Electical Contractor

After Jeff McCullough's talk at Intertech’s LEDs October 2007 conference, an audience member declared that McCullough’s employer, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), is “taming the Wild West” and suggested that he wear a cowboy hat.

Hindering adoption of advanced lighting control strategies is the idea of whether these strategies work together in combination as advertised to produce consistent energy savings and worker satisfaction, thereby justifying a higher initial cost.

First impressions are everything in the hospitality industry, and lighting is a big part of those impressions. “That can make or break an ambience,” said Doreen Le May Madden, owner and principle designer of Lux Lighting Design, Belmont, Mass.

With 40-hour-plus work weeks the norm and no signs of that trend reversing, seeing well in the office at any time of day or night is necessary to get the job done. Illumination in the office can mean a combination of different types of light, artificial and natural.

The functional and artistic aspects of lighting spaces continue to reach new levels of sophistication.

Modeled after the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C., the Georgia State Capitol in Atlanta was built in 1889. Its gold dome glittered during the day, but at night, the building and dome lost much of its luster.

LEDs have been on the market long enough for electrical contractors (ECs) to know the major selling points: energy efficiency and longer life expectancy, thus reducing both energy consumption and maintenance costs.  But there are more selling points.

Color Kinetics Incorporated’s LED lighting technology will light the Canada’s National (CN) Tower in Toronto, the world’s tallest freestanding tower. The installation was unveiled to the public in a lighting ceremony that began at sunset on June 28, 2007.

As energy demand continues to soar and supply levels remain static, manufacturers are developing innovative solutions to conserve energy.