LED Downlights Installation Guidelines

Such steps are long overdue, environmentalists say

2011-08-22T20:45:00.000-07:00

"The public setsuden sentiment is merely symbolic. Everybody is joining the bandwagon as an expression of solidarity at a time of distress. What is more important is to create a deeper front against dangerous nuclear power," she told IPS.

A massive earthquake and tsunami on Mar. 11 destroyed Japan's largest nuclear power plant at Fukushima, forcing the government to review the national policy on nuclear energy that currently meets 30 percent of the national demand.

Japan has 54 nuclear reactors of which only 15 are in operation currently, with some of them set to undergo stress tests as a precaution after the Fukushima disaster.

As a result, the total electricity supplied by the ten major utilities in July dropped by almost nine percent, or 83 billion kilowatt hours, in comparison to supply in 2010, according to the Federation of Electric Power Companies.

Well-known Japanese author Kazutoshi Hanto, in an interview on Japanese television, likened the current power-saving efforts to 1945 post-war Japan when people worked hard to rebuild their country.

"National unity in the form of setsuden mirrors the early post-war diligence of the Japanese who worked single-mindedly to rebuild the country.

"There are new ideas and efforts rising from the worst nuclear disaster in Japan," Hanto said.

Prime Minister Naoto Kan is pushing a national goal to generate 20 percent of electricity from alternative energy sources such as solar and wind. Japan will legislate to mandate utilities to buy electricity generated from these sources at prices set by the government.

Such steps are long overdue, environmentalists say. There is also increasing interest among equipment manufacturers to develop energy saving products.

So, that could make me the bad guy.

2011-08-18T01:57:00.001-07:00

'You're the guy that doesn't live and breathe with his team. How could you say you're a fan if you don't even want to know what assets your team could have? How do find those diamonds in the rough if you won't even scour the rough?'

If that's the case, then sure, I'll be the villain. I'll take the hit and not follow every snap that those that I cheer will take until early September. I'm fine with that. It's not my way of punishing the owners for closing the gates on their employees. I'm not protesting the players for drawing a line in the sand that couldn't be crossed for four-plus months. It's just my normal state of mind.

Now, my apathy might have waned a bit if one thing occurred. It's the same phenomenon that happened in 1994, 1998, and 2004.

The MLB strike of 1994 was especially irksome for me. As a young teen in Kansas City, the Royals were my summertime fascination.

I wasn't a fixture at games, but I did head out to Royals Stadium (before it was renamed for late owner Ewing Kauffman) to see the likes of George Brett, Frank White, Bo Jackson, Danny Tartabull, Flash Gordon, Mark Gubicza, and Jeff Montgomery. That year, the unexpected Royals had actually fought their way into contention past the All-Star Break.

Nationwide, the Strike took the wind out of baseball's sails. Even though many were relieved to see the game's return in April of 1995, the sport didn't really get a boost for another three years.

Brain hemorrhage led to a new direction

2011-08-16T02:20:00.000-07:00

George Arthur of Southport had been in the restaurant industry for over 30 years when he was told on Nov. 7, 2007 that he had had a massive brain hemorrhage. After nine days in the Intensive Care Unit, Arthur was on his way home and unbeknownst to him, on his way to a new life.

“I had a brain hemorrhage which put me out for about two years,” Arthur said. “I didn’t know if I would live or die. Luckily, I came out with only a few minor setbacks and in 2010 I wrote 30 songs.”

Music has always been a large part of Arthur’s life. He played drums, guitar, keyboard and sang in multiple choirs. His wife bought him a karaoke machine during his recovery and Arthur gained confidence through it.

“I’ve always had music in my life, but it was never my profession,” Arthur said. “I started trying to sing and that’s how I recuperated. I did a lot of singing and playing instruments. Emotionally it helped. It was the light at the end of the tunnel.”

Arthur could not read music nor did he have experience writing it, but he began writing songs in February 2010.

“I had never done anything like this in my life,” Arthur said. “ I never wrote any music and I can’t read it, but I wrote 30 songs in less than a year.”

He would have a tune come to him, he would go to his music room and begin recording. Arthur had to record everything that he played immediately.

“I do have a short term memory situation. I wrote my songs in my music room, I got the tunes first and I had to record it because I was afraid I wouldn’t know how to play it again,” Arthur said. “Then the lyrics, I did the same thing. There were more than a few times I had to pull over to the side of the road to write something down.”

Excerpt: This Beautiful Life

2011-08-11T02:09:00.000-07:00

She leaned over, the fixed lens of the camera catching a tiny smattering of blemishes on her cheek, like a comet's spray. Her hair had been bleached white, with long blond roots, and most of it was pulled back and up into a chunky ponytail above the three plastic hoops climbing the rim of her ear.

The song began to play, Beyoncé. I love to love you, baby. She stepped aside, revealing her room in all its messy glory. Above the bed was a painting; the central image was a daisy. A large lava lamp bubbled and gooed on the nightstand.

She was giggling offstage. Suddenly, the screen was a swirl of green plaid. Filmstrips of color in knife pleats. Her short skirt swayed along with her round hips. A little roll of ivory fat nestled above the waistband. She wore a white tank top, which she took off, her hands quickly finding the cups of her black bra. The breasts inside were small, and at first she covered them with her palms, fingers splayed like scallop shells. Then she unhooked the bra in the front and they popped out as if on springs. Her hands did a little fan dance as they reached below her hemline and lifted up her skirt.

She'd done all of this for his benefit. To please him. To prove him wrong. She reached out for the little toy baseball bat and the next part was hard to watch, even if you knew what was coming.

Two parties. Both of Elizabeth Bergamot's children had parties to go to. Jake, the eldest—his longish brown hair suddenly grazing his collarbones, his eyes the color of muddled mint—was on his own that night, of course. His party was up in the Bronx, in Riverdale, somewhere near his school. He was fifteen and a half the previous Friday. It was pretty ridiculous that the Bergamots continued to celebrate this increasingly minor milestone—his half birthday—with half a cake and half a present. Richard, Liz's husband, had started the whole business ten years earlier, when he'd surprised them both by bringing home half a deck of cards that year, the other twenty-six miraculously appearing overnight under the boy's pillow.

"He's five and a half on Cinco de Mayo," Richard had said, by way of explanation. "Is there a better cause for celebration?"

Since the gesture was so touching, so sweet and fatherly, and Richard was a Californian by birth, Liz had trusted him on the import of such things, Mexican things. Plus, it seemed fun—a fun family tradition! It was what Liz had always hungered after despite generations of contrary evidence: relatives as respite, home as haven, a retreat from the rest of the dangerous, damaging world.

Last Friday, this Cinco de Mayo, Jake got half a set of car keys in the morning over his Lucky Charms. The true key to the kingdom was to be delivered, along with tuition for driver's ed, on his actual birthday, in November.

But for tonight's party, Jake would have to rely on some cocktail of public transportation—bus, subway, bus, subway, subway, cab—although there was always the possibility that some other love-addled mom like Liz would drive him home. Liz herself was otherwise occupied. It was his job to figure it out.

Light switch means big savings for Queensborough liquor store

2011-08-04T20:26:00.000-07:00

Al Arburthnot did the math and made the decision to switch the halogen lights off inside his Queensborough Landing Liquor Store and turn LED ones on.

“It’s kind of a no-brainer,” said Arburthnot.

The 50- and 250-watt fixtures he was using were costing him $645 a month in his utility bill.

Along came Chris Jordon, the chief executive officer of 1-888-burnt-out?, a sign and lighting services company. Arburthnot has been dealing with Jordon for more than 30 years.

Jordon crunched the numbers for Arburthnot and figured out it would cost $7,700 to convert the store to LED (light emitting diode) lamps.

If he did so, Arburthnot would be eligible for a rebate of $4,200 from BC Hydro’s Power Smart program.
Jordon estimated the new lights would also reduce the store’s monthly bill to $38, and that instead of changing lights on a regular basis at a cost of $24 apiece the lamps would last two to three years.

That meant, according to his calculations, Arburthnot would recoup his investment in less than six months.
“LED has much higher cost up front, but the long-term energy saving and maintenance costs far outweigh [older types of lighting],” said Jordon.

Arburthnot said another factor in his decision was his costs were destined to go up dramatically.
Hydro’s plans to introduce smart meters to nail down precise usage would likely mean his store would be slotted into the more expensive “tier two” rate.

Arburthnot is also assuming electricity will only get more expensive in the future.
“We do have fairly inexpensive electricity. On a North American scale we are reasonably priced, but I see it is going to go nowhere but up.”

He also plans to install LED when his store at 57 Below, next to the New Westminster SkyTrain station, is integrated into the new mall being built there.

City of Boston Gets Brighter and Greener with New Philips LED Street Lights

2011-07-27T23:10:00.001-07:00

City of Boston Gets Brighter and Greener with New Philips LED Street Lights

LEDs will help eliminate more than 5,000 tons of greenhouse gas annually
ROYAL PHILIPS ELECTRONICS NEW LED SOLUTION Philips Lighting New LED Solution on Centre Street in West Roxbury. (PRNewsFoto/Royal Philips Electronics, John Mottern) BURLINGTON, MA UNITED STATES
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ROYAL PHILIPS ELECTRONICS NEW LED SOLUTION Top- Philips Lighting New LED Solution; Bottom- Previous Lighting Solution. (PRNewsFoto/Royal Philips Electronics, John Mottern) BURLINGTON, MA UNITED STATES
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BURLINGTON, Mass., July 26, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Residents of Boston will be seeing the city in a whole new, brighter light thanks to new light-emitting diode (LED) street lighting from Philips. Improving the city's energy use and environmental footprint, more than 14,000 mercury-vapor street and roadway luminaires are being replaced in Boston neighborhoods by Philips Hadco's New RX1 and RX2. The LED's – which maximize energy savings and provide uniform, comfortable and aesthetically-pleasing white light – are expected to save the city approximately 8.9 million kilowatt hours of energy each year, yielding a savings of about $1.1 million annually in the cost of electricity.

"With these new LED street lights, Boston continues to live up to its reputation as one of the greenest cities in the country," said Mayor Menino. "Not only do these lights help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, they also save the City money in tough economic times. We're excited to add these aesthetic and durable lighting fixtures to our streets!"

The RX1 is based on the Philips LEDGINE LED platform, which features industry-leading LUXEON LEDs and a modular approach which allows for future upgrades as the technology advances. The new lighting will help eliminate more than 5,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually and enable Boston to further its billing as the "3rd Greenest City in North America" according to Popular Science magazine. The project also coincides with the release of the City's updated climate action plan, "A Climate of Progress," which calls for reducing citywide greenhouse gas emissions 25-percent by 2020.

"Boston is among a growing group of environmentally and fiscally responsible cities that understand the long-term benefits of adopting innovative lighting technologies such as LED," said Zia Eftekhar, chief executive officer of Philips Lighting North America. "Philips has a rich history in the Boston area and we are proud to share the city's commitment to sustainability by contributing to its green efforts with our RX1 LED street lighting system."

Designed to last for about 18 years, or four times longer than the lamps they are replacing, the Philips Hadco RX1 and RX2 LEDGINE luminaires are also expected to generate considerable savings in maintenance costs for the city. They are mercury-free and are available in multiple color temperatures.

"Philips Hadco delivered on everything we were looking for – from energy savings and outage reductions to enhanced visibility and improved light uniformity," said Glenn Cooper, associate electrical engineer, Street Lighting Division, city of Boston. "This investment in LED lighting is aesthetically, environmentally and economically beneficial, a combination that all taxpayers can appreciate."

Virmmac, LLC Eyes NexPhase Lighting, Inc. for Breakout Growth

2011-07-27T20:41:00.000-07:00

Virmmac, LLC Eyes NexPhase Lighting, Inc. for Breakout Growth
Virmmac, LLC, a Virtual IR, Marketing & Media Company, targets NexPhase Lighting, Inc. (subsidiary of

Onteco Corp.) - (otcqb:ONTC) as a 'Top Company to Watch' in the next four quarters for breakout growth.

NexPhase Lighting, Inc., a designer and developer of proprietary high quality LED (light-emitting diode)

lighting fixtures and control systems for commercial applications, is making unprecedented progress the

LED lighting market.

Over the last few months, President Jon Cooper has been leading NexPhase in answering the demand for

the company's American made LED lighting solutions and is quickly emerging as a top tier company in the

LED Lighting marketplace.

According to a *recent intellectual property 'Appraisal Services Report' from Pellegrino & Associates LLC

("Pellegrino") commissioned by NexPhase, the valuation of multiple patent pending NexPhase intellectual

property is estimated at approximately $17,200,000.

The key points contained in the Appraisal Services Report are as follows: "The valuation model indicates

the fair market value of the intellectual property at a 90% confidence level is between $6,820,229 and

$41,109,593, with a mean value of $19,710,311 and a median value of $17,216,091. Pellegrino used the

statistical median as its expected value, as it removes the impact of improbable outliers. Therefore, it is

the opinion of Pellegrino, based upon a reasonable degree of probability within the valuation profession,

that the fair market value of the intellectual property is $17,216,091 using the income approach to value."

*Footnote to above is located at http://www.otcmarkets.com/edgar/GetFilingHtml?FilingID=7954352

March 31, 2011 10Q NexPhase recent success has prompted a search for a new facility to relocate the

corporate headquarters, main manufacturing and distribution facility to meet the demand of its future

business expansion plans.

NexPhase's most recent press release is the latest in a succession of exciting Company news that shows no

signs of slowing.

About NexPhase Lighting, Inc.

NexPhase Lighting, Inc. is a designer and developer of proprietary high quality LED (light-emitting diode)

lighting fixtures and control systems for commercial applications. It believes its products will be the lowest

cost, highest efficacy fixtures available in the LED Lighting Industry. All NexPhase lighting products

incorporate its proprietary "NexSense Technology(TM)", which provides benefits well beyond the generally

acknowledged advantages of all other LED lighting fixtures. NexSense control systems use a unique,

"patent pending" wireless protocol, which provides for an unsurpassed reduction in architecture and

infrastructure installation cost in commercial applications, as well as significantly reduced maintenance and

ongoing operation costs

About Onteco Corporation

Onteco Corporation was founded to develop innovative, practical and cost-effective solutions to some of

the most significant environmental challenges facing us today. Additionally, these solutions must show

promise of generating significant, ongoing profits for the company. The company determined that one

industry that meets these criteria is the Energy Saving Lighting Industry, and as a result acquired NexPhase

Lighting, Inc., in February 2011.

