Controls

Home theaters are a popular addition to many homes, according to the Consumer Electronics Association, which estimated that by the end of 2004, one-third of U.S. households owned a home theater system, up from about one-fifth at the end of 1999. The addition of a home theater creates special demands on the lighting and controls. [...]

Green construction codes and standards are beginning to emerge on the national code stage. The standards go beyond energy standards such as 90.1 and the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) to cover additional areas such as site sustainability, water efficiency, indoor environmental quality and materials and resources. This is the subject of a new whitepaper [...]

Leviton Manufacturing Company has expanded its line of commercial wireless occupancy sensors with a comprehensive offering of LevNet RF wireless energy management devices. These self-powered devices integrate Leviton product design with EnOcean wireless control technology. With no wires to run, the family of LevNet RF devices reduces labor and material costs and takes only minutes [...]

WattStopper has launched the RT-200 Astronomical Time Switch, a user-programmable time switch that turns lights, or other electrical loads, ON and OFF relative to dusk or dawn, or at selected times of day, providing energy savings and security both inside and outside the home. It is compliant with the requirements of California’s Title 24-2008 for [...]

Acting on behalf of my client the Lighting Controls Association as its education director, I was pleased to participate in a roundtable on sustainability and lighting efficiency published by Consulting-Specifying Engineer Magazine. Joining me were Jody Good, LC, LEED AP, Principal Lighting and Theatre Designer for Spectrum Engineers Inc.; Siva Haran, PE, LC, LEED AP, [...]

The United States suffered its worst recession in 70 years following the collapse of the housing market. The good news is some economists believe the economy began to recover in Q309 after hitting bottom in the second quarter. The residential construction market is expected to recover, and the Federal stimulus has generated some growth in [...]

The trend of integrating luminaires with lighting controls continues with CS/us (ultrasonic occupancy sensing), Litecontrol’s new solution for small offices and stairways. The luminaire-integrated CS/us pendant system is available in the company’s Arcos and Arcos ID and provides assurance that the luminaire will be switched off when the room is vacant. Light levels can be [...]

Daylighting is going mainstream and daylight harvesting, the energy-saving lighting control strategy that actually makes daylighting “sustainable,” is beginning to catch up. All automatic daylight harvesting control systems need a device that can measure light levels and signal a controller to dim or switch the lights in response to daylight contribution. This device is called [...]

Peerless has announced the start of AIA-approved Continuing Education Courses offered online at ArchitectCES.com. “Lighting for Learning,” which I was pleased to work with Peerless to produce, is the first on many courses to come that were designed by Peerless to help architects and lighting professionals learn best practices for lighting and controls. This sustainable [...]