When it comes to lighting designs and installations, there’s a whole host of things for installers to consider. Simon Shenton, Head of LED Development at Luceco, delves deeper.
Long gone are the days when it was just about fitting a functioning light. Now customers, whether homeowners or commercial, are rightly demanding precise up-to-date knowledge, innovative design, energy efficiency and sustainability from their lighting products, along with exceptional quality and value for money.
As a result, installers need to look for trusted manufacturers in a rapidly evolving market – with the industry expertise to deliver on all these needs and more – ensuring the best results for both themselves and their clients alike.
True colours
When it comes to specifying lighting, experience and expertise really counts.
The Colour Rendering Index (CRI), for example, measures how well a light source shows the true colours of an object compared to natural light. The appearance of eight colour samples (R1-R8) are compared under the light in question and a reference light source and given an Ra score (typically 70 or 80) which can be thought of as a percentage of how accurately the colour samples were reproduced.
There’s also a specific test – CRI R9 – that focusses on how well a light shows red/pink colours. Red is a critical colour for many applications where an accurate representation of red is essential.
In photography for example, good red light ensures natural and vibrant photos, whilst in the textile industry material colour needs to be consistent, so it’s vital for quality control.
In medical settings, however, people can look pale or even green if a light source doesn’t produce enough red, so having an accurate red rendering can help with diagnoses.
Where reds are concerned, a good R9 score is required. The maximum possible R9 score is 100 and achieving that is tough. Even ascertaining the R9 score of a product is difficult as most don’t specify it – and when they do, it’s often below 20.
At Luceco we’ve identified R9’s importance and can offer R9 values of greater than 50, as a special option, on most products.
Shining a light on net zero
In light of the ongoing environmental issues we’re facing, Luceco recognises the important role it plays in achieving net zero. Our low-carbon products have been developed to help businesses reduce energy consumption and achieve their own sustainability targets.
Our product development focusses on our commitment to low-carbon and green targets. An example of this can be seen in the fact we continuously improve the Lumens per Watt of our LED products to give customers more light for every Watt of energy they use.
In addition, we’re improving how installed LEDs are distributed to reduce the number of lights needed and therefore the overall energy consumption.
Sustainable lighting solutions
One example of Luceco’s sustainable lighting solutions is the Luxbay Ultra warehouse linear product, designed to replace traditional discharge lighting in commercial and industrial settings. The Luxbay Ultra consumes 50% less energy compared to traditional lighting solutions and has a longer life span.
And, whilst technology, especially for LED, is rapidly developing, it’s important to ensure that the recommendations, standards and guidance surrounding the technological advances improve to match the potential, since this will help to push the sustainability agenda further forward.
LED lights typically produce useful light for two or even three times longer and consume up to 80% less energy than their conventional counterparts. This longer LED life produces savings throughout the product life cycle, including savings on materials and installation costs, as well as maintenance and replacement costs.
Luceco’s FType range of fire-rated downlighters has been designed to not only provide highly energy efficient lighting, conforming to all the required regulations for this type of light, but also to pack a punch when it comes to product choice.
Luceco’s free Lighting Design Service
With a wealth of lighting products to choose from, installers can benefit from Luceco’s free Lighting Design Service.
Combining extensive product knowledge with exceptional design expertise, our friendly team will work with customers to provide first class design solutions for any installation. This ensures aesthetically pleasing, energy efficient and sustainable results, whilst making the most of available budgets.
Achieving sustainability goals
Luceco’s products can help businesses reduce their energy consumption and achieve their own sustainability targets. By investing in low-carbon solutions, companies can make a positive impact on the environment while also saving on energy costs.
Luceco is eading the way in sustainable product development and committing to reducing both its own and its customers’ carbon footprints.
Looking forward
We believe that companies such as ours have a responsibility to recognise this need and ensure that we continually evolve our entire business operation for the benefit of all.
As this demand from end users continues to grow, installers need to ensure that their chosen lighting manufacturer can deliver on this. To this end, we’re focussing on the development of low carbon products, ensuring that the plastic we use is recycled and that our packaging is recyclable.
Get more details on Luceco’s full product range and lighting design service here
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