GlacialLight LED Lighting Products Help Save Significant Amounts of Money

2011-07-27T20:31:00.000-07:00

GlacialLight LED Lighting Products Help Save Significant Amounts of Money
GlacialLight, a sub-division of the experienced technology manufacturer GlacialTech Inc., is pleased to announce that their well-designed, environmentally-friendly lines of LED lighting products are being used in numerous applications around the world and providing users with energy-saving light of the highest quality. In the Taiwanese city of Kaohsiung, Marrons Cake Factory has greatly benefited by replacing their traditional T8 tube lights with GlacialLight’s 595 x 595mm LED Panel Lights.
Since the switch, Marrons has seen a 61% reduction in energy used for lighting, as well as better light quality. Like Marrons, consumers around the world, using GlacialLight’s products, are reporting energy savings and increases in lighting quality.

LED Lighting Solution

GlacialLight is excited to see their product lines being used to make other businesses more successful and at the same time benefiting society as a whole by offering lighting products that have longer lifetimes and higher energy-saving levels, as compared to traditional lighting products, and that emit no harmful UV or IR radiation and contain no hazardous materials such as mercury.
Excellent LED lighting products you can trust

Design of LED lighting products is based on three core technologies including electrical design (LED drivers), mechanical design (cooling devices), and optical design (lamp holders), respectively performed by GlacialPower, GlacialTech, and GlacialLight in the GlacialTech family. With the three core technologies in hand, GlacialTech has integrated all the resources required for exceptional designs and manufactures excellent LED lighting products you can trust.

Advantages and benefits of LED lighting compared to traditional lighting

Directional lighting: ideal for flashlights/torches and spotlights
No warm-up time in cold environments: LEDs don’t require warm-up time like conventional CFLs
No harmful radiation and no hazardous metals: LEDs don’t emit harmful radiation such as Ultraviolet or Infrared emitting halogen lamps and don’t contain hazardous metals such as mercury contained in mercury lamps
Extremely long lifetimes free users from frequent bulb replacement
Extremely small carbon footprints: an environmentally-friendly technology

Prices of LED lamps and luminaires halve over last 9 months

2011-07-20T00:47:00.000-07:00

Prices of LED lamps and luminaires halve over last 9 months
KOLKATA/NEW DELHI: Prices of LED lamps and luminaires have almost halved in the past 6-9 months, thanks to a fall in global prices of their chips and local output by Philips.

Light-emitting diode (LED) lamps-which are nearly three times more energy efficient and lasts six times longer than compact fluorescent lamps (CFL)-are now selling at as low as 600, down from above 1,000 earlier. They still cost much more than CFL lamps available at 80-250. LED luminaire prices now start at 2,000.

The price reduction is led by Philips, which has signed production contracts with local partners for manufacturing LED lamps and luminaires designed at Philips research centre in Noida.

"Local production will give a big boost to LED lamps and luminaires, since the high import duty varying between 10-30% can be directly passed on to the consumers," Philips Electronics India Business Head & vice-president (Lighting) Nirupam Sahay said. LED chips, which are still not manufactured in India, attract 5% import duty.

LED segment accounts for less than 3% of the country's organized lighting market estimated at 7,000 crore and growing 25-30% a year. The CFL market is estimated at 2,000 crore and LED at 200 crore. With prices coming down and awareness increasing, the industry expects the LED lighting market to grow rapidly, even though players such as Havells believe the market is too small to start production locally.

Havells imports LED lamps from US-based light maker Cree, but it has started assembling LED fixtures at its Neemrana factory.

"Instead of importing fully assembled LED fixtures, most companies are assembling it in India to increase value-addition and reduce prices," Havells India President Sunil Sikka said.

LED prices may ease by 10-20% annually due to fall in global prices, he said.

Philips, however, recently launched locally developed LED lamps of 5W and 7W and promised to expand its made-in-India portfolio.

Highland Street to get makeover

2011-07-20T00:45:00.000-07:00

Highland Street to get makeover
Rick Johnson, Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock MPP, announced July 12 that the core of Haliburton's downtown will be refurbished to help satisfy growing needs and boost the economy.

This revitalization will include improving roads and curbs, bringing in new vehicle and pedestrian lighting, along with interlocking brick sidewalks and updated drainage, buried communication utilities and electrical support.

"I'm extremely pleased to make the announcement today, it's going to be great for the downtown. I know we've been talking about this for a couple of years," said Johnson.

The hydro poles will be removed, and sleek black poles with LED lights will be put in place. The improvements will take place on Highland Street and the area around the intersection at Maple Avenue, a few feet up Cedar Avenue and ending just past the Haliburton Echo office.

The improvements are part of an eligible project cost of $1,695,030, where the province of Ontario will contribute a third of the costs and the municipality with contribute a third, which is approximately $565,010.

This is part of Ontario's long-term infrastructure plan Building Together project to help rebuild communities.

Dysart et al Reeve Murray Fearrey was at the announcement on the corner of Highland Street and Maple Avenue, and he thanked Johnson for all his hard work.

"I think I speak for council and the community when I say we're delighted," Fearrey said about the improvements.

"To see the difference [this project] will make, it's really going to improve the area, and I'm really looking forward to seeing this job get done," Johnson said.

Dysart et al road superintendent Brian Nicholson plans to get started on the project after returning from vacation and they hope to get to work this winter.

Light bulb phase-out offers new role for unsung heroes of electronics revolution

2011-07-13T23:36:00.000-07:00

Light bulb phase-out offers new role for unsung heroes of electronics revolution

With the United States' phase-out of conventional incandescent light bulbs set to start in a few months, an article in the current edition of Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN) describes how the ban on 100-watt bulbs portends a huge new wave of growth for the once lowly light-emitting diode (LED). C&EN is the American Chemical Society's weekly newsmagazine.

In one of a three-part cover story package on the raw materials that enable the electronics and related industries, C&EN Senior Editor Alexander H. Tullo explains how LEDs have crept into everyday life in multiple waves. LEDs are perhaps best-known for their initial application as tiny light sources that form the numbers on digital clocks, serve as indicator lights on appliances, and transmit data on remote controls.

However, these unsung heroes of the electronics revolution have extended their reach. LEDs, for instance, first replaced fluorescent lights as the mainstay for backlight illumination on cell phones, laptop computers, and other small devices. Then LEDs' advantages — including longer life, small size, and low energy consumption — carved out a new role as backlights in flat-panel TVs. Now LEDs are poised to become an alternative to incandescents and fluorescents in home lighting.

Consortium for Solar Lighting Releases Preliminary Recommended

2011-07-13T23:31:00.000-07:00

Consortium for Solar Lighting Releases Preliminary Recommended Practices Paper for Solar Powered Lighting Industry
The Consortium for Solar Lighting ("CSL") announces the release of Solar Lighting Recommended Practices: Introduction, a preliminary guide to the effective sizing of solar lighting systems. Representing the first technical paper by the newly formed Consortium, to which Carmanah Technologies Corporation /quotes/zigman/23770 CA:CMH 0.00% is a founding member, the introductory document defines the process of selecting and configuring a solar lighting system to ensure that the system will operate reliably 365 days a year. According to CSL founding members, a gap in lighting industry standards exists surrounding the effective sizing of a solar lighting system, which can adversely affect the rate of solar adoption in the lighting industry. The CSL was formed in early 2011 with other founding members Sharp Electronics Corporation, Inovus Solar, Inc., and SolarOne Solutions, Inc. to accelerate the adoption of solar lighting technology through the development of specifications intended to support customers' fair and comprehensive evaluation of commercial-scale lighting systems. The CSL believes that recommendations such as this introductory guide will help foster awareness of solar powered lighting and the applications where it is a viable alternative to conventional grid-connected lighting technology.

This "Introduction" document represents the first installment of the CSL Recommended Practices reports, which presents an overview of the Consortium's mission and discusses the emergence of solar lighting as a new category of outdoor lighting. The paper then investigates current industry standards as they relate to solar technology and where the notable system sizing gap exists. Standards such as NEC, UL, CE and IES (among others) touch on a few aspects of solar lighting, but the CSL contends that no standard addresses solar lighting directly. The purpose of the recommended practices document is to sift through and pull together information on best practices from the array of existing standards. Where existing standards are silent on important topics, the CSL will continue to add new information and recommendations. The preliminary document presents solar lighting terminology and diagrams in a user-friendly form with the expectation that the practices can be readily adopted by municipal, government and commercial customers and specifiers. The paper is now available to the public at no cost.

In addition to accelerating solar lighting adoption, the CSL is driven to communicate the importance of energy balance of a solar lighting system to ensure that operation is aligned with customer's expectations. Other aspects of the system design, including standards that apply to individual components of the system, lighting characteristics or aspects that relate to safety are already being addressed through national and international bodies such as Commission International D'eclairage ("CIE"), Illuminating Engineering Society of North America ("IESNA"), International Electrotechniques Commission ("IEC") and Underwriters Laboratories ("UL").

To view Solar Lighting Recommended Practices: Introduction and to learn According to the CSL, the full 1st edition of Solar Lighting Recommended Practices: System Sizing will be released in the Fall of 2011. Consortium for Solar Lighting Releases Preliminary Recommended

'Green is growing' with All-Star Game initiatives

2011-07-07T00:09:00.000-07:00

'Green is growing' with All-Star Game initiatives
The 82nd All-Star Game Tuesday in Phoenix will have a major impact, with the winning league securing the same World Series home-field advantage that the Giants enjoyed last fall.

MLB has partnered again with the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) to help ensure that the approaching 2011 All-Star Week incorporates environmentally intelligent features. It marks the fourth year in a row that the two entities have worked together to implement measures, both inside the stadium and with supporting events. It was not exactly priority-one during planning of most Midsummer Classics since the first in 1933, but green has grown.
Salt River Fields at Talking Stick received LEED Gold Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. (D-Backs)

"These 2011 All-Star events clearly reflect MLB's ongoing commitment to environmental excellence," said Darby Hoover, Senior Resource Specialist for the NRDC in San Francisco. "Building on previous initiatives, for the first time, this All-Star Week will feature a comprehensive composting program, projected to increase landfill diversion by over 60 percent. The Arizona Diamondbacks have also contributed an impressive array of environmental achievements, such as LEED Gold certification of their new Spring Training facility, and recent installation of a solar shade structure at Chase Field.

"NRDC is proud to collaborate with MLB on its environmental initiatives, and applauds the steps taken by the league and the Diamondbacks to educate fans and help promote a healthy environment."

At Chase Field, in-stadium messaging will promote ways fans can be more environmentally conscious. To encourage fans to recycle, "All-Star Green Teams" presented by Pepsi will circulate throughout the stadium during all ballpark events to collect recyclables from fans. In addition, 100 new recycling bins will be installed at the ballpark for All-Star Week, and will remain there.

Food waste and food-soiled paper from the stadium will be turned into compost, which can be used as fertilizer for soil and promote plant growth to help increase land and air quality. This is the first time a composting program has been implemented at an MLB All-Star Week, and it is estimated that 66 tons of material will be diverted from the landfill through recycling and composting efforts.

To help reduce All-Star Week's environmental footprint, all of the major events at Chase Field -- as well as FanFest at the LEED Silver Certified Phoenix Convention Center -- will be offset with "Green-e Certified" renewable energy. FanFest volunteers are also receiving complimentary METRO light rail passes to encourage the use of public transportation.

LED industry faces continued challenges in 2H11

2011-07-06T23:55:00.000-07:00

LED industry faces continued challenges in 2H11
LEDinside, indicates that there is no obvious increase in LED production in 2011. Although 2H11 is traditionally the peak season for the LED industry, doubt about oversupply spreads on weak market demand.
LEDinside, the LED research division of TrendForce, estimates that LED chip supply volume in 2011 is about 100 billion units and demand volume is around 89 billion units; an oversupply ratio reaches 12%. In addition, after LED chip makers’ capacity expansion comes online in 2012, supply will increase rapidly. It is estimated that oversupply ratio will then rise to 21%.

Mobile phone market: affected by suppression of copycat mobile phones

The Chinese market, which is the main production base of copycat mobile phone in 2011, was affected greatly by the suppression of copycat mobile phones enforced by the Chinese government. Demand for LED chips used in mobile phone application did not show an obvious tendency to increase.

In the mean time, broad-based decrease in LED chip price has led price of LED chip used in mobile phone application to a new low. Additionally, with an increasing number of MOCVD equipment installation plans in China, LED chip capacity will continue to increase. As a result, along with weak end market demand in 2011, LED prices have started to decline.

TV market: peak season demand unexpectedly gloomy

As for the TV application, it requires a lot of LED backlight units, which is why TV application is one of main application areas that LED manufacturers believe will most likely have a good prospect. Besides, LED makers also sharply increased capacity since 2010 in response to TV vendors’ LED backlight demand. However, affected by the slow economic recovery, LED backlit TV shipment is less than expected.

In early 2011, TV brand vendors, such as Samsung and LG, aimed their LED penetration rate at well over 70%. However, since TV brand vendor put more emphasis on 3D TV and the price gap between LED backlight and CCFL backlight still exists, most TV vendors have downgraded their target LED penetration rate for TV to 50%.

In addition, due to the weak demand on the end market, it is estimated that TV shipment in 2011 is adjusted down to 203 million units from 220 million. Therefore, LEDinside predicts that LED usage volume for the TV application is only 17.5 billion units, equal to USD 167 million, which has decreased by 26%, compared to TV brand vendors’ expectation.

It also tells why the market pie is not large enough for LED manufacturers in the LED backlit TV business. Currently, many LED makers indicate that TV demand remains unclear until July. However, as demand from early inventory fulfillment for Christmas holiday season is going to end, many manufacturers take a pessimistic attitude toward the market condition of 2H11.

