Networked lighting control systems play a crucial role in optimizing lighting energy use, enhancing occupant comfort, and interacting with building automation systems (BAS). However, simply installing a lighting control system does not guarantee it will function as intended. This is where a startup comes into play.

As lighting control becomes more robust and easier to apply, today’s electrical distributor has extraordinary choice in servicing new construction projects and enhancing lighting upgrades. Manufacturers point to top trends including greater networked controls interoperability, systems integration, powerful digital LED drivers, wireless control, and growing application of control as a tool to enhance the occupant experience.

In the latest episode of the Lighting Controls Podcast, host Ron Kuszmar and C. Webster Marsh had the pleasure of hosting Margaret Wong and Stephen Zhou from mwConnect, a company renowned for its innovative Bluetooth Mesh technology. Celebrating its 40th anniversary, mwConnect, formerly known as McWong, has evolved from its humble beginnings manufacturing ballasts to becoming a leader in the smart lighting industry.

Craig DiLouie, LC, CLCP recently had the pleasure of interviewing Brendon Van Campen, Senior Sales Director, Lutron Electronics, for an article about lighting control trends for an upcoming article to be published in tED Magazine, the official publication of the NAED. Here’s the transcript.

Craig DiLouie, LC, CLCP recently had the pleasure of interviewing Stephen Zhou, Executive Vice President, mwConnect, for an upcoming article about lighting control trends for tED Magazine, the official publication of the NAED. Here’s the transcript.

Hosted by Steve Roe, Vice President of Controls at Acuity Brands, Roe with Controls is a monthly series of videos in which Steve discusses a new topic that impacts the lighting and lighting controls industry and then shares insights and thoughts based on his experience.

“Being in the lighting and controls industry for the past 27 years, I’ve internalized to a high degree that there are few constants,” writes mwConnect’s Blane Goettle in this guest post. “One is change, and the other, that the more things change, the greater the need for connection.”

In 2024, commercial lighting rebates remain a strong incentive for adoption of energy-efficient lighting and controls in existing buildings. Notable trends in prescriptive rebates include continuing widespread availability, softening demand for rebate dollars, more bonus programs, generally increasing average rebate amounts, and strengthening of networked lighting control rebates.

“In the lighting controls industry, are we at an inflection point where vendors are starting to embrace the idea of cross-vendor interoperability?” asks Steve Mesh.

In this guest post by Steve Mesh, he argues that while networked lighting control systems are getting far easier to set up and operate, they are still inherently complex, and that’s a good thing.

A new video from the DALI Alliance explains D4i technology, which enables luminaire-level lighting control with enhanced data and diagnostics.

Interested in learning more about luminaire-level lighting controls (LLLC)? Check out this webinar based on the Lighting Controls Association’s LLLC course, one of the most popular courses in the organization’s Education Express program.

Craig DiLouie, LC, CLCP recently had the opportunity to interview Damon Barnes, Director of Technical Marketing, Bluetooth SIG, Inc. for an article about Bluetooth NLC for an upcoming issue of ELECTRICAL CONTRACTOR. Transcript follows.

Dan Hollenkamp, COO of Toggled, recently made five very interesting predictions regarding the development of the smart buildings market in 2024.

Interested in learning more about what networked lighting controls can do for lighting? Check out this webinar based on the Lighting Controls Association’s “A Year in the Life of an NLC,” a popular course in the organization’s Education Express program.

As first-generation LED lighting systems begin to be replaced, a significant opportunity to maximize energy savings by incorporating networked lighting controls is emerging, particularly when HVAC integration is included, according to a new report by the DesignLights Consortium.

Everywhere, we see signs the LED revolution has won. An argument can be made, however, that this mature lighting technology is simply entering its next phase of market opportunity. Call it LED Revolution 2.0.

Check out these excellent publications covering lighting controls by the Illuminating Engineering Society.

On July 20, 2023, at 1PM ET, the U.S. Department of Energy will present a webinar on how to evaluate non-energy impacts of lighting controls.

