Below is my contribution to the November issue of tED Magazine, the official publication of the NAED. Reprinted with permission.
Tubular LED (TLED) lamps are linear lighting products designed to replace fluorescent lamps to generate up to 40+ percent energy cost savings.
As an energy-saving and long-life product, these lamps are generally well suited to any application with high energy costs, long operating hours, or where the owner wants to minimize maintenance. Compared to other options such as replacing the luminaires, they are specifically well suited to applications where the owner wants to maintain a similar space appearance, has a limited budget, or is spot relamping a large facility.
“Demand is significant for TLED lamps in commercial buildings because of the tremendous energy savings and long lifetimes, which means basically they are a one-time install,” said Alfred LaSpina, LED Product Group Marketing Manager, LEDVANCE. “The multitude of color temperatures and occupancy controls also increases appeal.”
Manufacturers offer three main designs. Type A includes “drop in” products that feature an internal driver and operate on the existing fluorescent ballast. Type B features an internal driver and bypasses the ballast to connect the lamp to line voltage. Type C operates on an external driver that replaces the ballast.
In some applications, there may be opportunities to accelerate energy savings by switching or dimming the lights, typically using some type of automation. Similarly, dimming may be desired using manual controls for occupant comfort. This is particularly desirable when the application already has a control system or devices installed.
TLED control
TLED lamps are instant-ON, and frequent switching poses a negligible effect on lamp life compared to fluorescent, making them suitable for installation with occupancy sensors, even sensors with low time delays.
Dimming is more problematic. The majority of Type A products are not dimmable unless a complete dimmable TLED system is specified. Type B is similarly not dimmable unless a special lamp is specified. With its external driver, Type C offers the same variety of controls as any fluorescent or new LED luminaire, from 0-10V to DALI to wireless.
When installing TLED lamps in an application lacking in controls, installing control wiring can be prohibitive. For this reason, some manufacturers have developed packages that combine TLED lamps with networked lighting control for a connected lighting solution. This allows a relatively simple lighting upgrade that delivers sophisticated control. This can include zoning of lights, programmable operation, layered control strategies, and potentially data collection.
“Small businesses were looking for an affordable and minimally disruptive way to achieve advance controls such as dimming, occupancy detection, and scene creation,” said Brian Vedder, Product Marketeer – LED Lamps, Signify (formerly Philips Lighting). “The TLED lamps combine intelligent controls with the simplicity of plug-and-play installation.”
“Connected TLEDs would work well in light commercial applications, including parking garages, and anyplace a T8 would go where adding dimming capabilities is difficult and the lighting would benefit from being able to be scheduled,” said Aaron Ganick, Global Head of Smart Business, LEDVANCE. “When selling connected products, distributors can pitch their customers how they can upgrade any space easily with wireless controls to achieve energy and labor savings and a better occupant experience.”
Example solutions
Signify’s InstantFit LED with EasySmart T8 lamps are Type A products designed for use with compatible instant-start ballasts and featuring integrated wireless connectivity making them work with Leviton’s Lumina wireless control system. The lamps can be zoned and programmed using an app in a room-based mesh lighting network that is scalable up to entire buildings.
LEDVANCE’s SYVLANIA SMART+ Commercial Lighting offering also partnered with Leviton to offer a range of lighting products compatible with Leviton’s wireless controls and sensors set up and controllable using a mobile app. As of the time of writing, the range of products controllable by the system was scheduled to include Type A TLED lamps.
“By developing wireless connected lighting products, including LED tubes, we are helping distributors future-proof their business,” Ganick said. “The lighting industry is breaking new ground with LED technology, with wireless controls being the next big thing for distributors to offer their customers.”
Lunera offers a system implementable for local/autonomous (room) or global/integrated (building/enterprise) control. The company offers Type B lamps featuring integrated hardware enabling wireless connectivity controls within an open-architecture Bluetooth Mesh network. For extended functionality, the system can connect using Wi-Fi to the company’s Cloud-based Smart Lighting Platform, which enables data retrieval and storage, location-based services, and Internet of Things capabilities.
“The lighting industry is at an inflection point,” said Tom Quinn, Senior Vice President, Worldwide Field Operations, Lunera, Inc. “Consolidation and attrition are the future for standard, unconnected lighting. Connected lighting as a standalone solution is self-limiting in value, expensive to set up and maintain, and closed, making it unacceptable as a long-term path. The best path for our industry is the best path for customers—an open-architecture industry standard that is simple and affordable to deploy; delivers the lighting, control, and energy management that a lighting system should; and transforms the lighting system into the breakout IoT infrastructure that enables true commercial value and sustained future growth.”
Image courtesy of Signify.
Making the sale
Vedder advised starting with the customer’s pain point with their existing lighting system.
“For the most part, this will include energy usage, poor controls, or poor lighting quality,” he said. “A connected system of TLEDs offers a simple and cost-effective way to help the client overcome these challenges. Highlight how TLEDs, at their core, are LEDs and can drive significantly lower energy consumption. Talk about how the system will make the lighting scheme customizable to suit specific needs of specific occupants at specific times. Then chat through potential automated customizations, such as, ‘Do you want the lights to turn themselves OFF when no one is present? Done. Do you want to dim the lights near the windows to take advantage of daylight? Easy.’”
Vedder added, “With that foundation set, closing the deal becomes: ‘Do you want these upgrades to your office completed in a single day? No problem.’”
“Don’t be afraid of connected lighting,” Ganick said. “Challenge the status quo by using new technology to easily retrofit a space to offer dimming and customized controls.”
You must be logged in to post a comment.