Tablet PC releases crowding out traditional NB market

The monitor and NB market, though attain high LED penetration rate, the weak demand continues to impact the LED industry. Notably, the NB market performance is worse than usual, and the Netbook market shows a stagnant trend. Only the tablet PCs market has a growth which can contribute to the LED backlight market.

Twins, but They Don’t Dress Alike

2011-06-30T20:44:00.000-07:00

Twins, but They Don’t Dress Alike
THE unique development of one West Side block produced an unusual pair of near-twin buildings. But no matter how far out the windows they stretch, the residents of the Evanston, at 90th and West End, will never be able to see the facade of its mate, the Admaston, at 89th and Broadway.
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After the Civil War, big things were expected of Broadway on the Upper West Side. But exactly what things no one quite knew, and most owners held their properties off the market. Thomas W. Evans was one of these, purchasing the entire block from Broadway to West End, from 89th to 90th, in 1873. Dr. Evans, a dentist practicing in Paris, had become rich while tending to the teeth of Emperor Napoleon III.

Dr. Evans died in 1897, and his estate did not sell the land until after the subway came up Broadway in 1904, with a stop at 91st Street. The Evans block was unusual in that it had not been divided into lots, and in 1909 the investor Robert Emmet Dowling paid $1.25 million for it.

Because of the recent construction of the full-block Apthorp, at 79th, and the Belnord, at 86th, it seemed possible that the Evans block, too, would be the site of a giant courtyard building. But most apartment buildings were built for resale, and the buyers for a single massive structure were necessarily limited. So Dowling sold his property in five pieces, two of the corners to George F. Johnson Jr. and Leopold Kahn, who had already built large apartment houses.

The New York Times predicted Johnson and Kahn would put up “two of the most magnificent apartment houses on the West Side,” and in 1911 they completed the Admaston, at 251 West 89th, and its fraternal twin, the Evanston, diagonally opposite, at 610 West End.

George and Edward Blum designed both, using their trademark Secession-like styling, with hypnotic lacy runs of terra cotta, beige tapestry brick with deep-struck joints, and extensive and inventive use of iron ornament.

The Admaston had no cornice but did have a continuous iron balcony one floor below the roof. The Evanston had a typical projecting cornice, since removed, and a striking, owl-face iron fence around the ground floor, and trapezoidal projecting balconies, still there. The buildings were joined by two other apartment houses, at 89th and West End and at the middle of the block on 89th, and a theater on 90th and Broadway, restricted to four stories in height for the following decade.

A writer for The Times in 1911 regretted Dowling’s decision to divvy up his land, made, he said, at the expense of “working out a harmonious appearance for the entire block.”

The Admaston has stores on Broadway. Perhaps to make up for this indignity, it has one of those sprawling West Side lobbies, easily the equivalent of a three-bedroom apartment. The five- to eight-room apartments there rented early on for $100 to $200 a month. The Evanston had much fancier apartments, including duplexes of up to 10 rooms. One was advertised in The Times for $375 a month.

Census returns for 1920 for the Evanston show mostly clothing and dry goods executives, but there was also a musical contingent, including Julius Witmark, one of the founders of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, known as Ascap, and George Maxwell, its president.

In 1923 Maxwell was accused in a bizarre case in which scores of anonymous letters mailed to prominent New Yorkers alleged, in what The Times called the “most vulgar and common terms,” intimate relations between Maxwell and various married women. These letters were usually sent to the husbands. Maxwell was indicted, but the case was later dropped. He remained head of Ascap.

Clint Bowyer No. 33 Nationwide Series Advance: Daytona International Speedway

2011-06-27T19:15:00.000-07:00

Clint Bowyer No. 33 Nationwide Series Advance: Daytona International Speedway
Daytona International Speedway

DAYTONA, ROUND TWO: Clint Bowyer returns to the driver’s seat of the No. 33 Menards Chevrolet Impala this weekend for the Subway Jalapeno 250 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway. Bowyer and the Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) team started the 2011 NASCAR Nationwide Series season together at Daytona in February. The Emporia, Kan., native collected the team’s first pole this season and finished a close second to teammate Tony Stewart in the No. 4 KHI Chevrolet. The KHI one-two finish, which was the third for the company in Nationwide Series competition, also landed in the record books. Stewart edged the No. 33 by 0.007 seconds, the closest finish in the Nationwide Series at Daytona and the third closest in series’ history.

PROVEN RECORD: In February of 2005, Tony Stewart grabbed KHI’s first win in the Nationwide Series behind the wheel of the No. 33 car. The following year, Stewart not only claimed victory again in the season opener but also gave KHI its first one-two finish as the No. 77 KHI Chevrolet Impala came in second behind the No. 33. Since 2005,KHI has recorded three additional wins, two poles, eight top-five and 11 top-10 finishes and led 194 laps at Daytona.

Bowyer also carries a proven record at the Daytona Beach, Fla., facility. The driver started from the pole and led 48 laps en route to winning the July Nationwide Series event in 2009. In addition to a win, he has collected eight top-five and 10 top-10 finishes at Daytona. Bowyer has completed 99.9 percent of laps attempted and has an average finishing position of 6.3.

KHI’S FOUR HORSEMEN: KHI will field four entries in Friday night’s race with Bowyer, Stewart in the No. 9 TapouT Chevrolet Impala, Nationwide Series championship contender Elliott Sadler in the No. 2 OneMain Financial Chevrolet Impala and KHI co-owner Kevin Harvick in the No. 4 Chevrolet Impala which will run a second OneMain Financial paint scheme. These four powerhouse drivers have compiled an impressive set of series stats including 44 starts, seven poles, eight wins, 26 top-five finishes, 31 top-10 finishes and have led 542 laps at the 2.5-mile superspeedway.

PREVIOUS RACE RECAP: Max Papis piloted the No. 33 Menards Chevrolet Impala last weekend at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis. Papis qualified on the outside pole for the 50-lap event, the first of three road course races for the Nationwide Series this season, but a late-race accident left the team with a disappointing 23rd-place finish.

CHASSIS HISTORY: Crew chief David Hyder and the No. 33 Menards crew will unload chassis No. 067 at Daytona. This is the same chassis Bowyer put on the pole and finished second with at Daytona in February. The driver also piloted chassis No. 067 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway in April. Bowyer started the event from the second position but fell victim to the notorious “big one” at the 2.66-mile track. The KHI team ultimately brought home a 22nd-place finish.

THOUGHTS FROM THE DRIVER: CLINT BOWYER

What are your thoughts as you look ahead to this weekend at Daytona?

“Daytona is what NASCAR is all about. It started there, and it means so much to be able to go and compete and it’s just such an awesome race track. We were so close to winning in February with this No. 33 KHI team. We had some tough breaks and got involved in accidents while running up front at Talladega [Superspeedway] in April, and then at Dover [International Speedway] in May. I’m looking forward to being back with the KHI guys, and I really want to get this Menards Chevy in victory lane and get another win at Daytona.”

About Menards:

With 263 stores in 13 Midwestern states, Menards has the tools, materials and supplies for all your home improvement needs whether just needing a light bulb or can of paint to building a deck or new home. Menards is known throughout the home improvement industry as the low price leader; it’s no wonder their famous slogan – “SAVE BIG MONEY” – is so widely known and easy to remember. Menards does things right – the company’s strength and success can be seen in the well-stocked and maintained stores, the lowest prices in town and the way guests are always treated like family in a hometown hardware store atmosphere.

Goleta Companies Get Major Federal Cash for Lighting Projects

2011-06-21T23:06:00.000-07:00

Goleta Companies Get Major Federal Cash for Lighting Projects
As California moves to phase out incandescent bulbs, two Goleta semiconductor companies have received more than $2 million from the U.S. Department of Energy to develop energy efficient LED light sources.

Cree, Inc. (whose headquarters is in Durham, North Carolina but has a technology center for research and development on Storke Road in Goleta) received $1.6 million to fund high-output LED packages. The Goleta-based Soraa, Inc. was awarded $678,000 to develop high-output LEDs.

“These investments in cutting-edge lighting technologies will support American innovation, create new manufacturing jobs for U.S. workers, and help ensure that the United States leads the world in this rapidly evolving industry,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy, Steven Chu in a statement.

Cree, Inc. and Soraa, Inc. were selected as grant recipients after submitting their project proposals to the Department of Energy.

Monica Hansen, a research scientist for Cree, Inc., said that the grant reaffirms her company’s commitment to making energy inefficient lighting obsolete. “We are confident we will gain successful technology out of [the award money] that will go into our future projects,” said Hansen.

The awards to Cree, Inc. and Soraa, Inc. are part of a $15 million funding effort by the Department of Energy to accelerate the development of energy efficient lighting projects by companies in California, New York, Arizona, and North Carolina.

The funding comes during a federal push to phase out incandescent bulbs in favor of lighting sources such LEDs, which have been shown to be ten times more energy efficient and last 25 times longer than traditional incandescent bulbs.

The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 called for the elimination of most incandescent bulbs by 2014. It allowed California to begin phasing out 100-watt incandescent bulbs early this year—a full year before many other states will be required to phase out the energy inefficient bulbs.

UPDATE 1-Rubicon Technology cuts Q2 outlook on higher taxes

2011-06-15T18:09:00.000-07:00

Rubicon Technology Inc , which makes sapphire substrates for the light-emitting diode (LED) market, lowered its second-quarter earnings outlook citing higher tax rates.

In its second quarter, Rubicon, expects to earn 53-55 cents a share, down from its previous outlook of 82-86 cents a share, as the company begins accruing federal income tax this quarter.

However, the company said it expects second-quarter revenue to be at the high end of its forecast of $40-$43 million range.

Analysts, on average, are expecting the company to post earnings of 74 cents a share, excluding items, on sales of $43 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

The company, whose rivals include Cree Inc and Veeco Instruments Inc , posted first-quarter results last month which blew past analysts' estimates and its revenue more than doubled to $38 million.

Franklin Park, Illinois-based Rubicon's shares closed at $18.80 on Wednesday on Nasdaq. (Reporting by Aditi Sharma in Bangalore; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)

it said in yesterday’s statement

2011-06-13T01:32:00.000-07:00

Osram Korea Co. and two Korean sales agents of the German lighting maker were sued, Samsung LED Co. said on its website yesterday. The eight patents related to the suit include LED and packaging technology used in lighting such as headlights, Suwon, South Korea-based Samsung LED said. A spokesperson at Osram’s office in Seoul wasn’t immediately available for comment, and calls to the office in Hong Kong went unanswered.

The lawsuits, filed with the Seoul Central District Court on June 10, were in response to Osram’s complaints in the U.S. and Germany against Samsung over LED technology, Samsung LED said. The Korean company said June 8 it never infringed Osram’s LED lighting patents. Osram also filed complaints against LG Electronics Inc. (066570) over the LED technology used in televisions and lighting products.

Samsung Electronics lost 0.4 percent to 848,000 won as of 11 a.m. on the Korea Exchange. Siemens dropped 1.9 percent to 89.46 euros in German trading on June 10. Samsung LED and Osram aren’t listed.

Samsung LED is seeking a halt to the unauthorized use of its intellectual property and monetary damages, it said in yesterday’s statement, without specifying an amount. The Korean company said it plans to file more lawsuits against Osram in the U.S. and other overseas markets as “soon as possible.”

Samsung LED has about 700 U.S. patents and patent applications and about 2,000 Korean patents and applications, according to the statement.

IIMF Says Sophisticated Cyber Attack Led to ‘Very Major Breach’

2011-06-13T01:31:00.000-07:00

The New York Times reports that the International Monetary Fund [IMF], still struggling to find a replacement by June 30 for its former chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn [DSK], who resigned right after his arrest on sexual assault charges in New York, was hit recently by what computer experts call “a large and complicated cyberattack whose dimensions are still not known.”

The IMF, which handles financial crises around the globe and is the database of highly sensitive information regarding the monetary condition of its 187 member nations, informed its board of directors about the attack on Wednesday. But it didn’t make a public statement.

A number of senior officials with knowledge of the matter told the Times that the attack was equally sophisticated and serious. “This was a very major breach,” said one official, who asserted it had taken place during the last several months, even before DSK was arrested.

Asked about the actual reports of the computer attack late Friday, a spokesman for the Washington-based fund, David Hawley, declined to offer information or discuss the scope or dynamics of the breach.

“We are investigating an incident, and the fund is completely functional,” he said.

Because the fund continues to be at the center of economic bailout programs for Portugal, Greece, Ireland and now possibly Spain – and possesses very sensitive data on other nations which may be on the verge of crisis – its database, notes the Times, contains information that could be used to influence or trade currencies, bonds and other financial instruments in major exchanges around the world.

Earlier this month, the IMF said it had taken safety measures after hacktivist group known as “Anonymous” indicated its hackers would target the IMF web site in reaction to the rigorous austerity measures in its rescue package for Greece.

Macy’s will double LED installation this year

2011-05-26T20:18:00.000-07:00

Macy’s will double LED installation this year
How many lightbulbs does it take for a national retailer to save many kilowatt-hours of electricity? Close to 400,000, apparently.

In 2010, as part of a broad program to reduce energy consumption, retailer Macy’s replaced more than 130,000 60-watt halogen bulbs with LED ones from MSI. This year, the company plans to more than doubled that installation with another 280,000 LED lights planned in more than 200 store locations.

According to a press release describing the installation, one of the most dramatic benefits of the LED bulbs is the fact that they can last for almost a decade. That compares with an average replacement cycle of about six months for a typical 60-watt halogen bulb burning 12 hour per day. Macy’s is using the MSI iPAR series for its replacement project.

Over the past two years, Macy’s has cut its electricity consumption by 10 percent. That’s after a 9 percent reduction in the five years prior to that. Over the next three years, the retailer hopes to cut energy consumption on a kilowatt-hour-per-square-foot basis by another 8 percent to 10 percent over 2009 levels. Obviously, the LED project is just part of that. But it is a big part.
NXP Semiconductors recently announced the GreenChip smart lighting solutions to connect lighting networks to the Internet. According to NXP, the market for LED light bulbs will take off in 2017 and become the mainstream. NXP also plans to authorize its JenNet-IP software which allows 500 nodes to be supported simultaneously.

