How Networked Lighting is Changing the Game

If you’re a building owner, specifier, or lighting designer, networked lighting control systems will change the way you do business.

Energy savings, rebates, and the rapid adoption of LED lighting have raised the demand for networked lighting controls in new commercial and multi-family / multi-tenant buildings. Now, new wireless lighting control makes it easy to achieve the same benefits when retrofitting existing buildings.

Networked lighting control systems in commercial buildings have many advantages such as:

• Cost-effective application of multiple control strategies including occupancy/vacancy sensing and daylight harvesting
• Control lighting loads in a single room, whole building, or entire campus from a single point
• Customizable programmability
• Zoning and rezoning using software
• Measuring and monitoring of electricity usage and savings

When commercial lighting control systems were first introduced, they were not user-friendly, primarily because they were developed for fluorescent lighting, the predominant technology in commercial lighting These issues, combined with prohibitive costs, kept networked lighting systems in only 1% of commercial buildings.

Today, LED sources that are more easily controlled, falling costs, and the integration of sensors and controls into fixtures, have sparked new interest in networked lighting systems.

Adding to this growth, each year, millions of dollars are allocated to lighting rebates, which are extremely influential in the design and procurement of lighting packages in new construction. Utilities already provide incentives for lighting controls, but are looking for ways to encourage energy savings beyond existing requirements. This effort has resulted in an increased interest in networked lighting.

At RP Lighting, we make it our mission to stay on top of the latest technology in the lighting industry, and work to make our products usable for years to come. As a major lighting supplier and a supplier of products for multi-family builder and light commercial projects, we know that changes in our industry also change the way our customers do business. To learn more about our products and find out how we’re staying on top of the latest technologies, contact us today!