Codes + Standards

CIE, the global lighting organization that maintains the CRI standard, is now studying TM-30: The CIE recognizes that the colour fidelity metrics including the CRI do not assess other important aspects of the colour qualities of light sources, in particular, those related to colour preference. CIE TC 1-91 is developing a Technical Report on this [...]

The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) responded to IES TM-30-15 with NEMA LSCR-PP 1-2015 Light Source Color Rendition. The Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) recently published TM-30-15 IES Method for Evaluating Light Source Color Rendition. NEMA has produced a position paper, Light Source Color Rendition, in response to this document. Mark Lien, chair of NEMA Light [...]

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Mark Lien LC, CLEP, CLMC, HBDP, LEED BD&C, Director of Government and Industry Relations at OSRAM SYLVANIA and chair of NEMA Light Source Section. The topic: IES-TM-30, which proposes a new method of color evaluation, including new metrics to express color fidelity and saturation. I’m happy to share [...]

The Zhaga Consortium, an organization aiming to standardize LED light engines and associated components, has published Book 11 for small LED spotlight modules. Book 11 is a specification that describes circular LED modules with a diameter of 35 mm that are suitable for spotlighting and related applications. A Book 11 module requires a separate LED [...]

The International Commission on Illumination (CIE), which created and maintains the color rendering index (CRI) standard, recently published a position statement on CRI, its limitations, and whether and how to replace it. The complete statement is available here. Notable excerpts: On the limitations of CIE: “With the rapid uptake of LED lighting, which has greater [...]

The Illuminating Engineering Society has published Sports and Recreational Area Lighting (IES RP-6-15), the most recent addition to IES Recommended Practices series. The purpose of IES RP-6-15 is to provide the reader with recommendations to aid in the design of sports lighting systems. Popular sports such as baseball, tennis, basketball and football as well as [...]

The color quality of light sources is critical in a broad range of applications, from making colors pop in retail merchandise to promoting social interaction by properly rendering skin tones. To evaluate, predict and discuss color quality, the industry relies on two metrics, correlated color temperature (CCT) and the color rendering index (CRI). Varying these [...]

Twenty-three addenda to ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1-2013, Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, are now open for public comment until October 4, 2015. Among the addenda open for public comment is addendum ch, which proposes a new set of interior lighting power densities (LPD) limits for both building area and space by space compliance [...]

The Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IES) has announced the publication of IES Method for Evaluating Light Source Color Rendition (TM-30-15). Quantifying the color rendition characteristics of a light source is a complex problem. Many aspects of color rendition, such as color fidelity and color discrimination, should be simultaneously considered during the design and [...]