High Tech, Low Brightness -- The Lighting Industry News Brief July 7

Name: High Tech, Low Brightness -- The Lighting Industry News Brief July 7
Uploaded: 2025-07-06T19:10:08+00:00
Duration: 19 min 15 s
Channel: NAILD

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The Lighting Industry News Brief is a news commentary series from Scott Wachter, Producer of Get a Grip on Lighting (https://getagriponlighting.com/) offering thoughts and opinions on the week's events and announcements.

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00:00Good morning. It's Monday, July 7th, and that means two things.

00:19You can't eat while you're sleeping, which makes a nap part of your diet.

00:25And it's also time for the Lighting Industry News Brief, brought to you by KeystoneTech.com and their emergency units and exit sign line.

00:36They've got something. Whatever you need, they've got something for it.

00:40Red letters, green letters, white housings, black housings. If you need edge lit, they've got that.

00:45The emergency units come in round and square options, multiple lumen outputs across both.

00:50You can get combo packs if you need those. All of these are backed by Keystone's guaranteed, warrantied power supplies.

00:59That is KeystoneTech.com. That is Light Made Easy.

01:02That is the link in the description, if you please.

01:07But let's get into the news, because we have a recall in Canada on the Minka Vortec Flow,

01:13which these are ceiling pendant fixtures, and there is a risk they might fall out of your ceiling.

01:22They are being listed as an impact hazard. So heads down, elbows up, folks.

01:27Fagerholt has bought Trato TLV. This is a French specialty lighting firm, and they have been bought for 56 million euros.

01:37Lightbulbsurplus.com has partnered with Bulbrite.

01:42This is a new deal that will lead to what is perhaps the largest specialty shop for decorative and vintage bulbs on the internet.

01:51On the tariff tracker, Canada has reached a tentative deal with the U.S.

01:56Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing has delayed the opening of a Japanese plant in favor of expanding an Arizona plant.

02:04The U.S. and Vietnam have held new trade talks.

02:08The U.S. has agreed to critical minerals cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region.

02:15Asian factories are shifting production to avoid tariffs.

02:19And ServiceWire will still make things in America, per a press release.

02:24CEOs are calling for support for domestic rare earths extraction, which is to say they want even more tax cuts.

02:33A lighting manufacturer that is funded by foreign concerns in Foshan, in the Guangdong region of China, has shut down.

02:42Suddenly.

02:43Who's the foreign funder?

02:44They don't say.

02:46Or maybe they do.

02:47My Mandarin's not that great.

02:48Sorry, my Cantonese is not great.

02:50My Cantonese is so bad, I can't tell if it's Mandarin.

02:54Ooh.

02:54Anyway, Orion has announced new inducement grants.

02:59This is new stock options issued for new senior VP Michael Ontrop.

03:05The Q2 Pulsive Lighting survey results are in, showing sales up, but tariffs are making everyone a bit cautious.

03:11We have yet another week in the Signify Share Buyback program, which shows 100,000, 184,956 shares back with the board.

03:25The share price basically averages out to 21.72 euros apiece.

03:31Schneider Electric is expanding in Brossard with their Quebec space, about to be 30% bigger.

03:38Leviton has released a new sustainability report with emissions down and EPDs up.

03:44An unknown buyer at that New York Power Authority auction did buy basically all of those color kinetics lamps, $37 million worth of product, all out of warranty, but all still sealed boxes.

04:02He bought those for not quite $400,000.

04:05Prime Source has bought Fortress Railing.

04:08No details on the railing and lighting accessory company.

04:13Emerson has been awarded for the Excellence in Energy Award.

04:17This is for their Milwaukee facility, being recognized by Focus on Energy.

04:21Schneider has been named one of the most sustainable companies in North America by Time magazine.

04:28Leviton has been named one of the best companies to work for by U.S. News.

04:32A Winnipeg, Manitoba solar lighting system manufacturer burned down on the 29th.

04:39Westrock Battery and Auto Supply makes a lot of solar stuff, despite the name.

04:44They're also a lighting company, and they're just gone.

04:47The EU Parliament has received a new report on product compliance.

04:54This is the third year in a row where online sellers continue to flaunt the rules.

05:01The National Association of Homebuilders has observed UV Safety Month, which is to say,

05:07Hey, folks, wear your sunscreen.

05:10In rep agency updates, USEN has merged with AA McPherson.

05:16They're now working as USEN McPherson.

05:19It rhymes. I like that.

