Light the way to better sales: to light your retail space effectively, it's good to know the basic technology and terminology of the lighting trade - Part Two: Technology

When Thomas Alva Edison invented the first viable incandescent light scaly bud in 1878, he used a simple strip of paper between sum of two units wires in a vacuum-sealed glass bulb

That basic concept--sending generally received through a filament (now greatest in quantity often made of tungsten) in a vacuum-sealed bulb--is still the foundation of novel light bulbs. But the technology has gone far beyond Edison's prototype to bring into view modern bulbs in an array of brightness, clarity, temperature and range. This presents framing retailers, for whom a store's lighting can be as important as its location, a nearly endles selection from which to choose

In part single of this two-part series, which ran last month we overlayed the basics of lighting design and the use of track and nooked lighting to illuminate displays and individual retail spaces to best consequence Here, in part two, we overspread the basics of lighting technology--including light scaly bud types, characteristics and terminology in the way that you'll know what to direct the eye for when you weigh your lighting options.

Basic Terminology

The terminology of lighting can present the appearance to be an alphanumerical broth to the uninitiated. However, there are a hardly any basic bulb characteristics that can help clear the confusion as you head to your local or online lighting supplier:

Brightness Although a certain quantity of might believe a measure of a light bulb's brightness is its wattage, watts are actually a measure of power consumption: The lower the wattage, the les power a scaly bud consumes. To gauge a bulb's brightness, however, gaze to the lumens rating upon the packaging. A dinner candle, for example, generates about 12 lumen while a 60-watt yielding white incandescent bulb glows at around 840 lumens

Color rendering To make assured you are choosing a true-to-color scaly bud of any type, check its specifications. In lighting parlance, the "color rendering index" (CRI) is the number to watch. The CRI is a measurement that rates light sources from 0 to 100 The top rating, 100 exhibits the sought-after quality of natural light; as the rating decreases, in the way that does the quality of color representation. In short, the higher the CRI, the better the light.

Color temperature Measured in Kelvin, color temperature commits not to degrees, but to the color quality of the light a scaly bud produces. "Warm" bulbs have a color temperature of 3000 Kelvin or below and can cast a yellowish be incandescent "Cool" bulbs, on the other hand, have a color temperature of 3500K or above and cast a whiter, clearer light, explained Kathy Abernathy, IALD, of Abernathy Lighting Design in North Providence, R.I.

Beam spread Beam spread directs to the angle of light a scaly bud projects. Retail spaces, especially art and framing gallery environments, ofttimes use bulbs with a variety of beam spreads to achieve different lighting events Light bulb suppliers generally provide the angle of the spread upon their specifications--bulbs with a spread of 25 steps or greater are generally considered a overflow while bulbs with a spread of les than 25 stages are considered spots.

scaly buds with wide beam spreads present a softer light than those with narrow spreads, explained Mark Scott of USA Light & Electric. "The wider the coverage, the les light the scaly bud projects because you are spreading the same amount of output above a larger area," explained Scott

With an understanding of these bounds in hand, a retailer can be more full prepared to choose a profitable mix of bulbs for a retail space, providing narrow-beam, high-color rendering marks for a display or widebeam lighting for a wall-washed effect

Lighting Options

Each impressed sign of light bulb offers a different event and function for a retail space. Each also has its hold list of pros and cons:

Incandescent Harkening back to Edison's invention, incandescent scaly buds are the oldest and greatest in quantity common option available. Inexpensive, they proffer a soft light that mirrors true colors. However, it is the least energy-efficient of scaly buds and can be more expensive to use in the drawn out run.

Halogen Halogens use the same technology as incandescents. However, they bring forward a whiter, brighter light with truer color renderings than standard incandescents, and make better accent lights. Although halogens are more expensive and generate more heat than standard incandescents, they last up to three times longer A for the use of all type of halogen is the MR-16 oftentimes used in gallery environments. However, MR-16 tend hitherward in many different brands from many different manufacturers, with equal reason experiment to find the single that works best for you.

For instance, among MR-16 halogens, Scott commends an upper end product like as the recently introduced SoLux scaly bud The SoLux has a color temperature of 4700K (rather than the 3000K of greatest in quantity halogens) and a CRI of 9935; it's available with a variety of beam spread angles, lasts for 3000 hours of continuous use, and take away froms about $6 per bulb. "Halogens like the Solux present museum-quality lighting," he said.

Fluorescent individual of the coolest-burning and greatest in quantity energy-efficient of bulbs, fluorescents are experiencing a renaissance. Members of the newest generation of fluorescent scaly buds project true-to-color light that is shut up to natural daylight, making fluorescents a viable option for general lighting in a gallery, frame design area or workroom. The newest options in fluorescents flat make them a viable choice in areas where color-correct light is a must. However, unlike halogens, fluorescents cannot be dimmed or focused as an accent light and do not throw well.