I had the pleasure of participating in a panel discussion at the The Lighting Research Center Partner-Alliance Event last week in New York.
Brentwood, TN – September, 18 2018 – The panel focused on the future of lighting and industry stewardship in time of rapid industry change. Other speakers included Lori Brock, Head of Innovation Americas, Dr. Paul Schoemaker, pioneer in the field of decision sciences and business strategy, Priscilla Richards of NYSERDA, and Mark Lien from the Illuminating Engineering Society.
There was discussion about less utility rebates and their effect on retrofits. Nonetheless, NYSERDA continues their mission to improve these specific fields even though there is less emphasis on the federal side. Much was made of how the industry has moved from glass and metal to software. Lighting as a Science was briefly mentioned and some feel the time may be now for success with LaaS. Paul Schoemaker, who was the keynote speaker, talked about traits of companies that have lasted 200 years or more. One trait was no u-turns, as 200-year old companies don’t change their plans overnight. Another trait was low debt. This really resonated with me since LumEfficient is a debt-free company and we consistently focus on energy saving lighting. Recently, we have added LiFi to our portfolio of products, and the product has not changed our focus but adds to our efforts of energy efficiency and technological growth.
LumEfficient’s Response to Industry Changes
I focused my talk on the industry profitability and how there seems to be a race to the bottom. I cited several examples of companies that have recently closed as well as the may layoffs we continue to see. However, I contrasted the LumEfficient model to the overall industry; our successful growth rate and high profitability are tied to the fact that we refuse to sell commodity-grade product. Our focus has been on high-end heavy industrial LED luminaires and consistently keeping them in stock. I went on to say that LumEfficient gets a lot of business, simply because we have the stock available. Yes, there are lower prices, but who wants to wait 8 to 12 weeks for low-grade commodities.
It was a real honor to speak to this group of industry leaders. Although LiFi wasn’t the focus of my comments I was able to briefly mention the subject; there was much individual talk about the growth of LiFi in individual conversations.
Thanks to Dr. Mariana Figueiro, the LRC Director, for inviting me to participate in such a worthwhile event.
Visit www.lumefficient.com to learn more about our innovative product lines of LED Lighting and LiFi technology.
About LumEfficient
LumEfficient, located in Nashville, began its business in 2010 selling LUXIM’s Light Emitting Plasma (LEP.) As LED technology continued to improve in efficiency and reliability, LumEfficient gradually began replacing their entire LUXIM brand of LEP luminaires with the Resilient brand of LED luminaires. Although LumEfficient products are designed for heavy industrial use, most are sold in the general lighting market because of their competitive price points. LumEfficient has luminaires installed throughout the U.S, as well as India, Russia, Thailand, Germany and the UK.
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