05:21In legal briefs, Noresco and the U.S. Department of Justice have reached a settlement of $9.6 million

05:29related to overcharging the government.

05:31Super has sued LuxRite.

05:35This case concerns T8 LED tubes.

05:39Skyx has secured eight new patents with new AI-enabled plug-and-play smart home tech in play.

05:45Acuity has patented new hydrel luminaires.

05:49This is a proposed technology going to commercial levels.

05:53This will allow two-color displaying RGBs for facades and under bridges.

05:58In events and webinars, LEDUCATION is calling for speakers if you would like to.

06:04The deadline for submissions is September 15th.

06:07The Allen Conference has been set if you would like to go to Westport, Ireland this fall.

06:14In IoT news, OEN Semiconductor has launched a new platform.

06:19Their new controls will support Bluetooth low-energy, RSL10SIP, or power over internet.

06:27Apple has patented new room controls.

06:31This would be a ceiling projector that would project onto your wall,

06:35and you would just poke at the projections on the wall,

06:39and then the camera inside the projector would read your poking as though you had poked a wall interface.

06:50This sounds like a lot more work than just having a wall interface.

06:54I don't know.

06:55Like, I want to live in the Star Trek future, too,

06:58but sometimes buttons are just easy.

07:00In research and development, we have a new SSL structure that uses direct polarized perovskite superlattices.

07:10That'll go into LEDs maybe in the future.

07:14We also have new narrowband emitters.

07:17This is a suppressed electron-photon coupling device that was developed by the South China University of Technology.

07:24UC Davis has tested brightness and found that full-spectrum LEDs

07:28don't need to be as bright, based on surveys, based on, like, actual users saying,

07:36no, I felt about as comfortable under the rich light as the blue light,

07:40which is interesting.

07:43There we go.

07:45We have a new study on daylight and myopia.

07:48This is a study of Southeast Asians culling for more time outside during the day.

07:55Sounds good to me.

07:56We also have a new fish-centric lighting system.

08:00This is for aquariums that uses homochromatic lighting to improve the, not just lifestyle of fish,

08:08but also their appearance.

08:10On the dark side of things, we have a pre-print study showing that blue-rich LEDs impair color vision.

08:18That actually might go with the UC Davis thing, now that I think about it.

08:22Hey, turn into the darkness news update if I do a longer deep dive on this.

08:28That's at restoringdarkness.com.

08:29That'll be on Thursday.

08:31Also, circadian rhythm has been linked with leukemia spread.

08:36Shift work during pregnancy harms both the parent and the offspring in the short and long term.

08:43Light modulation pattern reduces disruption in mice placed on the night shift,

08:50which is to say that they kept a bunch of mice awake.

08:54They actually varied the light across the night and they were happier or, you know, just better.

08:59The metrics were better.

09:01You can't ask a mouse if it's happy.

09:03Allen impairs the metabolism of rats.

09:06Melatonin, whether that is through circadian entrainment or through just pure old pills,

09:12does reduce delirium in ICUs.

09:16Afternoon and evening bright light reduces melatonin production in teens, human teens this time.

09:22We have a study affirming the need for sleep quality in cardiac recovery ICUs.

09:27We have light pollution harming the immune system of passerine finches.

09:31That's a kind of bird.

09:32Honey bee hives, the entire hive, has a circadian rhythm.

09:40They share it, which is weird.

09:43Dark Sky International has begun seeking submissions for their 2025 awards.

09:50Vote for me.

09:51A lawsuit seeks to block an ice detention center in Florida over environmental concerns, including light pollution.

09:59A judge has allowed a Marin County High School board to finally illuminate their baseball field.

10:07This took decades of lawsuits.

10:10Earth Hour has a study of Earth Hour in Hong Kong has shown that decorative and ad lighting are real big issues for light pollution in Hong Kong and presumably other places.

10:22Logan, North Dakota Wind Farms will be adding more light this season.

10:27A Buc-ee's gas station in Brunswick, Georgia is so bright that it is a hazard to see turtle nests 12 miles away.

10:37Torrington, Connecticut has met on a light trespass issue.

10:41Beckenridge, Colorado has begun enforcement on fixtures.

10:44We have new dark sky lighting going up in Kendall in the UK.

10:49And Texas has resolved to observe Dark Sky Day at the state legislature, which is a completely non-binding thing that only happens if they meet on that particular day.

