Practical advice on commercial lighting from LED retrofits to lighting design.

As the world clambers to make sense of the recent emergence of LED lighting, a handful of takeaway points have cropped up as the defining traits of the technology. 

And alone atop that list of traits is this one: energy efficiency.

If you were to play a game of word association with a handful of your colleagues right now, asking them for the first idea that comes to mind when you say “LED lighting,” odds are they will spout out something about energy efficiency.

Why wouldn’t they? Energy efficiency is certainly the defining characteristic of LED.

It would have been difficult to conceive just a decade ago, but more and more commercial buildings are beginning to install smart LED lighting in their spaces.

What is smart LED lighting? 

LED, as you might have learned, is an electronic light source. As such, its capabilities span beyond the typical scope of a lighting technology. 

Yes, LEDs provide all of the usual benefits of great lighting. And they excel in many of those areas. But their electronic DNA gives them a whole different edge. 

The lighting industry is swimming with LED lighting products that make claims of longer life, better color and huge energy savings. So, how do you tell which ones are legitimate and which ones to disregard?