Lighting Industry

Though up from a near record low a month ago, NEMA’s January Electroindustry Business Confidence Index (EBCI) for current conditions continued to paint a bleak picture in January. January’s reading rose to 20 points, a 12-point gain from December, when the EBCI hit the lowest point in the past seven years. But it was still [...]

One in four baby boom generation households (26%) expects to move from their current home in the future, with the majority looking for a single-level home that is more comfortable or convenient, according to a new survey prepared for AARP. Echoing past surveys, most boomers (79%) say they would like to stay in their current [...]

NEMA’s Lighting Systems Index (LSI), which reflects sales of lighting equipment by NEMA members, dropped 4.8% between the third and fourth quarters of 2008. Lighting shipments fell six of the last seven quarters, but this is the biggest drop since 2001, bringing the index 16% lower than its cyclical peak level in early 2006 and [...]

WAC Lighting, manufacturer and designer of track, recessed, undercabinet, monorail and decorative lighting, is celebrating 25 years in 2009. The company was started in Forest Hills, NY in 1984 by Tony and Tai Wang. In the beginning, the company marketed portable lamps at a variety of trade shows across the United States. As its line [...]

Edge Lighting now offers a new online “Configurator” designed to allow lighting specifiers to create and price complete custom Pro Aim Monorail lighting systems for customers in minutes. The Configurator allows builders, contractors, lighting showroom sales people and consumers to create a complete list of all the components needed to create a Monorail lighting system [...]

The IES website has profiled Naomi Johnson Miller, principal of Naomi Miller Lighting Design in Troy, NY, as a “featured member.” I saw this as a perfect excuse to write my own ode to Naomi and her work. Naomi is one of those designers who makes the lighting profession a profession. Her award-winning projects have [...]

Last year, it was my honor to work with legendary lighting designer Howard Brandston on editing his new book LEARNING TO SEE: A Matter of Light, which was subsequently published by IES. I wrote about the book in Illuminate, a magazine I edit for the publishers of Architectural Products and several other magazines for which [...]

The latest research shows that at least 10% of all outdoor lighting, even fully shielded lighting, ends up creating light pollution, according to the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA). Many communities across the U.S. have tried to deal with light pollution or some facet of it–sky glow, light trespass and, more rarely, glare–with a patchwork of [...]

Recently, I conducted a survey of about 600 lighting designers, mostly IALD members, asking them questions about their specifications of nonresidential spec-grade downlights and also their perceptions of popular brands in the market. To qualify to take the survey, the designer had to confirm that they have specified commercial downlights over the past three years. [...]