There are increasing signs of rough times in the horticultural lighting industry, including cannabis, food, flowers, and other Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) crops. Some examples include: Osram suggesting that growers cannot currently afford the expenditure on LED lighting because rising energy prices are consuming their budgets. Read more here. Signify’s CEO is also seeing a slowing [...]

Both business owners and employees should be aware of the new HR trend called “quiet hiring.” Quiet hiring is when an organization acquires new skills without hiring new full-time employees. Sometimes, it means hiring short-term contractors (external quiet hiring). Other times, it means encouraging current employees to move into new or additional roles within the organization [...]

  Here is a quick summary of six acquisitions and one closure, announced in the fourth quarter of 2022: Midstream Lighting acquired Hyperion (horticultural lighting). Details here. Munich-based ARRI acquired Clay Paky (entertainment lighting) from ams Osram. Details here. Applied UV, Inc. acquired PURO Lighting & LED Supply Co. Details here. Legrand acquired Encelium Advanced [...]

  Last week we launched the new LightNOW site with a refreshed design and new features, including: A Lighting Industry Event Calendar A Press Room – featuring lighting industry press releases and news A Careers page – for job postings A new, larger top-of-page advertising position In addition to these changes on the website, in [...]

China has canceled its harsh entry restrictions that were part of its Zero Covid policy. The new policy is called the “0+3” policy. Mainland China is expected to be fully open to entry on January 9, the start date of the new “0+3” policy. Overseas visitors to China will only need to quarantine for 3 days, and will no longer need [...]

The most recent email newsletter from LD+A, their E Report, was sponsored by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), with the Request For Information (RFI) graphic above. WMATA is asking lighting design firms to consider responding to their RFI. The image links to the WMATA Procurement and Contracting web page, here. The deadline for [...]

LEVAR, a leading provider of Augmented Reality (AR) and 3D “View in your space” technologies, and the Lighting Showroom Association (LSA), announce the launch of their partnership platform to bring AR and 3D technologies to the residential lighting and fan industry. Through the LSA Augmented Reality program, LEVAR provides LSA member showrooms and manufacturers with the ability [...]

At the recent Board of Directors’ meeting of the National Lighting Bureau last week, Chairperson Mary Beth Gotti presented the John Bachner Presidential Award to Terry McGowan. The award, named after the first executive director of the organization, is presented to a member at the discretion of the current chairperson in recognition of the recipient’s outstanding service [...]

The November mid-term elections were not just politically consequential. They also ushered in cannabis legalization in Maryland and Missouri. Earlier this year, Rhode Island’s legislature and governor enacted legislation legalizing recreational cannabis, as well. These latest three states bring the number of states with legalized recreational cannabis to 21, plus Washington, D.C. and Guam. That [...]