistics, and helping projects meet energy code requirements while offering flexibility for end users.
DiLouie: How does the field-adjustable mechanism work, who does it, and how can it be changed in the future after installation? What is the predominant method today?
Jerger: Most luminaires today use either a small dip switch or rotary selector to adjust lumen output or color temperature during installation. Increasingly, new products incorporate wireless or app-based interfaces—using NFC or Bluetooth—to configure settings without removing the fixture. Adjustments can typically be made by installers, facility managers, or commissioning agents at any time, allowing flexibility over the life of the space.
DiLouie: What adjustability is most popular? Lumens/Wattage, CCT, light distribution, or some combination of these?
Jerger: Field-selectable color temperature and lumens remain the most popular forms of adjustability. Customers continue to value these options because they can directly influence the quality of the environment, supporting productivity, alertness, mood, and overall well-being.
Beyond those core features, tunable white technology is expanding how designers and facility managers approach lighting for human-centric applications. Adjustable optics and beam distributions are also becoming more common in advanced systems, giving users the ability to tailor both the look and performance of light for each unique space. Together, these layers of flexibility help balance visual comfort, efficiency, and occupant experience.
DiLouie: What lighting products are covered in this category? Troffers, downlights, outdoor area…?
Jerger: Field-adjustable technology now spans nearly every category: recessed downlights, troffers, linear lighting, high bays, wall packs, outdoor area fixtures, and even sports lighting. While early adoption was concentrated in indoor commercial settings, the same flexibility is now expected in outdoor and industrial luminaires where wattage and color adjustments can help tailor illumination for safety, energy savings, and visual uniformity.
DiLouie: What are the benefits of field-adjustable luminaires for electrical distributors, contractors, and owners? What specific pain points does adjustability address?
Jerger: For distributors, field-adjustable luminaires reduce SKU counts and free up warehouse space while improving inventory turnover and availability. That flexibility also strengthens distributor relationships, giving them a product that covers a wider range of applications with fewer SKUs.
Contractors benefit from simplified job-site planning and fewer change orders—one product can serve multiple applications. During installation, they can work directly with the customer to select the ideal LED color temperature and lumen output for the space, creating an optimal environment from the start.
Because these products are low maintenance, contractors can be confident they won’t need to return to the job site for adjustments later. They also eliminate the need to carry multiple product variations, streamlining logistics and reducing errors. For building owners and facility managers, adjustability supports long-term adaptability—spaces can be reconfigured or repurposed without replacing fixtures, aligning with sustainability goals and reducing waste.
DiLouie: For the contractor and owner, what are typical and ideal applications? Is there a “killer app” for this product?
Jerger: Field-adjustable luminaires are versatile enough for virtually any application. Education and healthcare settings benefit from tunable options that support different visual tasks and occupant comfort. Office and retail spaces value the flexibility to adapt lighting as layouts evolve. In industrial or warehouse environments, adjustable wattage allows fine-tuning for safety and energy efficiency. Rather than a single “killer app,” the appeal lies in the ability to customize light levels and color for each environment.
To help visualize those possibilities, tools such as Light ARchitect, Cooper Lighting Solutions’s augmented-reality and web-based lighting simulation app, allow users to see how adjustable luminaires perform in real-world spaces before installation. Contractors and owners can explore different lumen, color temperature, or distribution settings virtually—accelerating design decisions and demonstrating the value of adjustability across multiple environments.
DiLouie: Looking more closely regarding what’s in it for distributors, what types and level of cost and inventory savings can be realized, and what additional value can they offer to customers?
Jerger: Adjustable luminaires effectively consolidate multiple SKUs into one, which helps distributors reduce on-hand inventory and improve turnover. Fewer SKUs also mean simplified forecasting and less capital tied up in stock. The added flexibility allows distributors to respond faster to customer needs—particularly when project specifications change midstream—providing measurable value through reliability and speed. As an example, one new Cooper Lighting Solutions highbay fixture with selectable CCT, lumens, and distribution can reduce 45 SKU’s down to just 1 SKU!
DiLouie: As typically these luminaires impose a cost premium, they have to justify additional value. Under what application situations would they not prove desirable?
Jerger: Field-adjustable luminaires typically carry a small cost premium, which means they need to deliver clear value in flexibility or inventory efficiency. However, there are projects where their use isn’t ideal. Examples include applications where fixtures are highly specified to have a fixed lumen output or color temperature—such as museums, laboratories, or certain design-led architectural spaces where the lighting designer never intended for them to be changed.
In large-scale connected control systems, where lighting performance is already programmed digitally, some manual adjustability features may also be redundant. In most general-purpose environments, however, the benefits of flexibility, reduced SKUs, and adaptability easily outweigh the modest cost difference.
DiLouie: How do commercial lighting rebate programs treat adjustable luminaires?
Jerger: Most utility rebate programs now recognize adjustable luminaires, provided the fixture meets the program’s default lumen and efficacy requirements. As long as the product is listed through DLC or another recognized body, it typically qualifies. The flexibility of these products can even help end users meet energy targets more efficiently by tailoring output to actual site conditions.
DiLouie: If you could tell the entire electrical industry just one thing about field-adjustable luminaires, what would it be?
Jerger: If there’s one thing to know about field-adjustable lighting, it’s that it empowers users to adapt to the ever-changing needs of a space—creating the right light, every time. It’s a simple idea with lasting impact: smarter, more sustainable, and designed for flexibility as environments evolve.
DiLouie: Is there anything else you’d like to add about this topic?
Jerger: As lighting continues to evolve toward digital and connected ecosystems, adjustability will remain a foundational feature. Whether configured manually or wirelessly, the goal is the same: to give people and buildings more control over how light supports their work, comfort, and energy performance.
All images courtesy of Cooper Lighting Solutions. Image above: Field-selectable color temperature and lumens remain the most popular forms of adjustability.
Image: Field-selectable luminaires offer multiple products in one, saving distributors money by stocking less inventory while still meeting customer needs.
Image: What began as a convenience feature has now evolved into a mainstream expectation across commercial, residential, and outdoor categories.
Image: Field-adjustable lighting empowers users to adapt to the ever-changing needs of a space—creating the right light, every time.
Image: Adjustable luminaires effectively consolidate multiple SKUs into one, which helps distributors reduce on-hand inventory and improve turnover.
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