Posted on: 31st January 2008, Germany E-mail this page to a friend

Hot topic is the optimum combination of all lighting components

Interview with Manfred Diez, President of the Lighting Division within the Central Association for the German Electrical and Electronics Industry (ZVEI) on the potential benefits of the Light+Building trade fair.

Energy efficiency, CO2 reduction and sustainability are aspects that are also being actively discussed with regard to lighting solutions. In the run-up to Light+Building, Manfred Diez, President of the Lighting Division within the Central Association for the German Electrical and Electronics Industry (ZVEI - Zentralverband Elektrotechnik- und Elektronikindustrie e.V.) talks about the added impetus which could result from the international trade fair for architecture and technology from 6 to 11 April 2008 in Frankfurt am Main.

Mr. Diez, this will now be the fifth time that Light+Building has taken place since its inauguration in the year 2000. What are you expecting potentially to come from this 2008 fair and indeed for the future beyond?

Manfred Diez: After long years of recession, the German lighting sector has been enjoying a consistent upturn since the second half of 2006. There is an equivalently euphoric assessment on the part of our companies. And so, in order to be able to cope better with the large number of visitors in the future, the length of Light+Building 2008 has, at the instigation of the member associations of the ZVEI, been extended by one day to six days.

Lighting is the largest segment at Light+Building. In view of the world-wide debate on climate, what additional impetus of particular relevance to lighting solutions will emerge from this trade fair?

Manfred Diez: The fact that, in Europe, 14 per cent of electricity is used for lighting, is giving rise to a great many developments to counter this. On the one hand, there are regulations and guidelines from the European Union, such as the directive on the eco-design of energy-using products (EuP Directive) and from its member states, such as the energy-saving regulations (EnEV) in Germany, which have been set in motion and which foster the use of energy-efficient products. On the other hand, the lighting sector offers innovative solutions – and has done for some time – which put energy-efficiency and sustainability at the centre of things. In this regard, it is not only about lights with a high degree of efficiency, but also about lamps, ballasts and intelligent lighting control and management systems. So it is up to the users to take advantage of this technology, which is again on show in comprehensive presentations at Light+Building 2008.

Does this assessment apply only to the area of architectural lighting and to decorative lights?

Manfred Diez: Most certainly not. In public spaces, too, for example in street lighting, systems are still in use today that have often been in operation for longer than 20 years and are obsolescent. Here there is considerable potential for saving, especially if one considers substitution rates of 3 per cent per year – with office lighting, this figure amounts to some 7 per cent. But energy saving is not to be equated with switching off lights. It is about changing to energy-efficient and, above all, top-quality solutions to get better lighting.

In this context, how is the range in the 'Urban Lighting' area at Light+Building to be assessed?

Manfred Diez: The exterior lighting presented within the 'Urban Lighting' area in Hall 5.0 makes it very clear that modern, energy-efficient technology is entirely consistent with high aesthetic standards. This also holds true for the lights for public spaces, which are featured. Appropriate and innovative components, such as lamps, ballasts and accessories, as well as light-management systems for outdoor lighting, are all included to the spectrum of exhibits at Light+Building 2008. Here, too, it is up to the users to take advantage of state-of-the art technology and thus ultimately to do something for climate protection and for the environment.

Mr. Diez, so you are advocating ‘smart' applications for electrical energy?

Manfred Diez: Absolutely! It is not about saving light, but about using it in a sensible way as far as energy is concerned. For lighting is part of what we mean by quality of life. This is just as true for the lighting of work places and living rooms, as it is for the lighting of the outdoor spaces in towns and cities.

Does the Light+Building concept as a combination of light and electrical engineering, as well as house and building automation, bring additional benefits for the sensible use of energy in lighting in all the fields of application that you have referred to?

Manfred Diez: It goes without saying that synergy effects arise from this combination, which can serve to improve the CO2 balance-sheet and to create greater degrees of sustainability. Light+Building as a trade fair for architecture and technology, with its comprehensive range of energy-efficient products and systems, unquestionably shows us the way forward.