Growing demand for plug-in electric vehicles is likely to coincide with the significant adoption of EV charging stations in commercial buildings. If true, the economics of lighting upgrades may change, putting all energy efficiency options on the table, including those previously limited by payback thresholds.

This guest post by the DALI Alliance discusses sustainability, future-proofing, and the opportunities offered by smart, data-rich lighting systems. It also looks at the role of established global standards such as the Digital Addressable Lighting Interface (DALI®).

Toggled®, a wholly owned subsidiary of Altair focused on intelligent building management solutions, recently released survey results revealing that while many businesses are embracing smart building technology to increase energy efficiency and lower costs, they fall short of their goals due to an inability to master the data.

BetterBricks recently sat down for an interview with industry veteran James R. Benya, PE, FIES, FIALD, Principal Illuminating Engineer and Lighting Designer. In this insightful conversation, Benya shares tips and experiences specifying luminaire-level lighting controls, including pros and cons.

BetterBricks, a commercial-building initiative of the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (NEEA), has developed a video course on selling Luminaire Level Lighting Controls (LLLC) for retrofits.

BetterBricks, a commercial-building initiative of the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (NEEA), has developed a video course on finding Luminaire Level Lighting Controls (LLLC) solutions for lighting projects.

The DLC recently published a summary of research conducted by Skumatz Economic Research Associates, Inc. (SERA), which identified non-energy benefits (NEBs) of networked lighting controls and developed a methodology for quantifying them.

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.

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.

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.

Here’s the scenario: you are a lighting controls designer working on a project with a BAS that uses BACnet…

Craig DiLouie, LC, CLCP recently enjoyed the opportunity to interview Jamie Britnell, Director of Product Marketing, Synapse Wireless for an article about how electrical distributors can sell networked lighting controls to LED upgrade customers, increasing revenues and service value.

The Lighting Controls Association is proud to announce it is now a contributor to LEDs Magazine, a preeminent publication serving the lighting industry. In our first contribution, Craig DiLouie, LC, CLCP authored an article about three hypothetical facility owners/managers using networked lighting controls to achieve a wide range of benefits over the course of a year.

The US Department of Energy (DOE) has opened the Prototype Phase of its L-Prize competition, which seeks to boost innovation in advanced LED luminaires and control systems for use in commercial and institutional buildings. The DALI Alliance, the Zhaga Consortium and PNNL will present a webinar on September 15, 2022, to discuss the technical requirements of the Prototype Phase and explain the opportunities for entrants when using standards-based connectivity technologies including Zhaga Book 20 and D4i data and control.

Many designers, manufacturers, and contractors are resisting change, Marsh notes in his column, and it appears as though we are headed towards a third paradigm shift that will sustain those who adapt and eliminate those who don’t.

In this episode of Get a Grip on Lighting’s Conversation series about lighting controls hosted by C. Webster Marsh and Ron Kuszmar, they talk to lighting designer Javid Butler, LC, CEM, CMVP about his background in theatrical lighting before transitioning into architecture lighting, and the technological evolution of lighting controls into the digital age.

The Lighting Controls Association now offers EE302, Part 4: Luminaire-Level Lighting Controls (LLLC) as a new course in its popular Education Express program.

Luminaire-level lighting controls (LLLC), also called embedded controls, are lighting control systems in which sensors and controllers are installed within luminaires to enable autonomous, individual luminaire control. By making each luminaire a control point, control is highly flexible, responsive, and therefore generally more energy-saving. Serving as a preview for an upcoming Education Express course, this article describes LLLC technology, system types, advantages and disadvantages, studies characterizing energy savings and cost, and what’s familiar and distinctive in regards to design and installation.

In this article published in LD+A, Telensa’s Cindy Brewbaker lays out a seven-point case for smart street lighting.

Moderated by Michael Colligan, this episode of Get a Grip on Lighting pits two lighting thinkers in a spirited debate over whether 0-10V or digital lighting control has the edge in projects subject to value engineering.