Another great trip with Stan Deutsch Associates, this time up to Montreal to visit Luminis, Lumenpulse, and SACO. LUMINIS was our first stop. Their standard warranty is 5 years with an average LED life of 65-80,000 hours (until L70). They predominately use Bridgelux LED, but also are compatible with CREE. Their thermal properties are able to support at least two manufacturers in case of an LED shortage. I was also happy to hear that they purchase a percentage of each generation to store for any future needs (so that the 5yr warranty can actually be covered). 0-10V dimming to 10% is standard, and the LUTRON 3-wire can be offered to 1%.
Their products are technical looking, but have a consideration of design. The Aramis LED (above) highlights and celebrates the thermal heat sink - and the reflector can either be visible or hidden behind frosted glass. The aluminum pieces can typically be painted, but the heat sink must remain in its cast aluminum standard finish. There is a similar technical style in the Prisma LED pendants (below) with a visible heat sink, but also a nod to the well-loved factory light shape. The optics incorporate frosting into the acrylic to soften the LED.
LUMINIS also has a nice range of outdoor products - including an exciting tube family called Syrios (below). This family features an adjustable head (360deg rotation) within the tube structure - which is the first time I've seen this offered on an exterior product. The family includes a pendant, wall, and ceiling mounting - and a square shape is being presented at LightFair in early May.
A few other features LUMINIS offers is Amber LEDs for turtle lighting areas, a "wood" paint coating to help fixtures blend into the terrain, and low-copper cast aluminum components (to reduce rusting). They are working on the optics for their street lighting fixtures - looking into silicone (instead of acrylic) which is inherently dirt and UV resistant.
LUMENPULSE gave a nice presentation primarily highlighting their excellence in manufacturing, thermal management, and LED binning. Except for the LED itself, LUMENPULSE designs everything themselves (boards, optics, heat sinks, etc.). Most fixtures are offered with a 5yr warranty, but the Lumencove Nano is actually offered with a 10yr. They claim that their LEDs having a 120,000 life until reaching L70.
LUMENPULSE takes great care in the LEDs chosen for each fixture. They chose from 16 micro-bins, with each LED selected with 4 quadrants, always within the visual tolerance of the eye. They use this "recipe" to create the same color temperature over and over again - not relying on a specific manufacturer to reproduce the same quality.
Within each fixture, the DMXrd feature is a two-way communication that keeps track of the driver, heat, and LED output. This is a great component is perfect for bridges, building facades, etc. anywhere that is difficult to maintain. Another control option is Lumentalk, which is retro-fit smart control which turns existing wiring into a digital network.
We were able to take a quick peak at the new Lumenalpha products, in-grade linear grazer, and also hear about the advancement in the Lumenline optics. I'm excited to see more of this at LightFair in early May.
SACO has been around for over 20 years, developing LED lighting and media solutions for a variety of projects (including at least three installations that have made it into the Guinness Book of World Records!). They break down their service into a few devisions: Shockwave Video Lighting, Smartvision and SACO Design Lab, all offering impeccable service and integration with the design team and installers. They showed us a small representation of their control capabilities as well. The video sequencing is very easy and very intuitive, with more control than DMX.
One of my favorite projects that we were shown is the Maple Leaf Square Canopy in Toronto, CA, which was "inspired by the experience of walking through a forest’s dappled light." They integrated LED modules into repeating geometric cells (the abstract form of leaves) and utilized a computer controlled digital output to show a non-repeating pattern moving throughout the canopy. During the day, the cells allow for daylight to come partially through and activate the canopy continuously.
SACO offers only a small quantity of products, but stresses the options for installation and integration. They maintain only a 2% difference in color, brightness, and voltage from fixture to fixture and LED to LED. And all products are backwards compatible. All products have excellent thermal management, allowing for smaller platforms and fixture dimensions - they actually have an aversion to heat sinks, believing they are only a target for dust, which actually traps heat and makes the fixtures hotter. Their adaptive white products are a combination of 5500K and Amber LEDs, which they find produces a more halogen looking color.
