The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) recently applauded the bipartisan Safer Highways and Increased Performance for Interstate Trucking Act, or “SHIP IT Act,” introduced by Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD) and Rep. Jim Costa (D-CA). The SHIP IT Act is a comprehensive piece of legislation aimed at addressing the pain points in the supply chain system, which has impacted the electroindustry’s ability to get products to market in a timely and cost-effective manner.

Leviton recently announced the introduction of Matter support to its award-winning Decora Smart Wi-Fi 2nd Gen portfolio of devices.

To help streamline installations and promote code compliance, Intermatic created the Electronic All-Purpose Contractor Box. The time-saving control offers everything contractors need to get projects off the ground in a ready-made, UL-listed solution.

In this episode of The Lighting Controls Podcast co-produced by the Lighting Controls Association and NAILD and sponsored by McWong International, Kelly Cunningham, program manager on Pacific Gas & Electric’s codes and standards team, talks about energy code development in California.

A major contributor to the economy is construction, which overall exhibited very strong growth in 2022. Despite a strong finish to the year, however, nonresidential construction spending is expected to moderate in 2023 and slow significantly in 2024, according to the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Construction Consensus Forecast Panel made up of leading economic forecasters. The Panel forecasted that nonresidential construction spending will moderate to grow a healthy 5.8% in 2023 but then slow to less than 1% in 2024.

“Maybe you are on a rushed project with barely enough time to finalize the drawings. Perhaps you’re being onboarded years after the project began. Maybe you just have a client who won’t respond to your requests for more information. No matter the reason, a project without an Owner Project Requirements (OPR) can present one of the most common and difficult challenges modern designers face today.”

Current recently announced availability of the NX Dual Tech OMNI (NXSMDT-OMNI) smart occupancy sensor, new to the NX Lighting Controls portfolio designed exclusively for specifiers and contractors.

Lutron Electronics recently announced the availability of the Diva smart dimmer in six colors, and a new Claro accessory smart switch, to the Caséta portfolio of products.

Hydrel® recently announced it will now offer its SAF7 and SAF14 static white architectural floodlights with nLight® AIR wireless lighting controls.

In this episode of The Lighting Controls Podcast co-produced by the Lighting Controls Association and NAILD, Robert Bell, Consulting Director for Product Market at Acuity Brands, talks about how switches designed for entertainment are making their way into architectural lighting and “architainment” applications.

Osram is the first company which has earned the Zhaga-D4i certification for a number of their control devices.

Submissions are now open for the Illuminating Engineering Society’s 2023 Illumination Awards, including the Lighting Control Innovation Award. The deadline for submissions is February 17, 2023.

Leviton recently announced that the company has joined the Green Building Initiative (GBI) as a Visionary member.

The U.S. Department of Energy L-Prize challenges industry to bring forward new innovations to realize the full potential of advanced lighting systems for commercial buildings. The competition has three distinct phases: Concept Phase winners were announced in February 2022, the Prototype Phase opened in June 2022, and the Manufacturing and Installation Phase is expected to open in September 2023. Participation in the Concept Phase is not required to participate in the Prototype Phase. The L-Prize Prototype Phase “Intent to Submit” deadline is January 13, 2023.

The Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) recently announced it has formalized an agreement with the National Council on Qualifications for the Lighting Professions (NCQLP) to assume management of their Lighting Certified (LC) examination and recertification programs, effective January 1, 2023.

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory has published a short guide to plug load control and why it should be a common feature of commercial building energy codes.

Craig DiLouie, LC, CLCP recently had the opportunity to interview Paul Drosihn, General Manager, DALI Alliance. The topic: the recently introduced D4i global standard.

The Zhaga Consortium launched the global Zhaga Smart City Sensor Awards in mid-September to address the needs for innovative sensors of the many cities that have installed Zhaga-D4i certified streetlights. The submission date has now been extended. Sensor manufacturers, innovators as well as universities and students are encouraged to submit their applications by March 3, 2023.

