CLEVELAND, OHIO—Two new lamps from GE Consumer & Industrial—a 7-watt GE Energy Smart LED PAR20 lamp and a 10-watt GE Energy Smart LED PAR30 lamp—enable restaurants, retailers and other commercial customers to make significant strides toward general lighting with white light-emitting diodes (LEDs). These products, available as spots or floods, feature advanced optical control to concentrate the white LED light on the targeted area and effectively diminish wasted extraneous light. “One noticeable technology achievement is the superior beam,” says Gus Lanese, manager of growth initiatives, GE Consumer & Industrial. “It’s a better directed light. Some retailer customers have already purchased...

SCHAUMBURG, ILL.—Aero-Tech introduces its Evolution-Bulb compact fluorescent. It is now available in Candelabra “Small-Base” for decorative bulb applications. It is ideal for ceiling fans, wall sconces, chandeliers and more. The bulb is available in 11 watts and 14 watts, and 2700K (warm white), and 5,000K (full-spectrum) color temperatures. Go to Aero-Tech.

PHOENIX—With a focused eye towards being more environmentally conscious, the Sheraton Phoenix Downtown Hotel has planted a 120-square-foot seasonal garden on the fourth-floor deck of the 31-floor hotel. In addition, the hotel is working with a vendor to determine possible CFL or LED technology for custom lighting fixtures that currently only work with traditional incandescent bulbs. These two initiatives are amongst many eco-friendly practices of the new hotel, others of which include a comprehensive banquet recycling program, installment of a water filtration system to purify water and reduce waste, and an internal green team that regularly meets to proactively...

ATLANTA—Recommendations on achieving 30 percent energy savings over minimum code requirements are contained in the newly published “Advanced Energy Design Guide for Highway Lodging.” The energy savings guidance for design of new hotels provides a first step toward achieving a net-zero-energy building. “The recommendations allow the building industry to create more energy-efficient hotels while maintaining the quality and functionality of the space to provide a pleasant guest experience,” said Ron Jarnagin, chair of the committee that wrote the book. The book, published by ASHRAE, gives guidance to architects, engineers, contractors and other building team members on how to easily achieve...

ALSIP, ILL.— Litetronics International Inc. has introduced its GU24 socket adapters to accompany its line of Spiral-Lite GU24 compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs). Litetronics GU24 socket adapters screw and lock into medium-based sockets to permanently retrofit fixtures into energy-saving GU24-based fixtures. Once the adapter is installed into the socket, it cannot be removed, which guarantees that inefficient incandescent bulbs cannot be used in the socket. Spiral-Lite GU24 CFLs and adapters are great for maintenance applications where building maintenance managers want to ensure energy-saving CFLs are used in the fixtures instead of incandescent lamps or for applications that require theft protection....

MOONACHIE, N.J.—Adding to its expansive line of energy efficient lamping solutions for lighting specifiers, BULBRITE introduces Color Changing LED Step Lights as an addition to its existing full line of LED Step Lights. BULBRITE is a leading manufacturer and supplier of innovative light bulbs and energy efficient lamping solutions for the residential, commercial and specification markets. Ideal for installations in restaurants, nightclubs, homes, theaters and many other spaces, BULBRITE’s Color Changing LED Step Lights are designed and engineered to allow users to flow through multiple colors at a speed of their choice or freeze on any color desired. The colors...

NEW LONDON, N.H.—Synergistic Lighting Technologies, LLC announced the arrival of a modernization to the traditional 60-watt incandescent bulb. The Tru-Spectrum bulb is a modular bulb that utilizes a patent pending new filament wire fabrication method in a small replaceable light source driven by a ~91 percent efficient power circuit. The highly efficient light source and electronics circuit allows the Tru-Spectrum bulb to rival the energy efficiency of a compact fluorescent (CFL), while providing a pleasing lighting color, no dimming or temperature restriction and no harmful mercury. The Tru-Spectrum bulb will also meet the new efficacy requirements required by the US...

CLEVELAND, OHIO—Hasek Communications, the Cleveland, Ohio-based publisher of Green Lodging News, welcomes Evolve Guest Controls as a Founding Sponsor. Evolve is a wireless room control system designed to save 30 percent or more on a property’s utility costs as well as offering a return on investment in less than two years. Upon entering the guestroom, the guest initiates control of the lighting, heating/cooling, television and draperies by simply inserting the keycard into the wall-mounted Evolve card reader. When guests leave and remove the card, all devices are turned off and the thermostat is adjusted to a “savings” temperature, thereby eliminating...

MINNEAPOLIS/ST.PAUL—Researchers at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health found most containers employed for storage and transportation of used fluorescent lamps to recycling centers do not provide necessary levels of protection against mercury vapors emitted from broken lamps. The release of mercury vapors, which can be inhaled or absorbed through the skin, presents an environmental and occupational hazard for workers involved with handling and transport. Mercury is a toxic chemical that can lead to neurological damage. The results of the study were published in a recent issue of the Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association. The...

SANTA CLARA, CALIF.—Watt Stopper/Legrand has launched a versatile 0-10 volt wall box controller that can be used to dim or switch lighting loads or raise and lower shades. The DRLV1 controller is the first such device to include an input allowing automatic control by an occupancy sensor when used for lighting control. The device is RF-enabled and is also the first 0-10 volt wall box controller that can be incorporated into a wireless scene control system. The DRLV1 is part of Watt Stopper’s line of Miro Controls, which includes wireless RF dimmers and scene controls. Wireless Miro reduces the cost...