According to NXP, GreenChip smart lighting solution can decrease the number of components used but still maintain the same quality of light needed. In addition, the solution integrates lighting with wireless IP, energy-efficient lighting and standby power consumption all in one to provide a new way to management light and energy consumption. Currently there are two versions, GreenChip iCFL for compact fluorescent lamps and GreenChip iSSL for LED lightings.

According to NXP, the global production of LED light bulb is around 50-60 million units, but it only accounts for 2% of the total production of light bulbs. The scale of the economy is smaller, hence the cost to produce remains high. NXP expects by 2017, the economy of scale of the LED lighting market will reach 20 billion units, close to 30% of penetration.

NXP added that the current cost for IC driver is around US$2-3 and this cost will increase 2-3 times if smart lighting system is incepted. But to measure cost using the entire lighting module, the inception of the smart lighting system will only increase the cost by US$2-3. Also, by using smartphones, tablet and desktop PCs, or television switches to control every light bulb and adjust brightness can reduce the amount of energy consumption.

Bayer continues investment in China

2011-05-26T00:05:00.000-07:00

Bayer continues investment in China
The latest in a string of investments being made in China, Bayer MaterialScience AG recently announced an agreement to develop a polycarbonate color competence and design center, as well as a polyurethane systems house, in the western Chinese city of Chongqing.

Rainer Rettig, the head of Bayer’s polycarbonates Asia Pacific business unit, discussed plans for the center at a news conference held to coincide with Chinaplas 2011 held in Guangzhou.

“The industries traditionally in Shanghai and Guangzhou have built new capacity in Chongqing,” said Rettig. “We follow our customers, which then helps us spread to local manufacturers.”

While Bayer did not feature exhibit at Chinaplas, the company’s continuing investment in the market has been hard to miss over the past six months.

In December, Bayer announced plans to double capacity in the polyurethane raw material MDI at its Shanghai facility by 2016. The company plans to invest 110 million euros ($155 million) in downstream facilities by 2012. In addition, Bayer is in the process of moving its global headquarters for polycarbonates to Shanghai.

“We want to increase group sales in Greater China to around 5 billion euros by 2015,” said Marijn Dekkers, chairman of Bayer AG, in a statement. “MaterialScience is expected to contribute at least half of this amount.”

While Rettig said Bayer “always had to be big in China,” the boom in China’s domestic market has encouraged the company to think even bigger. The Shanghai expansion will increase capacity to 500,000 tons per year, adding two new lines. The first step of the expansion will be to install the two lines, said Rettig, and then debottleneck them in phases until 2016, when they will run at full capacity.

“For the time being, China is still importing a lot of material,” Rettig said. “We still bring in a lot of material from Europe.” By bringing up capacity, Rettig hopes to bring their production closer to customers.

“We want to be self-sufficient in China,” he said.

The investment in both up and downstream facilities reflects a dual strategy for Bayer in China, Rettig said. The company wants to add value for its customers while at the same time offering commodity materials.

China consumes one third of the world’s polycarbonate, but per capita PC consumption is still low.

“Markets tend to start with polypropylene then go to ABS,” said Rettig. As they get more sophisticated, markets will eventually land on polycarbonate. “Average polycarbonate consumption is still quite low in China,” said Rettig. “The customers that are coming to us have made the decision to use polycarbonate.”

In China, Rettig sees two particularly promising areas: lightweighting in the automotive sector and what he called China’s “illumination market.”

“We still have a lot of traditional lamps in China,” he said. “But, these lamps will eventually be replaced by LED or another generation of new lights.

“This is a step change and whenever an industry makes a step change, there are opportunities,” he said.

LEDs on their own do not disperse light well. The bulbs create a focused point of light. “To disperse the light, you need clever lenses,” Rettig explained.

In many cases, Bayer hopes to develop new applications for polycarbonates in collaboration with its customers. According to Michelle Jou, vice president of Bayer MaterialScience’s polycarbonate business unit in China and Hong Kong, the company has been hosting technical days on site at some customers’ plants.

“We are getting customers to come to us earlier,” Rettig said.

Go green by recycling Congress

2011-05-24T19:44:00.000-07:00

Go green by recycling Congress

You won’t usually hear me saying “Go green,” but I think it is time to recycle … Congress! We need legislators who will secure our borders, make English our national language, mandate quarterly drug tests for everyone on welfare and food stamp programs, balance the budget by cutting spending, reserve freebies (education, health care, welfare, food stamps, etc.) for American citizens only, repeal the obscene health care bill, end the birthright provision that allows illegals to give birth to automatic American citizens, end congressional pensions for legislators with only one term of service, require proof of American birth for all presidential nominees and adhere to the U.S. Constitution.

I am tired of electing representatives who quickly become part of the existing system that buys votes by selective redistribution of taxpayer money. Our country was based on limited — very limited — federal government powers. In most matters not involving national security, the states and the people were to have maximum responsibility and power. That has now been turned upside down.

The federal government is controlling our toilets and our light bulbs, and is starting on our health care. Meanwhile, it is neglecting its national security responsibility (securing our borders), and even suing a state for trying to do so.

Let’s take the power back. Recycle Congress. Every election, throw out every member who does not work toward limiting the federal government to Constitutional principles. Accept no excuses.

ANGIE MANY
Eckert

Carbon dioxide is necessary for life on Earth

Liberals and environmentalists are proving that they don’t care one bit about global warming, greenhouse gases or saving the environment. All they really want is bring the downfall of big bad oil. How, you ask? By pushing compressed natural gas, or CNG, as an alternative.

Sure, burning CNG produces none of the carbon monoxide, soot, smog, etc that burning gasoline does, yet it still produces the one and only greenhouse gas which is supposedly causing global warming: Carbon dioxide. Don’t get me wrong. I’m all for switching to CNG. It’s cleaner, cheaper, doesn’t contaminate the Gulf of Mexico when it spills and produces one of the two most important gases essential to the survival of life on this planet: Carbon dioxide.

That’s right. Carbon dioxide is not killing the planet. Plants need it. They breathe it in and exhale oxygen, which all animals need to live. Animals in turn exhale more carbon dioxide. Life on this planet needs carbon dioxide. The environmentalists claim that carbon dioxide is killing the planet, yet they push for switching to CNG, which produces nothing but “planet killing” carbon dioxide. So which is it? Why the double-talk? Because all the left cares about is killing big bad oil. They care nothing for saving the planet.

How to Choose Ideal Flexible LED Strip for Your Car

2011-05-16T23:29:00.000-07:00

How to Choose Ideal Flexible LED Strip for Your Car
Recently, flexible LED strips are becoming more and more popular for its well-known advantages, such as super bright, twistable, waterproof, environmentally friendly and easy to install. Particularly, car / auto LED strips and LED headlights are greatly welcome by riding enthusiastic. People who are intended to decorate their cars, trucks or trailers often choose to DIY. But they may come across some problems. Here we provide you some tips while you are prepare to decorate your cars.

1. Measure the length you want to install the LED tape. Then you can cut the tape to any size you like and fold into any size due to its flexibility. Usually the flexible LED strips have self adhesive tapes on the back, so they are easy to apply.

2. The circuit of LED strips is usually series or parallel circuit. But if the length is more than 5 meter, the strips must be in shunt-wound connection, but not in series.

3. If you are particular about color, LED strip lights can meet your requirement for they are available in various emitting colors. Basically, they are available in single color like red, yellow, green, blue, cool white and warm white. They are also available in RGB multi colors that can be controlled by RGB a led controller.

4. If you are particular about the intensity of the light, a dimmer can be of great help. So you can control the strips when the lights are illuminated. Working with a dimmer, a wide range of light intensity would be possible for the LED tape.
5.Often the LED headlights have two types: the waterproof one and non-waterproof one. The Waterproof design is advisable, making it very easy to customize the car exterior without worrying about any water damage.

6.To ensure the lights run at normal brightness, a proper power supply is needed. As we known, too much can cause your transformer to overload and potentially damage your light strip. Here we advise you to add 20%+ tolerance. For instance, the power consumption of the led tape is 24 watt, a 24*(1+20%)=29W power supply will be advisable.

7. Only one RGB LED controller is needed no matter how long is the strip tape.

Some people may get confused at first, but with this tips in mind, you will have a better understanding of how to choose proper material for your car. Therefore you could successfully complete any size LED strips installation project.

Jenoptik and LEIDS cooperate to develop LED lighting

2011-05-11T23:38:00.000-07:00

Jenoptik and LEIDS cooperate to develop LED lighting
Jenoptik's business unit Optoelectronic Systems (Triptis, Germany), manufacturer of optoelectronic systems and polymer optical components, and ALDER Optomechanical Corp. subsidiary LEIDS GmbH & Co. KG (Backnang, Germany) are jointly presenting LED illumination products at the tradeshow transport logistic 2011 (May 10-13) for the first time. The companies have partnered for a five-year development and cooperation agreement regarding LED industrial lighting.

The partnership is expected to leverage the LED production expertise of LEIDS and system design, and the Optoelectronic Systems business unit of Jenoptik's Optical Systems division competencies in high-performance optics development and production.

LEIDS and Jenoptik will develop and manufcature components, modules, and efficient LED illumination systems for industrial applications such as warehouse and workplace lighting.

Goals of the partnership include increasing efficiency of the LED light source, electronics, and heat dissipation as well as cost reduction by implementing industrial and flexible processes. Future developments will focus on advancing the lighting performance of the LED lamps.

Integrating high-performance optics into industrial lamps helps to generate light distribution exactly adapted to industrial applications and to produce a higher light intensity, according to the companies. Using optics produced via mass replication techniques reduces the number of LEDs needed and is anticipated to achieve cost benefits that will affect final products and their operation.

12 Watt GL-DL06 Capella Series LED Downlight from GlacialLight

2011-05-09T18:29:00.001-07:00

12 Watt GL-DL06 Capella Series LED Downlight from GlacialLight

4 May 2011, Taipei, Taiwan – GlacialLight, a sub‐division of the experienced technology manufacturer GlacialTech Inc, today launches all-new Capella Series of LED products with the GL‐DL06 LED Downlight. This high‐performance 6‐inch 12 watt LED downlight acts as a bulb and fixture all‐in‐one. Simply, wire the GL‐DL06 into a 6‐inch hole in a ceiling and immediately receive 120 degrees of light of up to 730 lumens. This high‐brightness lighting solution's slim, sleek, and fashionable circular design make it perfect for commercial uses in malls, supermarkets, showrooms, offices, and hallways. It is also an excellent product for residential lighting applications.

For indoor use, the GL‐DL06 LED Downlight takes an AC 100‐240V power source. Users can choose CCT of 3000K, 4000K, or 6000K that emit 560, 560, and 730 lumens of light respectively. With rated lifespans of 30,000 hours, GlacialLight's Capella Series Downlights provide functional, high‐quality, well‐designed light to users and are a fashionable choice for commercial and residential lighting applications. GlacialLight plans to add to the currently available 6‐inch diameter Capella Series LED Downlight with 4‐inch, 8‐inch, and 10‐inch sizes as well.

Thinking of the environment, GlacialLight designed the Capella Series GL‐DL06 LED Downlight to be RoHS compliant. Furthermore, it contains no hazardous chemicals, such as mercury, and does not emit harmful UV or IR rays, making it more eco‐friendly than traditional lighting fixtures. With a power conversion efficiency of greater than 80%, GlacialLight is extremely excited to give consumers the LED Capella Series.

LED Capella Series features

- For indoor use only
- Power conversion efficiency >80%
- Eco‐friendly: RoHS Compliant, No UV, no IR, & no mercury
- Low power consumption – energy‐saving green product
- Slim, compact and fashionable design

Excellent LED lighting products you can trust

Design of LED lighting products is based on three core technologies including electrical design (LED drivers), mechanical design (cooling devices), and optical design (lamp holders), respectively performed by GlacialPower, GlacialTech, and GlacialLight in the GlacialTech family. With the three core technologies in hand, GlacialTech has integrated all the resources required for exceptional designs and manufactures excellent LED lighting products you can trust.

Advantages and benefits of LED lighting compared to traditional lighting

- Directional lighting: ideal for flashlights/torches and spotlights
- No warm‐up time in cold environments: LEDs don't require warm‐up time like conventional CFLs
- No harmful radiation and no hazardous metals: LEDs don't emit harmful radiation such as Ultraviolet or Infrared emitting halogen lamps and don't contain hazardous metals such as mercury contained in mercury lamps
- Extremely long lifetimes free users from frequent bulb replacement
- Extremely small carbon footprints: an environmentally‐friendly technology

12 Watt GL-DL06 Capella Series LED Downlight

Lighting Systems Supplier Shines Light on Green

2011-05-09T18:27:00.000-07:00

Lighting Systems Supplier Shines Light on Green
LEaDer Lights, LLC, a LED lighting systems designer, supplier and installation specialist located in Grand Rapids, MI has joined the Green Business Bureau (GBB) to become green business certified.

“We know we must sustain our environment,” says Dan Damghani, LEaDer Lights’ VP of Operations. “Every few years something comes along that makes good sense, provides an opportunity for growth and development and is ready for those who will take the challenge.”

Damghani says that “something” is LED lighting - a relatively new technology in America. These lights are highly-efficient, environmentally-friendly, and certified hazardous free.

“We believe LED lights are the product for our future – NOW,” says Damghani.

LEaDer Lights’ vision is to impact the world one LED light at a time, in homes, businesses, schools, wherever light is needed. The company believes that LED lights will illuminate our world with efficient, energy saving, bright lights.

Damghani says that joining the GBB encouraged LEaDer Lights to go forward with that vision.

“Knowing that there are groups like GBB is exciting because we all need each other and we need to join together to take our commitment to the world,” says Damghani. “We are confident that our relationship with the GBB will benefit our company, and we are dedicated to supporting the GBB’s mission in the days and years ahead. “

LEaDer Lights chose to join the GBB over other programs because of the work it had already accomplished, says Damghani. LEaDer Lights was impressed with the GBB’s vision, its customer service and its dedication in partnering with businesses like LEaDer Lights in working towards a cleaner world.

As a member of the GBB, LEaDer Lights joins the nation’s fastest growing green business network. GBB members work towards sustainable business -665632863 practices by completing over 300 green initiatives designed to help them minimize their impact on the environment and realize significant cost savings.

