Sign suppliers and lighting-industry experts illuminate sign-lighting trends
By Susan Conner
Several sign-supply companies and industry analysts were asked by ST to report lighting trends they've observed. Questions concerned trends in lighting sources, power supplies/ballasts and controls; how local/regional codes affect sign-illumination choices; the most frequent sign-illumination questions concerning neon, fluorescents, incandescents, LEDs, OLEDs and electroluminescent lighting; and future trends.
Respondents, listed alphabetically, are:
* Chuck DeMond, president, Cincinnati Sign Supplies Inc. (Cincinnati)
* Davey Glantz, president, West Coast Div., N. Glantz & Son (Brooklyn, NY)
* Lee Hewitt, principal engineer for signs, Underwriters Laboratories (UL), Northbrook, IL
* Muhammad Khan, director of technical services, International Sign Assn. (Alexandria, VA)
* Steve Van Holt, national sales manager, |1829| (Denver)
* Ken Von Wald, president, |1820| (St. Paul, MN)
Lighting sources
DeMond: "Neon transformers are still our main product line. LEDs are now second. Fluorescent ballasts and lamps are still strong, and HID lighting and fixtures are growing. Incandescent is slowly going away."
Glantz: "There are definitely more LED orders for the last 24 to 36 months. I think the steady increase is due to good salesmanship and the ability to ship products quickly. Large national programs have converted to LEDs, and this has a ripple effect."
Hewitt: "I see increased use of LED lighting sources for signs and also more compact, cold-cathode lighting for signs. Also, there's more industry support for the development of a comprehensive sign-component standard and a restructuring of the existing, sign-safety standard."
Khan: "Fluorescent, neon and LED continue to be the leading sources of lighting in sign applications. HIDs, induction lamps and compact-fluorescent lamps are also commonly used in backlighting signs."
Van Holt: "LEDs have definitely been the hottest products the last two years. Despite that, our neon-supply business has also grown. As for incandescent products, we see very little of it being used."
Von Wald: "We are seeing a widespread acceptance of LED-lighting sources by our customers. Initial demand was driven through specification of LED lighting by end users. As our customers worked through those jobs, they became comfortable with estimating, manufacturing and effective installation of LED lighting. It appears that our customers have learned what applications are appropriate for LED lighting and have adopted the technology.
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