For the last few years, architects and designers have undergone a paradigm shift in their approach to lighting. The interplay of lighting and suitable luminaires can elevate or diminish an entire design. This newfound perspective on lighting extends to 2024’s lighting systems and fixtures, setting new standards in design, sustainability, and emotional impact.
Over the past decade, lighting trends have evolved, embracing LED technology, smart lighting, natural light maximization, sustainable options, and Human Centric Lighting. Multidimensional illumination has replaced single-source approaches.
The lighting industry’s commitment to innovation remains unwavering. Let’s discover the trends!
Tunable White Light
Tunable white LED lighting fixtures allow for color temperature and intensity customization. The progress in LED technology and the widespread availability of cost-effective LEDs have brought tunable white lighting into the forefront of lighting design. It lets us see fine detail, color, and motion and exerts non-visual effects on circadian rhythms, sleep, and mood.
Smart and Wireless Lighting and Controls
In parallel, environmental considerations are reshaping the landscape of smart lighting. As the global focus shifts towards energy conservation, smart lighting plays a vital role in achieving significant energy savings. These solutions enhance comfort, energy efficiency, and adaptability, seamlessly integrating with diverse building systems. Athena by Lutron contributes to increased productivity, flexible lighting, and energy efficiency. It seamlessly collaborates with various lighting fixtures, ensuring smooth dimming across commercial spaces, including offices, hotels, and restaurants.
Smart streetlights, connected to the Internet of Things (IoT), enhance safety through expansive coverage, environmental monitoring, parking and traffic management data, and municipal surveillance. Embedded sensors in these systems collect information on user behavior, sunlight levels, occupancy patterns, temperature fluctuations, and humidity. For example, SHUFFLE by Schreder is a smart street light pole system that can improve sustainable mobility, heighten safety, enhance comfort, preserve wildlife, connect people everywhere, support public services, and stimulate social interactions.
The synergy between smart lighting and environmental responsibility underscores its critical role in addressing pressing global challenges .
Inspired by Nature Lighting
Amidst the ever-evolving landscape of office trends like treadmill desks and nap pods, a recent survey conducted by Future Workplace offers a striking revelation. “The Employee Experience” survey underscores that employees yearn for something more fundamental – natural light and outdoor views. Involving 1,614 North American employees, the study found that access to these elements tops the list of workplace preferences, surpassing perks like on-site cafeterias and fitness centers. Conversely, the absence of natural light and outdoor vistas diminishes the employee experience, with over a third feeling deprived of adequate natural light and 47% reporting fatigue due to its absence.
Multidimensional Lighting
In 2023 and beyond, lighting experts foresee a significant increase in the adoption of layered lighting within interior spaces. This trend is set to enhance versatility in ambiance and functionality. Particularly, workplaces are expected to embrace this approach to cater to distinct operational areas with unique lighting requirements. By incorporating a blend of indoor LED fixtures, such as accent, ambient, task, and track lighting, interior environments will be enriched, ensuring they efficiently serve multiple purposes.
Subtle Lighting Source
Minimalism is a prevailing and influential trend in modern lighting design. This design philosophy revolves around the “less is more” principle, emphasizing simplicity, functionality, and removing unnecessary elements. As technology advances increasingly rapidly, products are shrinking in size. Smaller luminaires are less intrusive, offering a sense of minimalistic elegance. The focus has shifted from showcasing the size of our lighting to concealing the technological components.
Sustainable Market Growth
It is not a secret that the industry has been transforming to apply LED lighting everywhere. LEDs offer significant energy and cost savings compared to traditional lighting sources. Outdoor applications, such as highways, streets, public areas, and stadiums, benefit from LED’s advantages, which are projected to make up 86% of lighting sales by 2035, as per the US Department of Energy. To maximize efficiency, lighting control systems should complement LED lighting, reducing energy consumption by around 30%. This integration extends LED lifespan, lowers maintenance costs, and shortens the payback period, driving highway and stadium construction adoption.
In conclusion, the world of commercial lighting is undergoing a transformative journey. Architects and designers have recognized the profound impact of lighting on design, sustainability, and human emotions, setting new standards in the industry. With the emergence of tunable white LED lighting, smart and wireless lighting solutions like Athena by Lutron, and a focus on natural light and outdoor views, the industry is poised for a dynamic shift.
Thanks for reading and stay tuned for next month’s blog post!
About Western Lighting and Energy Controls
Western Lighting and Energy Controls is one of the leading Lighting, Controls, and Energy Management manufacturers’ representative agency in Southern California.
In business for over two decades, Western Lighting and Energy Controls offers an unparalleled level of service and support through dedicated teams. These teams work to ensure that project requirements and unique business needs are delivered on time and within budget. With its uniquely proactive approach, Western can serve customers in a way that achieves maximum growth and success. Western Lighting and Energy Controls has been an employee-owned company through an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) Trust since 2019. To learn more about Western Lighting and Energy Controls, visit www.westernlightingandenergycontrols.com.
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