To find out more about LEaDer Lights, its products and services, please visit

A LED lighting system designer, supplier and installation specialist, located in Grand Rapids, Michigan. We offer a cost-saving evaluation, using cutting edge technology, designed to meet customer goals, while complying with the new energy saving regulations. We are a complete interior and exterior evaluator, specializing in LED lights, tubes and fixtures for both residential and commercial lighting consumers. From our first evaluation to the final installation, LEaDer Lights is dedicated to serving our customers with exceptional service.

Coming of age in 9/11 aftermath

2011-05-03T19:37:00.000-07:00

Coming of age in 9/11 aftermath
In light of Osama bin Laden's death Monday almost 10 years after the terror attacks that rocked Americans, college students in Shasta County reflected on the day that introduced many of them to war for the first time.

But for some who were children on Sept. 11, 2001, that day led to more than just fear or sadness.

"I actually feel like I don't trust our government as much as I did before. They're in so much power and control," said 21-year-old Shasta College student Jessie Peckham.

Much like those growing up during the Vietnam War, many local students say coming of age in the aftermath of 9/11 molded their views on everything from prejudice to foreign policy.

Kristen Hall, an 18-year-old Shasta College student, said she's certain that dealing with the 9/11 attacks as a child shaped her anti-war beliefs.

"Seeing how my mom reacted to it, it's just not something I like at all. I'm virtually against war just because of that," she said.

Hall said she hadn't thought about war much before 9/11, but feeling personally threatened changed her point of view on the subject.

"If that hadn't have happened ... I heard about the Vietnam War, but that didn't have an impact on me at all," she said. "It does have a huge impact on me and my view of war, because it was here."

Rory Anderson, 24, of Shasta Lake said he witnessed prejudice for the first time after 9/11 and the backlash from the attacks led him to be more open-minded.

"I didn't like afterward and how they're generalizing and blaming one people for several people's actions," he said. "Everyone was like, 'Bomb Iran! Bomb Iraq! Bomb Afghanistan!' And you know that not every one of them had to do with it."

Claire Settlemire, 17, a Shasta High School senior who takes classes at Shasta College, agreed.

"The sad thing is, there's innocent civilians being affected by this, and I feel so bad for those people, just being stereotyped," she said.

But Settlemire said, unlike many of her peers, she supports the wars in the Middle East, although foreign conflict isn't ideal.

"I think it's something we couldn't really get around," she said. "I just wish it didn't make us have to act." And having four friends who have enlisted in the military in the past year has made her more sensitive to war, Settlemire said, adding that they all felt a need to protect their country after the terrorist attacks.

"They feel it's their duty; they have that sort of attitude," she said.

But Peckham said she doesn't feel war was justified, and the government didn't give enough information to the public for her to endorse it.

"I thought it was all propaganda. I still don't think they have any proof," she said. "They treat us like we're stupid. They would talk in circles."

Peckham said she supports the troops because her brother enlisted in the Marine Corps shortly after 9/11, but she doesn't think they should be in the Middle East. And just because bin Laden was killed, it doesn't mean they'll be pulling out soon, she said.

"What does it change? We're still in Afghanistan. We're still in Iraq. We're still invading other countries," she said. "People say they're excited, but it's also been how many years? I don't trust a lot of it."

Celebrate Earth Day by conserving energy, says commerce department

2011-05-03T00:05:00.000-07:00

Celebrate Earth Day by conserving energy, says commerce department
In observance of the 41st Earth Day on April 22, the Minnesota Department of Commerce, Division of Energy Resources is reminding consumers how easy it is to conserve energy and save money throughout the year.

“There are many simple and inexpensive actions consumers can take at home to help to protect and conserve natural resources,” said Mike Rothman, Commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Commerce, which houses the Division of Energy Resources. “On Earth Day, and every day, we all can take small, but significant steps to cut our energy use. Doing so will help to conserve energy and save the environment and our state’s energy resources.”

Those changes can be as easy as low cost or no cost energy-efficiency improvements that reduce household consumption of gas and electricity. More substantial improvements such as replacement of mechanical systems require a fairly large financial investment, but can often be made more affordable with rebates from utilities and federal tax credits.

Consumers hoping to make a difference this Earth Day and conserve energy for the future can take these 10 easy steps:

Energy audit — Get an audit that includes a blower door test and infrared scan that will provide you with a detailed evaluation of energy use, insulation levels, air leakage and performance of mechanical systems. Schedule an audit through your gas utility or the Minnesota Building Performance Association.

Seal air leaks — An enormous amount of energy is wasted when inside air (either heated or cooled) can escape to the outside through leaks in attics, walls, windows and doors.

Check mechanical systems — Water heaters, air conditioners, furnaces, gas fireplaces and ventilation systems should be regularly inspected and tuned-up to keep them operating efficiently and safely.

Heat efficiently — Replace old, inefficient systems with new high-efficiency options; don't use fans to move air; seal ductwork and direct airflow through registers and baffles.

Install a programmable thermostat — Adjusting a thermostat 1 degree (down in the winter and up in the summer) while asleep and away at work (16 hours a day), you can save 2 percent on a home fuel bill.

Control hot water use — A standard showerhead can use up to 5.5 gallons of water a minute. Low-flow showerheads deliver a high pressure spray at less than two gallons per minute.

The LED Promise Land : A Connexion Market Perspective

2011-04-28T20:31:00.000-07:00

The LED Promise Land : A Connexion Market Perspective
LED lamps will eventually be what we use to replace incandescent bulbs - Compact fluorescent lamps are a temporary but still viable alternative to energy-efficient lighting. Think of CFLs as the bridge that connects our older, less efficient lamp technology to the LED promise land. Increasingly more lamp manufacturers are devoting larger shares of their R&D resources towards developing the LED promise land and less so within that CFL bridge. The lighting industry is clearly banking on LEDs as the final replacements for incandescents.

The reason LEDs have not yet displaced CFLs from the market are twofold: the first generation LED bulbs had a narrow and focused light beam, and the cost of LED technology is still too high. With this said, both CFL and LED technology are viable options today when looking for a replacement for incandescent lamps.

We can't stress enough that this lamp technology market is no different than any other emerging market. There are numerous profiteers in the market spewing forth their too-good-to-be-true claims and misinformation for the sake of the quick sale before the dust settles and the facts surface. The old axiom, 'if it sounds too good to be true it probably is', certainly applies here. The U.S. market is flooded with cheap LED products manufactured overseas with inferior components that produce low light levels, that can't possibly live up to their exaggerated energy saving and long life claims. Unfortunately, these cheap imports are being sold on well known web sites and through big box retailers.

Also worth noting are the many so-called 'manufacturers' who are in fact resellers and simply repackaging the same inferior products offered through the import channel. And to further add to this confusion, are the more reputable manufacturers that offer a lesser grade LED lamp expressly for the consumer market and a higher grade for the commercial market. As you probably guessed, the commercial grade products come at a higher price point and perform significantly better - but are easily confused with the lower priced consumer grade products. If you're making your decision solely on price, you may be setting yourself up for disappointment. The keys here are Lumens and Lumens per Watt Efficacy. This is where the Lighting Facts label comes into play. The Department of Energy (DOE) is an advocate for quality and has established the Lighting Facts program to ensure that the LED products you find on the market meet your expectations for performance. These products include LEDs for everyday lighting purposes, such as table lamps and outdoor light fixtures. They do not include flashlights, nightlights, or holiday lighting.

Participating manufacturers voluntarily pledge to report their products' performance results. Those results appear on the Lighting Facts label, which those manufacturers must include on product packaging or in the product literature. Retailers and other industry buyers can then make informed purchasing decisions for their lighting inventory.

The Advantages or LED MR16 Spot Lights

2011-04-27T21:00:00.000-07:00

The Advantages or LED MR16 Spot Lights
LED MR16 lamps are popular replacements halogens bulbs both in residential and commercial use. The reason for their popularity is that the original, halogen MR16 lights were commonly used in households, and LEDs can instantly replace most of them. Also, LEDs have much better qualities and numerous advantages, compared to their halogen version.

MR16 stands for multifaceted reflector with the diameter of 16 of eighths of an inch, or two inches in other words. Alternatively, the same light bulb exists with different diameters: MR11 and MR8 spotlights are smaller sized multifaceted reflectors. The MR16 bulb usually operates at low voltage, and has GU5.3 fitting type. These bulbs most commonly operate at 12V, and if the products are not polarity sensitive, the light can be fitted both ways, operating on AC and DC as well. MR16 bulbs operating at mains have GU10 fittings, and are rather called GU10 spotlights.

To be able to understand and value the useful features of the LED replacements, we must look at the halogen MR16 lights in short. The halogen MR16 bulb has a reflecting surface: the internal part of the bulb is made of pressed glass or aluminium in cheaper versions. The glass surface is constantly under pressure, which makes it easy to explode. The reflecting surface controls both the direction and the spread of the light, intensifying the light of the bulb. The bulb is available with various beam angles of light from narrow degrees of 10 to 60, however, the most frequently used spotlight is around 45 - 60 degrees. The colour temperature of the halogen MR16 is very warm, yellowish light, and is easily altered with dimming.

The main disadvantages of the halogen MR16 light is that they have a low conversion rate of power, turning most of it to heat instead of light. Therefore, they have a high power consumption along with very much heat emitted, dangerous not only to touch but also to be placed near textiles or wood during operation. Halogen bulbs are sources of fire hazard in any home, and should be fitted and operated with care. The halogen MR16 bulb emits a considerable amount of ultraviolet light dangerous to human health, and is also sensitive to shakes and shock. Both these problems are partially solved with a glass cover that filters most of the ultraviolet light and functions as an explosion shield.

LED MR16 spotlights, on the other hand, do not suffer from the majority of the above disadvantages. Although, LED lights do not have the reflective inner surface, they are called MR spots because they are replacements of the original reflectors. Beam angle, which is similarly varied with LED lights too, is usually controlled within the optics of the diode. Colour temperature is much more varied compared to halogen lights. Cooler white colour temperatures can be closer to natural light, and do not colour the room yellowish. At the same time, coloured versions of MR16 lights are available in LEDs.

LED lights in general have the advantages of cool running, eco-friendly design, long lifespan (usually around 30 000 - 50 000 hours), and high power LEDs can operate even 24/7. LEDs are not sensitive to shakes or shocks, and operate at low temperature too. The most obvious advantage of LEDs is their extremely low consumption of power. Since LEDs convert 90% of power to light, they emit substantially less heat, and mean no or very little fire hazard in homes. LED lights are also available with GU5.3 for low voltage and GU10 for mains fittings.

For LEDs operating at low voltage, the operating power supply has a major significance. Electronic transformers used for halogens are usually not suitable for running LEDs for two reasons. Many transformers require a minimum voltage to start operating, which is not drawn by LEDs using only a fraction of the power compared to halogens. The other reason is actually more important from the point of view of LEDs, since electronic transformers can ruin the LED lights. Halogens do not require stabilized voltage, while LEDs are highly sensitive to changes in voltage or current. If you are replacing your halogen MR16 lights, it is best to purchase LED suitable transformers as well to assure their long lifespan.

LED light bulbs

2011-04-26T02:10:00.000-07:00

LED light bulbs
Bulb is a lighting device usually used inside home, in automobiles, in street lights, in decorations etc. There is a long list of applications of LED light bulbs. LED Bulbs are of different kinds. They can be incandescent bulbs or can be LED light bulbs or there may be of any other kind as well. As the technology advances, there are many replacements for the old types of incandescent bulbs as LED Light bulbs have taken their place. The range of the incandescent LED light bulb was from 5 up to 60 Watts. They are being replaced by LED bulbs that give the same results. They range from 0.3 to 5 Watts.
Most LED bulbs give constant light and are not dimmed. They also maintain a directional throw of the light. As the demand of the LED light bulbs are ever increasing so their price is also increasing as compared with the prices of fluorescent bulbs. They are easily available in the market in different types and shapes. Also these bulbs are more power efficient than the traditional florescent bulbs. They offer an excellent life time of 30,000 or more hours. You can expect that a LED bulb will last for 25 to 30 years under normal use which is far better than a traditional fluorescent or incandescent bulb. These LED bulbs maintain their output intensity very well throughout their life time. 10% or fewer drops in the operation is mentioned in the specifications after usage of 6000 hours. Whereas in the worst case the drop just increased to 15%.
There are various types of LED light bulbs that are available in market. Some of which are G16, GU10, MR11, MR16, PAR16, PAR20, PAR28, PAR30, PAR38, PAR56 etc. now let us discuss some of these types.G16 light bulbs are one of their kind that are used track lighting, in amusement parks and in hotels where we want to save energy and to reduce the cost of light bulbs. They are also called as G16 globes. They are very efficient as they work for 50,000 hours. GU10 type LED bulb saves power and give out usable light. There output power is approximately equal to a 25 watt light bulb but it consumes 8 times less power. They can be used as entertainment lighting; architectural lighting, for decoration, inside operation theatre as medical lighting or some kind of portable lightings.MR11 light bulbs are a true replacement for low voltage halogen LED light bulbs and are really very cost effective. They produce a high quality light in a variety of different colors for just 1 watt of energy usage. This is all because of the fact that they vibration and shock resistant and there is no filament to break.
A lot companies are offering types of LED light bulbs that are used for general purpose lighting. The C. crane company launched a product called "Geobulb" which was replaced by Geobulb 3 that was more brighten and long lasting as well. In Netherlands Lemnis naming company manufactured a dimmable LED bulb which they named as Pharox. There is another company Eternleds Inc. which offers a new technology bulb HydraLux-4. It uses cooling of the LED light bulb chips.
The best part of these types of LED light bulbs is that they are mercury free. Due to recent research and technology advancement these types of bulbs are now available in a variety of color just like other incandescent LED light bulbs. Due to energy saving and less maintenance cost, they are very attractive. With additional development in the technology and their growing popularity it is believed that the cost of these LED Light bulbs will eventually decrease.

