International Regulation of SSL

I recently attended the CIE 2012 conference in Hangzhou and participated in a panel discussion on international standardisation of the Solid State Lighting (SSL) regulations on behalf of the IALD.

In the conference discussion it was acknowledged that one of the barriers to the more widespread uptake of SSL/LED lighting is a lack of internationally recognised standards that certify the performance of these products.  Other organisations with an interest in this issue include CIE, IEC, ISO, LUCI, IUA and the GLA; many of whom were represented in the panel discussion.

The CIE are leading the push for standardisation. The panel agreed that international harmonisation and a common platform would be important aspects to any standards written for SSL.

The IALD’s position regarding the creation of standards that apply to the performance of SSL products is that:
· The creation of internationally recognized standards would be a good thing
· These standards should be written by an unbiased organization with a proved track record of producing good quality standards of this nature
· That manufacturers must test their products according to harmonized standards and that the results are in a common format which is easy to interpret and use in practice by lighting designers.

This matters to us as lighting designers because we need to know that the products we specify perform in the manner claimed by the manufacturers. It is important that standards are internationally harmonized so that products may be specified for use in countries other than our own with confidence.

The CIE is trying to bring together all the relevant stakeholders and establish a strategy and roadmap to develop a set of standards for SSL. But as you can imagine, this is no easy job given the sheer number of organizations with vested interest in the subject.  The IALD is taking a leadership role by cooperating with the CIE to help make this initiative a reality.