September 23, 2002—Huge potential to save energy, integration benefits, and adoption of advanced conservation codes by energy-conscious states spark demand in the lighting controls market in North America, says a new report by industry analysts Frost & Sullivan. Manufacturers of both lighting controls and ballasts stand poised to benefit from the increased demand, says the report, and are gearing up to meet the needs of the market.
An interesting trend in this market is the growing dominance of energy-efficient electronic ballasts over magnetic ballasts. These find application in the retrofit market, which demands high-energy conservation capability.
Falling prices of electronic ballasts since the mid-90s have helped bring them almost on par with magnetic ballasts. This, combined with the increased acceptance of high intensity discharge ballasts in commercial and retail applications, has helped penetrate the market further and boost revenue growth.
“Lighting controls have been shown to reduce lighting energy consumption by up to 50 percent in existing buildings and at least up to 35 percent in new constructions,” says Sanjiv Bhaskar Frost & Sullivan Industry Analyst.
The trend in lighting controls is rapidly moving toward remote controllable breaker-based panels. Many manufacturers of conventional relay-based controls are working on providing remote controllable panels as part of their portfolio, hoping to capitalize on current trends and changing preferences of end users.
The retrofit segment of this market represents an important growth area. Energy efficiency programs implemented by the federal and state Governments give rise to the need for suitable lighting products in “older” buildings, thereby creating opportunities for energy-saving ballasts and controls.
“Participants also have to make concerted efforts to ensure that open protocol standards are adopted for lighting controls to facilitate seamless integration with other building automation systems,” adds Bhaskar. “Manufacturers have to step up their sales and marketing efforts and concentrate on streamlining the production process to make it more efficient.”
For more information, contact Frost & Sullivan.