LED Light Bulbs

Outdoor Lighting

2011-04-20T23:38:00.000-07:00

Outdoor Lighting: Pielenhofen installs Osram LEDs, Nova Scotia expands SSL program
Communities across North America have been making the biggest headlines for LED street-light retrofits, but even small communities around the globe are making the switch as evidenced by an outdoor lighting project in Pielenhofen, Germany. Herkules Elektronik GmbH retrofit kits that use Osram’s Golden Dragon Oval Plus LEDs are lighting a new home community and a larger conversion is planned. Nova Scotia, meanwhile, has performed significant solid-state-lighting (SSL) retrofits and plans to convert every light in the country in five years.
Pielenhofen SSL-lit neighborhood
Pielenhofen first tested LED street lights in February 2010 with two luminaires installed in the heart of the community. The community has now kicked off a transition to LEDs with the installation of nine SSL fixtures in a neighborhood called Rohrdorf. Moreover the community is using adaptive controls to maximize energy consumption.

Local mayor Reinhold Fersti noted the superior ability of the luminaires to control beam pattern as one reason for the conversion. Fersti said, “What convinced us was the modern technology, as it not only produces more pleasant, warm light: the light diodes only project their light into the desired direction.”

The Herkules luminaire retrofit was developed as a replacement for mercury-vapor lamps and the 50W koffer-type housing that is widely used in the city of Kassel, Germany. Indeed Herkules refers to the design as a Kassel-type retrofit, and the 26W kit includes the light engine and driver electronics that replace the lamps in existing housings.
The design relies on the Golden Dragon Oval Plus LEDs to form the beam pattern. The LEDs feature an integrated oval lens that can spread the beam in a somewhat rectangular pattern along a roadway, with minimal light trespass. For more information on the LEDs and beam patterns see, “SSL luminaires must deliver reliable beam patterns in outdoor applications."

About the beam qualities of the components and the Kassel retrofit, Osram said, “This effect is reinforced by the integrated lens of the Golden Dragon Plus: this makes it possible to generate a brighter and more even illumination of a defined area, despite low intake of power – it also achieves an optimum illumination of the street, conforming with the relevant norms, avoiding scattered light and staying below the limit regarding dazzle.”

Adaptive controls and dimming

Based on the LED retrofit, Pielenhofen would realize what’s essentially 50% energy savings based on the lower-power kits, but the savings will actually be greater because the community is using dimmable SSL technology. The dimming functionality was proven out in the Kassel retrofit last year where late at night the power consumption is further reduced to 14W per fixture.

Pielenhofen plans to upgrade to LED street lighting across the entire community in stages. Indeed European Union (EU) regulations will give such communities little choice going forward. Beginning in April 2012, the sodium vapor lights presently used by Pielenhofen will be taken off the market. The retrofit kits will provide a way to replace failed lamps.

The EU is also mandating the removal of mercury vapor lights beginning in April 2015. Communities across the continent will be faced with replacement or retrofit scenarios.

Go Green This Earth Day

2011-04-18T01:25:00.000-07:00

Considered the birth of the modern environmental movement, the first Earth Day was held on April 22, 1970 and had 20 million American participants. More than 40 years later, over one billion people now participate in Earth Day on April 22 each year, making it one of the largest civic observances in the world. Enviro-Log, Inc. an eco-friendly consumer products and recycling company which has diverted over 140 million pounds of waxed cardboard from landfills to create its earth-friendly firelogs, offers the following tips for anyone looking to get involved in Earth Day.

“One of the easiest ways you can get involved in Earth Day is to make a conscious effort to reduce, reuse and recycle,” said Ross McRoy, president of Enviro-Log. “The great thing about Earth Day is that anyone can get involved. It can start with small steps such as reducing the amount of water and electricity you use on a daily basis to making significant financial investments in converting your home to solar and wind power. Regardless of your level of commitment, the more people that get involved, the greater the environmental impact will be.”

McRoy offers the following tips to get involved in Earth Day and everyday thereafter:

-Instead of driving, consider walking, biking or taking public transportation. If it is necessary to drive, consider carpooling with friends or colleagues.

-Shop local and make less frequent trips to led downlight the store. Less trips to the store means less emissions from your vehicle.

-Turn off your lights and electronics when you leave a room. Open the blinds during the day and take advantage of the sunlight. Turn off and unplug power strips and surge protectors when not in use, especially overnight.

-Reduce your water usage. Install low-flow shower led downlight heads, faucets and toilets in your home. Also consider shortening your shower. Every minute you cut from your shower equals roughly five gallons of water.

-Switch from disposable to reusable. Instead of buying bottled water, invest in a reusable water bottle. Bring your own reusable bag when shopping.

-Put your trash in the recycle bin. Contact your local waste management provider about getting involved in their recycling program.

-Purchase products that use recyclable materials. This led downlight will help divert unused materials from going into landfills.

-Replace your light bulbs with energy efficient ones, such as compact fluorescent or LEDs.

For Earth Day, there are plenty of ways to participate

2011-04-18T01:21:00.000-07:00

Earth Day comes around this year on Friday, April 22. But don’t look for any one big event to celebrate. Instead, there are lengthy lists of cleanups and hikes throughout the month.

One special event, “Party for the Planet,” takes place Sunday at Roger Williams Park Zoo. From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. environmental groups from around the state will tell their stories and offer educational opportunities.

The Southside Community Land Trust celebrated Saturday by delivering 340 cubic yards of compost purchased from the Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corporation and its partner, Agresource, to 37 community gardens and urban farms. More than 750 families are expected to use the compost for their food gardens in Providence.

The Pawtucket Neighborhood Alliance has scheduled an all-day cleanup next Saturday in the vicinity of the Galego Court Community Center.

The state Department of Environmental Management distributed $37,500 in recent weeks to 59 groups and communities to finance cleanups and beautification projects. Each grant ranged from $275 to $750. The money was provided by Patriot Disposal Co. Inc./J.R. Vinagro Corp.

Also next Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., a group called Lights Out, Green In will exchange up to 5 free compact-fluorescent light bulbs for old incandescent bulbs at the Pawtucket Wintertime Farmers Market. The exchanges will continue while the supply of 1,500 bulbs lasts.

Hand wound led to charges in Minneapolis stabbings

2011-04-14T00:29:00.000-07:00

A man accused of stabbing three people led downlight at a Minneapolis light-rail station Friday night apparently cut himself while flashing his blade, authorities say, helping lead to his arrest.

Metro Transit police caught up with Alexander A. Lanier, 19, of Minneapolis, after he sought treatment for a palm wound consistent with a hand sliding off a knife's handle and down the blade, police said.

One of his alleged victims suffered led downlight 13 stab wounds, according to second-degree assault charges filed against Lanier on Tuesday in Hennepin County District Court.

According to the charges, the stabbings occurred about 10:30 p.m. Friday after the victims got off the train at Lake Street and encountered Lanier and another male "throwing what were perceived to be gang signs."

A fight broke out, and the victims were stabbed. Each of them later identified Lanier as the attacker.

Lanier was being held at the led downlight Hennepin County jail Tuesday night in lieu of $300,000 bail.

Scene Modes and Creative Features

2011-04-14T00:23:00.000-07:00

Scene Modes and Creative Features
In addition to two well-performing Auto modes--a regular auto mode, and a scene-based auto mode that chooses the applicable scene preset depending on the environment--the Nikon Coolpix S9100 offers 14 scene modes. Among them are old standbys such as Portrait, Sports, Beach, Snow, and Sunset, as well as more unusual selections that include Dusk/Dawn, Food, and Museum modes.

Easy PanoramaHigh-contrast monochromeHigh keyLow keyThe camera also provides an Easy Panorama mode, which is similar to the Sweep Panorama setting found on Sony's cameras: You press the shutter button and pan across a scene, and the camera then stitches together a panoramic image. The S9100, however, goes a few steps further than Sony's cameras, giving you the option to create either 180-degree or 360-degree panoramas via the menus. In general, the mode works well, just as long as you pan the camera slowly; quick pans led to blurry images in my test shots.

You can reach all the aforementioned modes by selecting 'Scene' on the camera's mode dial and making your choice via on-screen menus, but the S9100 also provides quick access to a few modes--Backlighting, Night Portrait, and Night Landscape modes, as well as the camera's continuous shooting mode--directly on the mode dial. The camera captures at a rate of 9.5 shots per second at full resolution, but you're limited to 5 shots per burst. It fires the shutter so quickly that getting the hang of it is a bit tricky, and it works best when a fast-moving subject is already in motion.

A few more creative modes are lurking in the camera's 'Effects' selection, available by way of the mode dial: a 'Selective color' option that lets you isolate a single color in a black-and-white photo, a 'High-contrast monochrome' effect that makes images look a bit like newsprint, and 'High key' and 'Low key' effects for boosting and muting colors, respectively.

Some of the best features of this camera include its post-shot editing tools, which let you apply filters and quick fixes to copies of your photos while retaining the source image. Highlights include the aforementioned D-Lighting and Quick Retouch functions, which almost always improve the look and detail of images, and Fisheye and Miniature Effect filters, which let you mimic the look of different lenses. Alas, all those extra goodies are available only in still-image mode; you can't apply any of the effects to videos.

City considers hosting festivals, adding platforms to new Traffic Bridge

2011-04-11T02:33:00.000-07:00

Reusing the contentious accent lights on the new Traffic Bridge could cost more than their original half-million-dollar price tag.

The no-win question of what to do with the bridge's programmable LED lights — reuse them, scrap them or buy new flood-style lights — will go before a city committee next week alongside a package of ideas for the $30-million steel-truss replacement bridge.

The planning and operations committee Tuesday will decide whether to add power to the bridge so the new bridge could be used to stage concerts, festivals and charity events; to include viewing bays to the attached walkways; and to spend more than $1 million to take down, store and reuse the 103-year-old heritage structure.

Councillors on the committee must decide what to do with the bridge's $462,000 string of LED accent lights that were put up in 2007. The lights have become a lightning rod for some people's dissatisfaction with city spending priorities.

Retaining the lights, in part or in full, will cost an estimated $375,000 to $500,000, depending on the number of lights that can be salvaged, the report says.

The estimates aren't detailed and would require council approval, said Chris Hallam, the city's manager of construction and design.

The more lights that can be reused, the lower the price, but there are basic labour costs for pulling the lights down from the condemned structure and putting them back up again, Hallam said.

Buying new architectural lighting — likely more subtle floodlights — would cost $400,000 to $550,000.

The flood light concept would be similar to what's been done with the Langevin Bridge in Calgary, which crosses the Bow River to the city's downtown, and the Peace Bridge, a 1927 steel arch bridge across the Niagara River, the report says. The 100-year-old Langevin Bridge was rigged with 5,600 LED lights in 2009 for $370,000 and has received positive reviews. Lighting the Peace Bridge with LED flood lights cost $1.2 million in 2008.

GenLED LIGHTING Launches Energy Efficient LED Ceiling Recessed Fixtures at Global Shop 2011

2011-04-11T02:26:00.000-07:00

GenLED LIGHTING Launches Energy Efficient LED Ceiling Recessed Fixtures at Global Shop 2011

GenLED LIGHTING , a global leader in LED (light emitting diode) technology, launches its new line of LED recessed ceiling fixtures at Global Shop, Las Vegas (Booth 3257). The highly efficient and aesthetically pleasing recessed ceiling fixture line is designed with retail environments in mind.

"In retail environments quality and quantity of light are important factors in attracting customers and making sales. The new GenLED LIGHTING line of energy efficient LED recessed ceiling fixtures give store designers, visual merchandisers and retailers the opportunity to install sustainable lighting options without sacrificing light color or quality," said Tom Heelan, Vice President of Sales, "Our new fixture line offers unrivaled performance in an aesthetically pleasing package."

The new GenLED LIGHTING retrofit fixture line includes the following offerings:

    MR16-TRIMLESS -- A decorative dimmable spot light fixture that fits well into a variety of architectural designs, the MR16-TRIMLESS offers a neat appearance with adjustable lamp aiming features. Available in one, two and three lamp configurations, the fixture operates in rugged environments from -10 degree C to +40 degrees C. The fixture is designed to accept GenLED's energy efficient LED MR-16 lamps delivering 90% energy saving when compared to the 35 watt MR 16 halogen it replaces. Ideal in high end retail, museum, hospitality, restaurant, and office applications.

    DLR 4 - A decorative dimmable LED downlight fixture with an anodized aluminum reflector, the DLR 4 offers visual comfort and glare free illumination. Equipped with a 9 watt LED PAR 20 light source with three LEDs, its rated life is 50,000 hours. The 9 watt LED replaces a 50 watt PAR 20 halogen delivering an 80% energy savings. Available in warm (3000K) and cool (5500K) color temperatures, the fixture is an ideal addition to the retail environment. Suited for shops and stores, hospitality, restaurants, offices, lobbies, corridors and damp environments with a glass protector.

    DLR 5 -- A decorative dimmable LED downlight fixture with an anodized aluminum reflector, the DLR 5 offers visual comfort and glare free illumination. Equipped with an 18 watt light source with six LEDs, its rated life is 50,000 hours. The 18 watt LED replaces a 60 watt PAR 30 halogen delivering 70% energy savings. Available in warm (3000K) and cool (5500K) color temperatures, the fixture is an ideal addition to the retail environment. Suited for shops and stores, hospitality, restaurants, offices, lobbies, corridors and damp environments with a glass protector.

    DLR 6 -- A decorative dimmable LED downlight fixture with an anodized aluminum reflector, the DLR 6 offers visual comfort and glare free illumination. Equipped with a 27 watt light source with nine LEDs, its rated life is 50,000 hours. The 27 watt LED replaces a 75 watt PAR 38 halogen delivering 65% energy savings. Available in warm (3000K) and cool (5500K) color temperatures, the fixture is an ideal addition to the retail environment. Suited for shops and stores, hospitality, restaurants, offices, lobbies, corridors and damp environments with a glass protector.

The new line of GenLED fixtures offer excellent illumination with color temperature choice, and are mercury and lead-free and do not emit UV or IR light. Operating samples of the new fixtures will be on display at Booth 3257 at Global Shop.

"GenLED LIGHTING is proud to introduce its next generation of LED lighting products to the attendees at this year's Global Shop. It is an ideal platform to showcase environmentally responsible and sustainable lighting alternatives that make economic sense," said Steven Moya, President and CEO of General LED, GenLED LIGHTING's parent company. "We are very excited about the opportunity to be able to bring state-of-the-art lighting solutions to the retail audience."