The Lighting Controls Association was founded as a council of NEMA back in 2001 to promote adoption of lighting controls through education. Today, the association continues to make a demonstrable difference in supporting public expertise in selecting, designing, installing, and operating lighting control systems. This article outlines the LCA’s accomplishments in 2022 and offers a preview of what’s to come in 2023.

This month, we explore a sustainable and highly specialized lighting control solution installed at a sensory test kitchen at Simplot Headquarters in Dallas.

In this episode of The Lighting Controls Podcast co-produced by the Lighting Controls Association and NAILD, Steve Mesh talks about his journey to becoming a lighting controls specialist and what can be done to formalize education of future specialists, among other topics.

Craig DiLouie, LC, CLCP recently had the opportunity to interview Chris Udall, Senior Project Manager, Lutron Electronics about how electrical distributors can position themselves to sell networked lighting controls.

Leviton worked closely with the lighting designer and facility managers to create suitable scenes, solutions, and lighting controls for a theme park hotel in Carlsbad, California.

In this episode of The Lighting Controls Podcast co-produced by the Lighting Controls Association and NAILD, hosts C. Webster Marsh and Ron Kuszmar talk to Sean O’Connor of Sean O’Connor Lighting about how industry relationships help energy code requirements while satisfying the client.

Legrand® has announced its acquisition of Encelium, an Ontario, Canada-based manufacturer of advanced commercial lighting controls.

LiteTrace recently announced the Beta release of TraceContractor™, LiteTrace’s web platform for smart lighting project management. TraceContractor is a comprehensive commercial lighting tool for simplifying lighting projects and saving labor.

Seven smart-building companies have joined forces to bring more attention to the value of Power over Ethernet (PoE) lighting and technology by creating the PoE Consortium. Their collective mission is to educate stakeholders on the benefits of PoE over traditional high-voltage electrical infrastructure, including more interoperability for smart buildings.

The award-winning Leviton Load Center is a residential electrical circuit breaker panel that offers an easy-to-install, safe, and approachable solution to home energy management. This product, with its optional smart breakers and WI-FI communication hub, gives insight to energy usage which results in reducing utility bills.

The Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) recently announced that its Progress Committee has selected 81 design tools, products and publications for the 2022 IES Progress Report.

Universal Douglas recently announced updates to two key products — the Value Series Gen 2 LED Drivers and an iOS-version of Touch to Tune app.

The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) is proud to welcome seven companies as new NEMA members.

The Internet of Things: Lights, HVAC, emergency, WiFi, elevators, even refrigerators are becoming connected. In this episode of The Lighting Controls Podcast, Mike Skurla, Chief Product Officer at Radix IoT, LLC, talks about how to take advantage of this developing market–and where lighting control fits.

The DALI Alliance recently extended DALI-2, which standardizes interoperability and control of LED drivers and sensors, with a version that more finely addresses the needs of the Internet of Things, which calls for individual device addressability, connectivity, and two-way data exchange.

This month, we explore a vibrant lighting control solution installed at a university e-gaming suite in East Greenwich, RI. Lighting control design by CannonDesign. Photography by Tracy Shankle. Lighting controls by ETC.

The Lighting Controls Association now offers EE203: Lighting Controls and Energy Codes: California Title 24, Part 6 as a new course in its popular Education Express program.

Craig DiLouie, LC, CLCP recently had the opportunity to interview Martin Mercier, Marketing Manager, IOT/Connected Systems, Cooper Lighting Solutions. The topic: how electrical distributors can position and sell networked lighting controls.

Acuity Brands, Inc. recently announced the 2022 charitable donation recipients of their “EarthLIGHT in Action” philanthropic campaign, which challenged and inspired their Independent Sales Network to get involved and give back to their communities.

U.S. Department of Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo recently named Steve Griffith of the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) as an official member of the Federal Internet of Things (IoT) Advisory Board.

Intermatic Incorporated recently announced its acquisition of Aquapro Systems, LLC., a manufacturer of pool and spa equipment. The investment expands the existing Intermatic pool and spa catalog with a range of essential pool solutions, including pumps, filters, heat pumps, air blowers, and more.