North Carolina-based Cree LED, a Penguin Solutions brand, and Blizzard Lighting LLC have reached a mutually beneficial settlement resolving a patent infringement dispute involving Cree LED’s patents related to LED components commonly used in LED displays. As part of the settlement, Cree LED has granted Blizzard a limited license to certain Cree LED patents covering…
By Patrick Hayes, General Manager at Contractor Training Center by Colibri Group For electrical contractors, technical skill has always been the starting point. Licensing, code compliance, and field experience are non-negotiable. If the work isn’t safe and correct, nothing else matters. What has changed is everything that happens around that work — how jobs are…
The adage, “Don’t sell rebates, sell outcomes” easily applies to the current landscape in the electric utility market today. With the sunsetting of some utility rebate programs – such swapping out incandescent, fluorescent, metal halide, and high-pressure sodium for LED versions on a lamp for lamp basis – many contractors, lighting specifiers, and facilities managers…
As the calendar turned, many in the lighting industry said “good riddance” to 2025. It was a rocky road given the impact of tariffs on the project market and product pricing. At the end of the day for most it was a “meh” year from a revenue viewpoint with tariff “inspired” pricing perhaps enabling for flat revenue performance … not a report card that anyone wants to come home with.
Paul Pompeo, principal of the renowned executive recruiting firm Pompeo Group, assembled an esteemed committee of leaders in lighting to select the 25 most Influential lighting professionals. As recently shared on the Pompeo Group website, the list of the 25 most influential people in lighting includes four manufacturers, 11 designers, and 10 lighting professionals from…
By Hammond Meuer, The Entrepreneur’s Source Like most industries, hiring trends and practices within the lighting and electrical industries are going through major shifts and various headwinds. Industries such as Healthcare, Technology, Education, and numerous others are being impacted by the overall job market at virtually every level, from C-Suite executives to entry-level roles. The lighting…
Virginia-based domestic lighting pole manufacturer Hapco is celebrating its 75th anniversary, marking a historic milestone in the company’s role in shaping lighting infrastructure across the United States. Founded in 1951, Hapco was among the first companies to introduce aluminum street light poles and brackets and developed the industry’s first tapered aluminum light pole. Over the…
By Adam Reeder, President at LightArt and VP at 3form Above image: Acoustic Echo and Acoustic Static lighting fixtures in the Reynolds Branch of the Columbus Metropolitan Library in Columbus, OH (photo by Eric Piasecki/OTTO) The lighting industry has advanced along two parallel tracks: improving technical performance tied to efficiency and wellness, while also exploring…
Oregon-based Ligman Lighting USA has appointed Daniel Christiano as Director/Sales, North America. In this role, he will lead Ligman’s sales strategy across the U.S. and Canada, working closely with the company’s agency partners and internal teams to continue enhancing Ligman’s customer experience and delivering outdoor lighting solutions to the specification community that brings their vision…
Building on the wildly popular Starfish platform, a smart home control system for the residential market that began with color-changing lamps and has since grown in scope to include downlights, security lighting, video doorbells, cameras, and touchscreens, SATCO has released a comprehensive system for the commercial lighting controls market under the name Domino. The development…
Last week, it was announced that Alabama-based Inline Electric – which has 30 locations spanning several states – has acquired Tennessee-based Customer Service Electric Supply, which has locations in Knoxville, Sevierville, and Kingsport. Out of the 30 Inline Electric locations, seven are designated lighting showrooms (five in Alabama and two in Tennessee). Customer Service Electric Supply has been…
Business consultant David Gordon of Electrical Trends weighs in. Georgia-based Halco Lighting Technologies has announced its acquisition of Topaz Lighting’s Permanent Lighting business from Southwire Company, LLC, in what the company says is a strategic move to strengthen its position in the lighting industry. The acquisition enables the combined brands to serve a broader…
DarkSky International released an organizational statement in response to Reflect Orbital’s proposal to use in-space mirrors to reflect sunlight to Earth at night. Grounded in current scientific understanding and guided by the Five Principles of Responsible Outdoor Lighting, the statement expresses DarkSky’s opposition to orbital illumination systems as they are currently proposed. The statement aims to…
Recent analysis released by the non-profit Rewiring America proposes one solution for keeping the burgeoning demand for electricity in check without escalating utility costs further. According to its new report – Homegrown Energy: How Household Upgrades Can Meet 100% of Data Center Demand Growth – the organization makes a case for a rapid investment in…
For What’s in a Lamp?, Spanish illustrator and art director Jorge Arévalo portrays Italian lighting manufacturer Foscarini’s lamps and designers with his unmistakable style: essential lines, bold colors, and graphic elegance that evokes a dialogue between the object of design and the artists who created it. An internationally renowned illustrator, Jorge Arévalo lives and works…
It started at LightFair maybe 20 years ago, when you would see a few lighting showroom owners walking the exhibit hall, taking a look at the latest developments in lighting technology — mostly for educational purposes, but also because they had the occasional local restaurant or office project. Since then, more decorative residential lighting manufacturers…