With lighting accounting for about 17% of electricity used in commercial buildings, and the Department of Energy reporting that some 30% of building energy is wasted, it’s essential in terms of both cost and conservation to make sure commercial lighting products are as energy efficient as possible.
Efficient use of electricity isn’t the only measure of product sustainability, however.
A recent article by the Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) addressed several other sustainability considerations, including the raw materials required to manufacture luminaires and disposal of electronic waste, concluding that “By optimizing the use of energy resources and raw materials, smart lighting can contribute to the development of sustainable and resilient urban environments.”
The DesignLights Consortium (DLC) hosted a webinar on this topic in August. Reflecting aspects of product environmental impacts included in a proposed update to the DLC’s Solid-State Lighting (SSL) technical requirements, the webinar covered a series of issues related to the sustainability and resilience of commercial lighting.
“Environmental considerations, such as carbon reduction and material health, extend beyond energy efficiency,” states the DLC’s SSL version 6.0 draft technical requirements, which are set to take effect in January. While the DLC’s current technical requirements focus on impacts related to energy consumption, light pollution, and other environmental factors from the time a product is installed until it’s removed, the v6.0 update includes voluntary reporting of lifecycle assessments beyond a product’s “use phase.”
The draft policy does not mandate that manufacturers address these issues but offers the option of reporting product lifecycle data “to support broader sustainability efforts in lighting and showcase opportunities beyond energy savings alone.” Sustainability metrics that are reported will be added to product details on the DLC’s SSL Qualified Products List (QPL) — a resource that most North American energy efficiency programs use in establishing criteria for rebates and incentives.
In addition to expanding awareness about lifecycle topics being introduced in SSL v6.0, the August webinar explored the benefits of solar-powered luminaires, which will now have a new category on the SSL Qualified Products List.
The webinar featured presentations by:
- Scott Roos, a member of the Illuminating Engineering Society’s (IES) Sustainability Committee, the National Electrical Manufacturers Association’s Lighting Sustainability Task Force, and the International Electrotechnical Committee addressing the environmental aspects of lighting, and a luminaire PCR committee member with Smart EPD (an organization developing product-specific rules for luminaire environmental product declarations in North America);
- Alexandra Christiana, an architect and sustainability leader at HMFH Architects in Cambridge, Massachusetts and a board member of the Boston Section of the IES and Co-Chair of the IES Sustainable Lighting Committee; and
- Andrew Harper, Research and Development Engineer at the California Lighting Technology Center (CLTC), where he focuses on advancing energy efficient technologies and strategies for electrification, grid flexibility and building decarbonization.
Topics discussed included the pros and cons of product-level sustainability metrics and the importance of third-party verification, and an overview of CLTC’s Renewable Energy and Advanced Lighting (REAL) program. The full webinar recording and slides are available on the DLC website.