Philips India gets some bounce off the wicket

2011-04-01T23:08:00.000-07:00

The brand behind the ‘Cricket Extra' show during the ongoing ICC Cricket World Cup is grateful to the game. It has been associated with cricket in India for the last three years, with events featuring the Indian team, T20 matches, and pre- and post-match events.

It didn't come as a surprise then that the backdrop at Philips' annual media offsite event in Goa last weekend was a giant screen showing the WC quarter final. Cricket is just one of the vehicles where Philips India has been buzzing of late.

Quoting third-party estimates, Vivek Sharma, Head - Marketing and VP -Indian Subcontinent, Philips Electronics India, explains that the company's share of expenditure on mass media in 2011 was 3.2 times that in 2009.

On cricket, he says, “Cricket has helped us a lot. We have been associated with cricket in a consistent and long-term fashion for the last three years. It has really helped our engagement with the male decision-maker target group in multiple categories. It has given us good visibility and RoI. We intend to continue our association with cricket as a key vehicle for marketing.”

Retail Experience
The investment behind Philips' retail presence also increased substantially in 2010. Added to the brand's visibility and experience are 42 Light Lounges, exclusive outlets showcasing home decorative lighting from the group, and 400 shop-in-shops called Light Shoppes. The number of Light Lounges and Light Shoppes is set to double this calendar year.

This retail presence stretches across 20 cities, says Nirupam Sahay, Senior Director — Marketing, Philips Lighting. He says, “What we will be doing is getting more width of retail presence in the metros. There is a large, untapped potential and cities being large, there is a need for multiple stores.”

In Mumbai, where Philips has three Light Lounges, it will set up one more this year. In the NCR, there will be five Light Lounges from the current three. More stores will also come up in Bangalore and Chennai. After ramping up its presence across the metros and mini-metros, the brand will consider venturing into the tier-2 towns.

The Light Lounges showcase and sell only home decorative lighting solutions. One wonders if a Philips store selling home decorative lighting could also be used to promote some of its consumer appliances, if not all.

GE launches hybrid light bulbs

2011-04-01T23:01:00.001-07:00

GE launches hybrid light bulbs

General Electric's new hybrid light bulbs have begun shipping to retailers and are expected to be available nationwide by April 22, Earth Day, the company announced yesterday.

The hybrid halogen-compact fluorescent (CFL) light bulbs, announced in October 2010, look like a spiral frosted CFL light bulb snugly fit inside a clear glass bulb shaped like a typical incandescent light bulb.

One selling point is that the bulbs don't take time to light up like many CFLs currently available. When switched on, the hybrid bulb's halogen portion lights up within a half-second. Then once the CFL portion has warmed and brightened to full luminescence, the halogen portion turns itself off, according to GE.

GE also claims that each hybrid bulb only contains 1 milligram of mercury. If true, that is significant. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that the average CFL light bulb contains about 4 milligrams of mercury.

Mercury in light bulbs has been a concern to consumers as the element is widely known to pose a health risk if ingested or inhaled, especially in young children. While the mercury in CFLs poses no danger while contained, there is a risk that people can be exposed to mercury if a CFL bulb, and its tubes containing mercury, are broken. The EPA has guidelines on how broken bulbs should be handled.

The hybrid bulbs are expected to retail between $5.99 and $9.99 depending on the wattage and color. GE says its hybrid bulbs have a life of 8,000 hours, the same as its CFL light bulb products. That's significantly more than the average 60-watt incandescent bulb which typically has a lifespan of about 1,000 hours, according to the EPA (PDF).

The light bulb announcement comes amid a firestorm of criticism for GE and CEO Jeff Immelt after a March 24 New York Times article revealed that despite making $5.1 billion in U.S. profits, GE claimed a $3.2 million tax benefit on its 2010 federal tax returns.

The 2010 tax return was unusual due to losses sustained by GE Capital since the financial crisis, and would be higher in 2011, GE said in a statement. In a speech yesterday at the Economic Club of Washington, Immelt said he welcomed reform for a simplified corporate tax system like in other countries, rather than the current complicated "loophole" system in the U.S.

LEDS Cooled by Synjet Named Winners of Next Generation Luminaires Competition by U.S. Department of Energy

2011-03-29T20:02:00.000-07:00

At this year’s Strategies in Light conference, an event showcasing the latestadvancements in LED lighting, the US Department of Energy (DOE) and a panel of 12 judges drawn from across the lighting design community named 15 LED downlight and accent light fixtures winners of the 2010 Next Generation Luminaires competition. The Nuventix SynJet cooled two of these award-winning fixtures, recognized for their warm color, even distribution of light and small form factor – a feat considering fewer than 10 percent of LED lights currently utilize active cooling for thermal management.

http://www.generallamp.com/LED-Wall-Washers_11.htm

“These wins with Philips and Edison Price are big for us. The SynJet was instrumental in differentiating the design of these two winners from the others,” said Tom Dalton, senior vice president of sales and marketing with Nuventix. “Interestingly, one of the judges for the Edison Price fixture wrote ‘the use of a fan for heat management did cause some concerns.’ Although this judge didn’t realize the LED used SynJet as its thermal management solution, it does show fans are seen as an unreliable option for LED cooling. Thermal management is key to making LED lighting viable and the Nuventix SynJet is the only active cooling option available that makes sense.”

Nuventix’ SynJet LED cooling technology is currently utilized by leading LED lighting manufacturers to cool high brightness LED lights. SynJet technology is quiet, flexible and more reliable than even the LED it cools. This technology allows designers and manufacturers to build energy efficient lighting solutions without thermal constraints. In addition to reducing energy consumption, SynJet technology also ensures LED light engines run brighter and longer, up to 100,000 hours, providing the end user with better quality, longer-lasting and more cost efficient bulb and fixture.

Sponsored by the U.S. DOE, the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America, and the International Association of Lighting Designers, the Next Generation Lighting competition was launched in 2008 to promote excellence in the design of energy-efficient LED luminaires for commercial lighting applications. To select the 2010 winners, a panel of 12 judges assessed each luminaire for lighting performance, appearance, adjustability, construction, energy efficiency andindustry design.

LUXEON S Sets the Benchmark for Illumination Grade LEDs and Provides a New Way to Talk About LED Performance

2011-03-29T19:59:00.000-07:00

As LUXEON S moves into volume production, the lighting industry is embracing the simplicity of hot testing and color binning and the quality of light that Philips Lumileds has proved possible with its white LUXEON LEDs. Introduced in February, the new LUXEON S LED is the most direct evidence that the LED industry is shedding its semiconductor skin and becoming a part of the lighting community.

“The language of our industry is changing,” said Rick Hamburger, the company’s Director of Segment Marketing. “To truly impact the lighting industry, we have to deliver more than numbers for efficacy and flux, we have to show we understand and can deliver illumination capabilities like ‘Punch’ and ‘Sparkle’. With LUXEON S we take a customer and application approach to delivering quality of light and ease of use for retail lighting applications like spot lamps.”

With LUXEON S, Philips Lumileds introduces new way of talking about Illumination Grade LEDs: Hot Testing and Binning, and Freedom From Binning.

Hot Testing and Binning describes the process by which Lumileds tests, targets, and specifies Illumination Grade LEDs. For LUXEON S, this means testing the product at 85°C which is the typical junction temperatures in an actual application. At this temperature, the company can provide accurate information about how LUXEON S will perform in the application. In addition, from a color perspective, it completely removes the need to understand, calculate, and adjust for color shift over temperature because the LED is already specified at the use temperature.

Freedom From Binning literally means that there are no color bin selections to be made. In the case of LUXEON S, this means that today, customers can select a correlated color temperature of 3000K and know that every LED, at real world operating conditions, will provide high quality white light (CRI>80) within a 3 step MacAdam Ellipse centered on the black body curve. The ability to target this level of color performance is unique to LUXEON LEDs and means the lighting industry can access unmatched uniformity and consistency within the light beam and between emitters.

LUXEON S is targeted at spot applications in the retail and hospitality segments where “Punch” is a critical factor. In addition to Freedom From Binning, LUXEON S delivers 1300 “hot” lumens from a very small optical source that enables a 10° beam from a compact reflector less than 50 mm in diameter. In a retail spot or down light the result is tight, sharp beams that deliver high center beam intensity with beam uniformity that highlights and gives depth to objects that are being illuminated.

Ceiling Fan includes dimmable LED luminaire.

2011-03-25T01:50:00.000-07:00

At high speed, Landan(TM) LED Ceiling Fan delivers 5,621 cfm airflow with efficiency of 194 cfm/W. Unit's LED luminaire features CREE LEDs on top to create uplight glow and LED cluster to provide downlighting.

Uplight includes 8 LEDs that consume 10 W to produce 627 lumens, while downlight uses 12 LEDs that consume 15 W to deliver 855 lumens. Offering 60 in. blade sweep, Energy Star-rated fan uses 29 W at high speed without lighting and 54 W when used with uplight and downlight.

Patient Friendly Illumination for St. Croix Medical Center

2011-03-23T00:25:00.000-07:00

enLux LED Down Lights Provide Energy Saving, Patient Friendly Illumination for St. Croix Medical Center

Whether you're a resident or business owner, living in the United States Virgin Islands (U.S.V.I.) consists of jaw-dropping views, year-round tropical weather and 38 cents per kilowatt-hour, the highest price of any U.S. state, island or territory.

Michael Bruno, a five-year resident and owner of Electricity Wise Strategies, and Renee M. D'Adamo, owner of RMD Architecture, know first-hand of the concerns the people of U.S.V.I. have when it comes dealing with high energy costs and usage.

"Alarming is an understatement," says Bruno. "No matter how large or minute a project is, it's always a factor that weighs heavily on the property owner, and ultimately has a trickledown effect that spreads throughout."

Primary Care, PLLC is a privately owned and operated family practice that was established in 1986, when Dr. Arakere B. Prasad decided to make the island of St. Croix his permanent home. Primary Care, PLLC is one of the few facilities on St. Croix that offers same-day services (appointments are on a limited basis) to those who require immediate medical attention. Along with Dr. Prasad, the staff includes two front office clerks, two billing clerks, two nurses, two nurse practitioners and an office manager that ensure a constant patient flow.

Seoul Semiconductor führt neue Hochleistungs-LEDs Acriche 7 und Acriche 8 ein

2011-03-16T22:15:00.001-07:00

Seoul Semiconductor (SSC), einer der weltweit führenden Anbieter und Innovationstreiber in der LED-Technologie, präsentiert im Rahmen seiner Produktoffensive 2011 gleich zwei neue LEDs der Acriche-Produktreihe: die sehr kleine A7 und die A8 als Ersatz für klassische Glühbirnen. Durch Verzicht auf den kurzlebigen Konverter halten Acriche-LEDs länger als die bisher üblichen 10.000 Stunden. Die Produktion der beiden neuen Aushängeschilder läuft seit Anfang März.

"Die neue Acriche-Reihe ist kleiner, aufregender und noch vielseitiger nutzbar", so Manuel Zarauza, Managing Director Europe & Emerging Markets bei Seoul Semiconductor. "Seoul Semiconductor ist das einzige Unternehmen das Designern und Industrie eine Wechselstrom-LED ohne Konverter bietet."

Acriche 7 - Super kleine 3,2W Hochleistungs-LED

Aufgrund der ständig steigenden Nachfrage nach leistungsstarken, energieeffizienten und zugleich preisgünstigen LEDs, schreibt SSC der neuen A7-Produktreihe sehr großes Potenzial als Hochleistungs-LED zu. Die A7 hat ein Keramikgehäuse und ist kleiner als ihre Vorgängerin, dabei zuverlässiger und sie besticht durch größere Konstanz bei Spannungsschwankungen. Die winzige 3,2W-Leuchtdiode mit den Maßen 8x8x3,7mm liefert als Lichtquelle 305 lm mit einer Leuchtdauer von bis zu 40.000 Stunden. Die A7 eignet sich ideal für kommerzielle Beleuchtungsanlagen wie etwa als Downlight, MR16, PAR30 und PAR38.

Acriche 8 - ein LED-Gehäuse ersetzt eine 60W-Glühlampe

Die Acriche 8 ist ein LED-Element, das speziell für Einbauleuchten verwendet wird. Sie liefert eine Lichtquelle mit 700 lm und kann so mühelos eine 60 Watt Birne ersetzen. Die hocheffiziente Leuchtdiode ist zudem sehr preiswert, dank des Verzichts auf einen Konverter in der gesamten Acriche-Produktreihe und auf teures Metallsubstrat im SMD-Verfahren gegen die Wärmeabstrahlung der Chips. Als COB (Chip-on-Board) ist die A8 als Einbaumodul auf einer Aluminiumplatte befestigt. Mit den Maßen 25x22x2 mm ist sie speziell für Downlights und Innenraumbeleuchtungen konzipiert.

Sowohl die A7 als auch die A8 können für Wechsel- als auch für Gleichstrom ohne Wandler genutzt werden und sind für gängige Wechselstromspannungen wie 110V/220V als auch für andere Hoch- oder Niedrigvoltspannungen geeignet. Der expansive koreanische Halbleiterhersteller SSC plant über das Gesamtjahr hinweg fast monatlich neue Produkte auf den Markt zu bringen. Bereits Anfang des Jahres hatte SSC zwei neue ultrahelle weiße LED-Lampen präsentiert.

Fight Led Teens To Set Home On Fire

2011-03-15T22:07:00.001-07:00

Four teenagers were in jail Tuesday, accused of trying to burn down a house in Daytona Beach, but two of them are charged with more than just arson because police believe they were trying to kill the people inside.

These teens were all friends at one point, but a series of fights got to the point where two of them are accused of taking Yoo-hoo bottles filled with gas, dumping them on the porch of the Foote Court home (see map), and trying to burn it down with people sleeping inside.

It was only the smashing glass of a side window that woke Christopher Johnson and his girlfriend out of bed, and they were shocked at what they found at their front door.

"Imagine you opening the door and the first thing you feel is heat," Christopher Johnson told WFTV.

