4 minute read
Closing the Loop
This October, London is set host what’s being billed as the lighting industry’s biggest sustainability event. Ray Molony reports on movement that’s going from strength to strength.
‘The future has arrived but it’s not evenly distributed’, declared William Gibson. The cyberpunk author could easily have been talking about the lighting industry and sustainability.
It’s fair to say that luminaire makers are on a spectrum, not dissimilar to the early days of LED adoption back in the 1990s.
Many have well-established environmental plans in place and will cheerfully deluge you with data about the provenance of their luminaires. Others are just embarking on their journey towards net zero.
But what’s clear is that the mass movement has begun and it’s gaining momentum. Phrases like ‘remanufacturing’, ‘circularity’ or ‘embedded carbon’ are becoming common currency, and lighting designers are having serious conversations with clients about reusing luminaires.
What’s also remarkable is the number of companies who say that they gained enormously from beginning their sustainability journey.
Far from being a burden, gathering and analysing data on their processes such as their energy use and their supply chain has helped them identify waste and potential cost savings.
In some cases, the savings are dramatic. Furthermore, no brand is expressing regret at implementing environmental policies or signing up to an environmental accreditation such as B Corp.
For many, it brought new levels of structure, professionalism and management insight.
What’s also becoming clear is that going green isn’t a tick-box exercise, but more about a culture change. And when you change that culture, good things flow from that. For instance, staff, especially younger members of the team, become energised and engaged in a way few management initiatives can achieve.
If you want to see how far the lighting industry has come in the last few years, visit Circular Lighting Live, the one-day conference and exhibition in London organised by UK’s leading environmental compliance authority Recolight.
An instant success on its debut in 2022, the event has become the defining gathering of the supply chain to assess its progress towards net zero.
It brings together over 300 of the lighting industry’s top executives to consider how our sector can become part of the circular economy.
On the agenda in 2024 is the legislative and regulatory landscape, the role AI can play in assisting firms with data, the opportunities and challenges of the emerging lighting remanufacturing ‘ecosystem’, 3D printing, circular design and sustainable materials including bioplastics.
Speakers include Signify chief design officer, Ton Borsboom, who will explore if AI and digitalisation represents the next revolution in sustainable design, and architect Rachel Hoolahan, who will explain how each luminaire is set to get its own materials ‘passport’.
In the Designer’s Track, lighting designer Paul Beale, founder of 18 Degrees, will share how a decision to salvage hundreds of office lights ignited a journey to forge connections throughout the industry.
For 2024, the organisers have a more expansive exhibition floor and included a dedicated track for lighting designers.
Free to specifiers, Circular Lighting Live 2024 will feature leading experts, specifiers and policy makers who will share their insights into forthcoming standards and legislation, emerging technologies and new business models.
Aimed at the full supply chain, including manufacturers, suppliers and specifiers, it takes place on Wednesday 9 October 2024 at the Royal College of Physicians in London.
Exhibitors include ASD Lighting, BELL Lighting, Glamox, Llumarlite, Regen Initiative, Signify and Holophane.
Learn more at www.circularlighting.live
