Codes + Standards

The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) has published NEMA SSL 4 Retrofit Lamps: Minimum Performance Requirements. This publication applies to integral Light Emitting Diode (LED) lamps, which are defined as a lamp with LEDs, an integrated LED driver, and a base that meets appropriate American National Standards and is designed to connect to the branch [...]

I’m happy to be writing again for Architectural Lighting Magazine, for which I served as editor and publisher in the late 1990s. Editor Elizabeth Donoff is doing a terrific job providing the industry with great editorial, and brought me back to contribute a technology column in each issue. My contribution to the Jan/Feb issue deals [...]

The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) has published ANSI ANSLG C78.21—Incandescent lamps: PAR and R Shapes and ANSI ANSLG C78.40—Electric Lamps: Specifications for Mercury Lamps. Providing physical and electrical characteristics of incandescent lamps, ANSI/ANSLG C78.21-2011 describes PAR and R bulb shapes. The standard covers lamps with clear, frosted and lens end bulbs, clear and prescription [...]

Common household lamps now carry uniform labeling to facilitate educated decisions focusing on light output and energy costs, not watts, helping consumers transition to more efficient lamp types. That’s the topic of an article I contributed to the January 2012 issue of Electrical Contractor Magazine. Read it here.

The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) recently published ANSI C136.37 for Solid State Light Sources Used in Roadway and Area Lighting. The first solid state lighting (SSL) standard produced by ANSI accredited standards committee C136.37, this standard defines interchangeability and some requirements for SSL source fixtures. References to existing regional and international SSL standards are [...]

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Municipal Solid-State Street Lighting Consortium recently published guidelines for converting to LED roadway lighting. The Model Specification for LED Roadway Luminaires is for cities, utilities, and other local agencies interested in saving money and energy by switching from traditional lighting technologies to solid-state lighting (SSL), which uses LEDs instead of [...]

It is estimated that about 10,000 lighting ordinances are in effect in the United States alone. Many are easy to understand but difficult to comply with because they are often not written by lighting people. Ordinances may vary considerably from one to the next. The Model Lighting Ordinance (MLO), produced jointly by the Illuminating Engineering [...]

On August 10, 2011, the Utah Uniform Building Codes Commission voted to adopt the 2011 National Electrical Code. Only a single amendment was approved by the Commission: to revert to the wording in the 2005 Edition of the National Electrical Code for ampacity of service conductors and main power feeders for individual dwelling units. On [...]

Earlier this year, LightNOW reported that in July, the Department of Energy recognized the ASHRAE/IES 90.1-2007 standard as the new national energy standard, superseding the 2004 version. In a bold move, on October 19, 2011, DOE recognized the 2010 version of 90.1 as the new national energy standard. By October 18, 2013, all states in [...]