Lighting Industry

  In April 2023, the UN announced that India’s population had surpassed China’s, to become the largest in the world. India’s economy is also on a trajectory to surpass the U.S. in the next 50 years. The U.S. is currently the largest global economy with China in the #2 spot. Over the 15 years prior [...]

  The US Department of Energy has announced that US states and territories can apply for more than $8.5 Billion in funding for residential energy efficiency and electrification. The funding comes from a pair of programs in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Priority will go to homes that can save the most energy, with more [...]

  In 2007, Congress passed the Energy Independence & Security Act (EISA07). This law directed the US Department of Energy (DOE) to set regulations that initially phased out the incandescent lamps in popular 40W, 60W, 75W, and 100W wattages. They were largely replaced with halogen lamps that were somewhat more efficient, as well as some [...]

  The California Public Utility Commission (CPUC) approved $4.3 billion in investments for energy efficiency efforts from 2024 through 2027, along with a forecasted budget of $4.6 billion from 2028 through 2031. Roughly 14% of the budget will be channeled to programs that target disadvantaged and underserved communities to ensure equitable access to energy efficiency programs. The [...]

  The American Institute of Architect’s (AIA) Consensus Construction Forecast panel has projected nonresidential building spending in late 2023 and beyond and predicts that spending on buildings will increase by 20% this year. This would be the highest rate since the years leading up to the Great Recession. The panel found an extremely strong start in [...]

  The Rhode Island fluorescent ban was signed by the Governor on June 22, 2023. After Jan. 1, 2024, it will be illegal to sell most compact fluorescent lightbulbs (CFLs) in Rhode Island. A year later, the sale of pin-based and linear fluorescent bulbs will become illegal. More information on Rhode Island’s ban is here. The [...]

  A new white paper by Parks Associates and Cox Communities sheds insights into the greater adoption and desire for smart home devices among apartment and condo residents (aka multi dwelling units or MDU). Their research found that 83% of MDU residents with smart home devices were satisfied or highly satisfied with their apartment or [...]

  In April, 2023, I wrote about the evolving and escalating trade war between the U.S. & China. One of the developments was the U.S. and some of its allies banning the sale of advanced AI computer chips to China. On July 3rd, China retaliated with an announcement that it would impose export restrictions on [...]

  Amazon dominates retail e-commerce but not B2B e-commerce. Here is a closer look: Amazon dominates retail e-commerce with $431 Billion in sales projected this year. Amazon’s retail Ecom market share is 37.6%. In second place is Walmart with $73.5 Billion in retail e-commerce sales, 1/6 that of Amazon. Amazon’s top retail e-comm categories are [...]