“LEDs are like a cross between asbestos and an iPhone,” said Ardra Paige Zinkon of Tec Studio (Columbus, Ohio) in her “Lighting 101” presentation at Lightfair 2013, as she explained the basic differences between lighting types and cautioned that LEDs and OLEDs are a good option, but not designers’ only choice. As she demonstrated how energy savings were possible with various retrofits, she advised that LED retrofits don’t always fit existing housings and should be used carefully in outdoor environments (think of glaring blue light illuminating a walkway at night).
Held in Philadelphia April 21-25, Lightfair drew more than 26,000 attendees, who admired award-winning products such as Moldable Silicones from Dow Corning Corp. (Technical Innovation Award; Midland, Mich.). These injection-molded silicone optical resins show improved heat resistance compared to traditional plastics.
Other honorees included Cooledge Lighting’s Light Sheet (Design Innovation Award; Burnaby, Canada), which combines mechanical, electrical and LED components into a single thin, flexible sheet.
As the novelty of efficient LEDs wears off, suppliers say they’re seeing growing demand for accent lighting (especially integrated, in-shelf options) that balances with lower levels of ambient light. And ambient light’s footprint can be further reduced with a trend toward systems that allow stores to harvest daylight and automatically balance it with ambient sources. Philips’ (Hull, Mass.) ultra-efficient BoldPlay LED luminaire, which snagged the show’s Most Innovative Product award, features a daylight harvesting system and optics that reduce glare while blending light and color.
Metal halides and LEDs continue to face off as accent lighting choices, especially as color rendering and dimming capabilities in LEDs improve. For example, Osram Sylvania’s (Hull, Mass.) Ultra SE “sunset effect” PAR lamps dim down to 1 percent, compared to the 10 percent more commonly available.
Yet the most efficient and environmentally friendly light may not be the healthiest option, according to Joan Roberts, a Fordham University chemistry professor who presented “Lighting and Human Health.” Light exposure impacts our circadian rhythms, which govern sleep patterns, wakefulness and even immune response.
We’ve all heard that the blue hues of our computer screens can keep us awake at night. According to Roberts, the slightest hint of blue or green light after 10 p.m. throws off circadian rhythms. Instead of lumens per watt, she advocates a “health per watt” approach.
Lighting has become tinier, more efficient, easier to conceal in shelving and ceilings, and more versatile each year. (Have you seen Philips’ hue? It can be used with an app to reflect colors pulled from any digital image.) But are designers responsible for the impact of lighting on consumers?