Fire was climbing the walls of their small home, burning from a gasoline soaked blanket on a chair. Johnson and Grant grabbed bowls from the kitchen, filled them with water, and ran a bucket brigade to stop the fire before it burned through the wall.

"I never thought it would escalate this far. I'm 24, these kids are 18, 19," Grant said.

Police said the kids, now charged with attempted murder and arson, were led by Lillian Corlett. The 18-year-old had been fighting with Grant's younger sister, possibly over a boy, Grant said, and the fight ended up at her house.

Grant said Corlett had threatened to burn down the house, and reports say it was Alicia Macey who helped her dump the gasoline and light the flame.

Two other teens, Kristina Glover and Patrick Eversole, allegedly watched it all happen. Eversole was the one who broke the window when he saw what was happening. It was the only warning the people inside had.

"This is the only thing that saved us. If it was not for this, we would not be here right now," Grant said.

All four teens are being held without bail. Police reports say they all admitted, in recorded interviews, to being part of the plot. All four are charged with arson, and Corlett and Macey are also charged with attempted homicide.

The Darkness II Hands on Preview

2011-03-14T20:10:00.000-07:00

The Darkness II Hands on Preview

There was a demo of The Darkness II available for play at PAX East this year and I had the wonderful opportunity to get my hands on all of its gory glory. The demo showcased the beginning of the game in a pre-alpha build.

At the start of the demo you are placed in the shoes of a familiar face from the original Darkness game, Jackie Estacado. Throughout the demo you never leave the first person perspective, even during cut scenes the player has complete control over the movement of Jackie’s head so you can scope out the surrounding areas. When I finally got my hands on a controller I found myself groggy in a small, dark room. Two other characters are in the room with Jackie, one is a deformed man whose body looks as if it had been burned severely from head to toe. The other character was also male but without the deformities of what you learn is his ally. This character however at the start of the demo is literally crucifying Jackie to a board with railroad spikes. When I turned my head to the left and watched the man slamming a railroad spike through the palm of my hand with a hammer, I knew this was going to be a wild ride.At this point in the demo the deformed man explains to Jackie that he wants to obtain the Darkness that’s inside of him, and he also informs us that the Darkness will only leave its current host with the willful passing from that host. In the middle of the room with the three men is a stand with a strange looking case on the top of it. Into the case is flowing a dark essence from Jackie’s body, and this is the way the deformed man attempts to steal the Darkness from within Jackie, but as previously mentioned it will only leave its current host if it is passed on out of free will from that host. The deformed man then proceeds to “persuade” Jackie into giving up his dark powers. The other man in the room then rolls a TV stand in front of Jackie that starts playing a movie, and at this point the screen goes hazy and Jackie flashes back to earlier point in time.

The flashback brings Jackie to a restaurant where he is greeted by a man that refers to him as ‘boss’ and the same man then proceeded to lead me to my own private table in the back of the restaurant. Already sitting at the private table were two girls that ask Jackie if he remembers them, to which he replies “Sorry ladies, I didn’t recognize you with your clothes on.” The girls respond with a giggle and then in an instant the girl sitting across from Jackie on the right takes a bullet in the back of the head from the window. The bullet is immediately followed by a van crashing through the wall into the table that Jackie is sitting at. When Jackie finally came to he looks down to see that his right leg has been burned and mangled, so there is no way he can walk. The man that led me to the table is now at Jackie’s side and hands him a pistol and tells him to keep the now fast approaching enemies off of their backs. The man then proceeds to pull Jackie through the restaurant and that’s when I finally took full control (almost) over Jackie.

Development office’s demise led to city loss of grant funds

2011-03-14T20:09:00.000-07:00

Anniston’s loss last spring of federal funds totaling $569,794 to help prevent homelessness was caused by factors that began sometime before authorities actually took the money away.

In 2007, the city hired Clarence Williams to manage the Community Development Block Grant fund, money delivered through the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The program, in which Anniston has participated for decades, funds a number of housing-related activities, including a loan program for low-income residents to bring their homes up to code.

Williams’ contract specified that he was to receive $60,000 per year to act as the coordinator of the CDBG program. Former city manager George Monk was working for Anniston at the time Williams was hired and was Williams’ supervisor, he said.

“One of the things that he got excited about was the possibility of bringing other programs to Anniston through other grants,” Monk said. “I gave him the green light.”

When Williams secured the new grants, he also brought a new contract to the City Council asking for additional money to manage the grants, City Manager Don Hoyt said recently. Each time the contract was brought up, the council either tabled the request or turned it down, Hoyt said.

When the council turned down his request for more money, Hoyt said, Williams refused to manage the grants. That’s not a good thing to happen in the realm of federal grants — authorities like to know someone is handling their money according to its original purpose.

Repeated attempts by The Star to locate Williams, who resigned in May, have been unsuccessful.

Darlene Emory worked with Williams on the CDBG fund. She resigned in April before the problems in the Community Development Department came to light. Emory said she was there when Williams handed the responsibility for managing the homeless grants to Hoyt. Williams handed him the paperwork and the timeline and Hoyt should have taken care of it, she said.

“This one is on the city,” Emory said. “They sat there and did not do anything, nothing with all that money. That’s how they lost it.”

She wasn’t sure when Williams handed everything over to Hoyt, but Finance Director Danny McCullars wrote in an e-mail that it was sometime in January 2010, four months after the grant was allocated.

The way Emory sees it, the problem stems from the contract dispute.

“That program was going to entail a lot of work,” Emory said. “All it boiled down to is they did not want to give Clarence and I a raise.”

Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs spokesman Jim Plott said the grant money was pulled because Anniston wasn’t filing the required paperwork to the department.

“ADECA did receive letters from the Anniston program, but that was after the HPRP program had been terminated after no documentation had been received in the eight months since the funding was awarded,” Plott said by e-mail.

The department sent several notices and e-mails to the city before it finally pulled the money on April 14. Most went to Williams, but the final notice of the recall was sent also to Hoyt and Mayor Gene Robinson, Plott said.

The recall happened at the same time two women came to the council complaining that problems with the CDBG program had left them homeless, prompting the council members to request a HUD investigation. The next day, at the request of HUD, the city closed the Community Development office and posted a police guard at the door to ensure the records would not be tampered with. The city has received no findings from the investigation, Hoyt said.

The city has since hired Development Solutions, a Bessemer-based consulting company, to manage the CDBG program.

Councilman David Dawson said he wants the council to solidify protocol for the Community Development Department to make sure nothing like this ever happens again.

“Nobody was looking over, you know, that department,” Dawson said. “There are just some things that went on wrong during that.”

Someone, either the city manager or some other department head, is going to have to oversee the department, Dawson said.

Dawson would also like to talk to Anniston’s congressmen to see if the lost funding can be restored.

As it is, the “lost” grant money isn’t going to waste: Officials say it made its way to a Homeless Coalition organization serving Mobile and Baldwin counties.

Home Digital Home

2011-03-08T21:26:00.000-08:00

The technology is new, but the situation is not, Consider this... The electric light and the telephone didn't become common until well after they were invented. It's simply because nobody knew what to do with them. There wasn't anything to plug in and there wasn't anybody else with a phone to talk to. The technology existed, but the applications hadn't been invented yet.

It wasn't until the late seventies that coaxial cable began to appear in new homes. It wasn't needed until people started having cable TV in several rooms. Home technologies have advanced at a glacial pace for over eighty years. Hang on to your hats folks. A paradigm shift is taking place right now. It's a revolution, a transformation, a sort of metamorphosis. It does not just happen, but rather, is driven by agents of change.

Timekeeping has existed for centuries, but it had no urgent application, no real meaning for the masses until Watt and Stephenson invented the locomotive and, hence, the schedule.

The all-digital home network is here today......
and its proponents are doing their best not to make the mistakes of the past. The agents of change aren't quite so random this time. We've lived in an analog world for so long that making the paradigm shift in our lifestyles never occurred to us. Most people with mortgages and kids have survived the transition from the typewriter to the PC well enough. And many have even started integrating cell phones and PDA's into their daily lives.

Although these devices have made us more productive, have they really saved us any time? If anything, people work more frantically, in more places and with less leisure time than their parents did. But, the changes in lifestyle that these items have created have been subtle compared to the next step.

In the all-digital home/office everything communicates with everything else.
The only connection to many devices will be a single cable, or frequently no cables at all. A device in this environment may be added or removed at any time even while the system is operating. It announces its presence to the other components and establishes communication as soon as it is plugged in.

In addition, new specifications have been developed for wireless links between laptops, mobile phones and many other portable devices. The goal will be to allow devices to communicate as a network automatically and without being physically connected. There are some pretty cool applications for this.

LED Downlights - Why Buy Now?

2011-03-07T19:27:00.001-08:00

If you wander into your local DIY superstore and go to the lighting section you will find that displays of LED downlights are becoming more visible. The most common are direct replacements for GU10 mains voltage halogen downlights (same size & shape and you don't have to change your light fittings). However one look at the price and the guaranteed reaction is EXPENSIVE!!!.

But is it????

A halogen bulb costs around a £1.00 compared to about £18 for a 4 or 5 watt LED. Eighteen times the cost.

However LED's use less power, last longer and don't generate as much heat.

A typical LED downlight is rated at 25,000 hours whereas a mains voltage halogen bulb is good for 1,000 hours. So buying one LED light is equivalent to buying 25 halogen bulbs. A net saving of £7

As far as power consumption is concerned LED' consume a tenth of the power of halogens. If you assume that electricity costs 10p a kilowatt hour a 5 watt LED consumes £12.50 during its lifetime. Compare this to 50 watt halogens which will cost £125 to run. A net saving of £112.50

The third consideration is heat. Halogens get hot so you can't wrap then in insulation without asking for trouble ( increased fire risk, melted cables, bulbs frequently popping). If you install them according to the manufacturers instructions halogens need a gap in the insulation around each downlight. This sort of defeats the idea of insulation and means that halogens are very good at heating up your loft space when they are on and cooling down your room when they are off. LED's don't get hot so you can insulate and save on your heating bills.

So do you replace your halogens with LED's or not? The only disadvantage is initial cost but if you take a longer term view each LED saves you over £100 during its lifetime.

As with all new technological innovations prices start high but decrease as sales increase. You can wait until LED prices come down or you could be proactive. Just buy one and try it. You will save money, you are reducing your carbon foot print and you are helping to increase those sales volumes which will bring prices down.

Getting Down With LED Downlights

2011-03-02T22:31:00.000-08:00

When installing lights into a room it is worth carefully considering what lighting solutions will best suit your need. A very popular choice of lighting for the modern day home is the LED downlight. It is often a common choice for home owners to install LED downlights in their kitchens, bathrooms or even bedrooms, to give the room a very stylish and modern feel that other lights just don't give..

An LED downlight is normally fitted into a narrow opening within the ceiling above the desired room. The way the light is fitted means that it is primarily hidden to the naked eye, giving the appearance of a light shining from a hole above the ceiling into the desired room. Using an LED downlight to light a room gives choice a deal of choice to the homeowner with a variety of options available, such as coloured LED bulbs to create different lighting effects within the home from what you would typically find. The downlight will concentrate its light downwards into the room and has the capability to shine as broadly as a floodlight or as narrowly as a spot light, the choice is really yours.

The LED downlight you purchase will be made up of two main components, apart from the bulb of course. These are known as the trim and the housing. The trim is the visible part of the light. There are a wide variety of trim styles available for many different rooms and decors, ranging from chrome to colour and from metal to plastic, and so on. The housing of the downlight is the fixture to hold the light in place in the ceiling. Often the housing will not be at all visible to the eye, but actually in the ceiling, and will hold the actual bulb itself.

An LED downilght is not only an attractive light source for your kitchen, bedroom or bathroom but it is also a powerful and efficient source of light that often tends to operate at very low heat levels. This not only make it an attractive light but it also makes it an ideal item to ensure that your lighting fixture will not be a fire hazard whilst left on for an extended period of time in the home.

LED downlights come in many varieties so it is recommended that you speak to a sales assistant about your specific needs before you purchase the said lights. Such things to consider will be what colours fit your room, how strong you want the light to be, and if you prefer it to light the room in the style of a spotlight of a floodlight. Downlights are also commonly easy to install however should you have any questions or problems with installation it is recommended you speak either to a light fitting professional or a customer service representative and they will be more than willing to answer your questions. When searching for LED downlights there are is a wide range available at great prices simply through searching the internet.

Why LED Lights Are Superior

2011-02-27T22:19:00.001-08:00

LED Lighting Products - Superior, Energy-Efficient Lighting.

Light Emitting Diode Products originated in the electronics industry and were used in the form of indication lights on products such as stereos, TV's, telephones and calculators. The technology used in these lights has come in leaps and bounds since they were first used commercially in around 1968, and now they are being used for general purpose illumination in household, garden, office, commercial and industrial environments. The popularity of LED lights continues to grow as a viable, everyday, energy-efficient lighting solution due to the products being far superior to other, conventional lighting systems in many ways. LED globes have an exceptionally long life.

If compared to a standard halogen downlight globe, which has a life expectancy of approximately 3000 hours, an LED downlight globe, which has a life expectancy of approximately 50000 hours, will outlast the conventional globes by around 15 times. This means less replacement costs and lower maintenance. These points alone are an unarguably significant improvement. Possibly the most important factor of the LED lighting products is its environmental impact. Not only does a longer globe life contribute to less waste and less maintenance which in turn saves on vehicle fuel and emissions, but LED lighting products actually use far less power to run. One 9 watt, LED downlight globe puts out the same amount of light as a 50 watt halogen downlight does. That means over 5 times LESS power is consumed when using LED lights, not to mention the dollars saved in running costs. LED's really are an energy-efficient lighting solution.

When we combine the energy efficiency of the LED light with the reduction in replacement lamps, we can see a significant decrease in carbon emissions into the environment. LED lighting products do not contain harmful gasses or UV rays and omits considerably less carbon dioxide than other standard globes which put carbon dioxide, sulfur oxide and nuclear waste into the landfills and atmosphere. It is not only environmental benefits that the LED boasts. LED lights can light almost anything, in any way. There are endless design possibilities, colours, shapes and sizes, plus, they turn on instantly. LED's are a safer alternative, containing no mercury and creating far less heat than other lighting methods.