11:00In horticultural news, Singapore has partnered with a Dutch firm for farms, Mozambique has partnered with a Chinese firm on mushrooms, and we have a new homegrown hydroponic system going up in Nigeria.

11:16In recommended reading, all these links are available on Nailed.org and more.

11:21Nailed.org, great resource.

11:23Sign up for our con.

11:24A ceiling fan manufacturer is calling for a specific tariff relief program, insisting that it would be a form of nationalism.

11:35We have the perils of not paying attention to domestic preference rules.

11:41If it's a rule, it's not a preference, bud.

11:43And if there's perils, it's definitely not a preference, bud.

11:47The industry needs to do better in terms of human-centric lighting.

11:50We have how to incorporate chronobiology into your designs.

11:54We have luminous efficacy, but mine or yours, what counts?

12:00How to design with tunable white.

12:02How atmosphere and outdoor lighting go together.

12:05We have an interview with the owners of Armacost Lighting.

12:08How energy use has changed since 1776.

12:13We have smart wrist control for smart buildings.

12:15We have what you need to know about a new control option that independently balances RGB in your RGB systems.

12:23We have how to weigh privacy and convenience in your IoT options.

12:29We have how to use AI with your PoE devices.

12:34We have a review of two Wi-Fi-ready lightbulb cameras and a case study of the Seattle Ferry Terminal.

12:42In local news, Maryland and Oregon have set new energy performance standards independently.

12:48They're slightly different.

12:50I'm reading them at the same time because they just happened in the same week.

12:53We have new grants for residences in Indiana.

12:57California will be spending $5 billion on road projects, starting with a few hundred million in Mendocino, California.

13:05Walsh County, North Dakota has begun an efficiency program in county buildings.

13:10Manhattan, Illinois will be funding a new street lighting project.

13:15Augusta, Georgia is adding solar power street lighting to some streets.

13:21Okay, this is a town in Wisconsin.

13:23I'm going to try real hard to say it in one try, but you got to give me some slack on this.

13:27It is Okonomowoc.

13:30Okonomowoc has funded their Historical Society's renovations.

13:36Raleigh, North Carolina has canceled a road project due to funding issues.

13:41We have new lighting on Route 2 in Lake County, Ohio.

13:45Mississippi State University is beginning a campus-wide energy project.

13:49Montgomery, Alabama has gotten state funds for school lighting.

13:53That's at the secondary level.

13:55Cheshire, Connecticut schools will not be changing their start time over the needs of sports fields.

14:03McNeil and Bluff Springs in Texas have finished their street lighting projects.

14:09And a RETX center in Fort Saskatchewan, Saskatchewan, has reopened after retrofits, and it looks pretty good.

14:17This could have gone under the case study thing.

14:20Pardon me.

14:21Clovis, New Mexico is expanding their funds for park lighting.

14:25Tuscaloosa, Alabama is funding park lighting as well.

14:28Lafellette, Tennessee will be lighting up their baseball fields.

14:31We have new sports field lighting going ahead at the Bennett Academy in Lille, Illinois.

14:37Lille, Illinois.

14:39Lille, Illinois.

14:40Lille, Illinois.

14:40Oh, I said it three times fast.

14:42There we go.

14:43Citrus Heights in California is planning new trail lighting.

14:47Internationally, Puerto Morelos will be updating its streets with 250 solar streetlights in Mexico.

14:54Stanley Anigbogu of Nigeria has won the 2025 Commonwealth Young Person of the Year for recycled solar power devices.

15:06In sports news, if you follow minor league baseball, they're going to be doing cosmic baseball, if you've ever done cosmic bowling.

15:16They shut off the main lights and then add a bunch of party blue lights, so you're just going to see the uniforms shine in all funny colors and the ball go.

15:26It'll probably be fun.

15:28It's a great gimmick.

15:29Minor league baseball runs on gimmicks, and that's great.

15:32In people news, we have two promotions at Legrand.

15:36Colonial Electric has begun training the next generation of leadership.

15:40Brady Eckhart is now the director of EHS and DOT at Border States.

15:45Mike Butella has announced his retirement from CAL.

15:49Vassi Filomen has been named the executive VP of data and AI at Siemens.

15:55In Things You Can Make, we have a box-shaped reading light – sorry, a book-shaped reading light.

16:01So it's kind of meta that way.

16:04And also, a Thai weed boxing event ended early due to an electric shock from faulty lighting, which is a sentence I just said.

16:17There's a complete set of circumstances that happened.