Dave Ellis, National Sales Manager – Specification at OSRAM, reviews the impact of the ErP Directive and provides an overview of the efficient alternatives that are available to replace the lamps that are being phased out:
The lighting industry is changing as we look to a sustainable future. Inefficient technologies are in the process of being phased out as part of the EU’s Energy-Related Product (ErP) Directive designed to reduce CO2 emissions across Europe. Consequently, it is crucial that you familiarise yourself with the efficient alternatives that are available and the benefits that they provide.
The ErP Directive features a number of phases. The first stage was implemented in September 2009 and focused on the phase-out of incandescent GLS lamps. At the moment, GLS lamps of more than 80W below EEI category C, and frosted lamps that are not in EEI category A, are no longer allowed to be put onto the market. Further lamps and wattages will come under the terms of the ban in twelve-month stages.
Energy efficient lamps based on compact fluorescent, halogen and LED technologies are set to take over the gap left in the market by the removal of GLS lamps. Lamps based on compact fluorescent and LED technologies provide energy savings of 80%, and energy efficient halogen lamps provide energy savings of 30%. This means that users can significantly reduce energy consumption and achieve lower energy bills simply by replacing inefficient lamps with the latest energy efficient technologies.
Tertiary lighting implementing measures
From April 2010, the tertiary implementing measures (TIM) of the ErP Directive went into force, starting with the phase-out of inefficient fluorescent tubes. In contrast to the phase-out of GLS lamps that began in September 2009, TIM focuses on the phase-out of the most inefficient street, office and industrial lighting solutions.
Basic T8 tubes are in the process of being phased-out and basic T12 tubes will follow in 2012. Fluorescent tubes are a mainstay of the professional lighting sector so the phase-out of basic halophosphate tubes will undoubtedly affect many people.
The good news is that there highly efficient alternatives available to replace basic fluorescent tubes in the form of LUMILUX triphosphor tubes. Lamps in this range comply with EU regulations and benefit from high luminous flux, high luminous efficacy and excellent colour rendering and significantly boost the efficiency of a building when installed with electronic control gear (ECG). As well as providing energy and cost savings through reduced energy consumption, they provide substantial maintenance cost savings because of their long lifetime.
From 2012, high intensity discharge lamps will start to be affected by the phase-out. The most inefficient high pressure sodium lamps will be removed from the market, but significantly, the efficient alternatives that are already available on the market benefit from higher luminous efficacy, longer lifetime and lower early failure rate. By making the switch to the efficient versions sooner rather than later, users will be able to replace lamps like-for-like in the future and reap savings in the meantime
LEDs for general lighting making rapid advances
Significantly, LED solutions will play a crucial role in the lighting industry over the coming years. Because of benefits including extremely long lifetime and low power consumption, LED solutions are emerging as a highly desirable option when it comes to lighting design. With retrofit lamps for general illumination to modules and luminaires that provide versatile and vibrant lighting effects, LED solutions will help shape the future of light as the most inefficient technologies become obsolete.
With EU citizens and businesses projected to save close to 40 TWh (roughly the electricity consumption of Romania) leading to a reduction of about 15m tonnes of CO² emission per year through installing energy efficient lamps, making the switch sooner rather than later can only be a good thing. When selecting a lighting scheme now, energy efficient lamps should be the only choice. The sooner energy efficient lamps are in place, the sooner we can reap the benefits of saving energy, saving money and reducing our impact on the environment.
