Illumni asks the world’s top lighting manufacturers some behind-the-scenes questions about their presence at Frankfurt 2016.
Tell us about your stand concept?
The overall theme for our booth at L+B was ‘light beyond illumination’; showing how we are extending our leadership in LED and connected lighting into the Internet of Things. This not only provides our customers with quality energy efficient lighting but also enables new experiences and unlocks new value for them. Visitors to the stand experienced an immersive tunnel which delivered a ‘shower of light’ before coming out to the full stand. The stand then guided them on a journey showing how light impacts their lives from decorative and public lighting to retail, office, industry and finally home lighting.
Let’s cut to the chase – what is new for you this year? Give us a run down on your top five new and exciting products.
Enabling cities to benefit from LED lighting today with the option to migrate to connected street lighting at their own pace, we unveiled Philips DigiStreet, the first LED street light that is ‘future-proofed’ with slots for sensors and wireless connectivity.
We announced Philips CorePro LED PLC, the first LED retrofit range for compact fluorescent lamps (CFLni) commonly used in downlights. Building on the highly successful Philips MASTER LEDtube InstantFit, it uses the same click-to-fit technology for replacing CFLni lamps that work with existing Electro Magnetic (EM) and High Frequency (HF) ballasts.
In the area of smart homes, we added to a comprehensive ecosystem of bulbs, luminaires, strips and controls, by announcing Philips Hue white ambiance. This new bulb unlocks the power of white light by delivering every shade from cool daylight (6500k) to warm white (2200k), helping consumers wake up more naturally and fall asleep more peacefully.
We also launched some ground-breaking LED bulbs that reinvent the halogen spotlight, the classic filament light bulb and the dimmable LED. Philips classic LED spot range is the first glass LED spot range that truly replaces the popular halogen spotlight. It has the same look and feel as a classic halogen spot light but is 90% more energy efficient than classic halogen technology. The arrival of this breakthrough product coincides with the EU phase out of GU10 halogen spotlights in September 2016.
We announced the Philips SceneSwitch LED bulb range. It is unique in combining three light settings in one light bulb, and you can select the right light for your needs just by switching your existing wall switch on and off.
The Philips classic LED bulb range with filament has a nostalgic look and has been extended to include DimTone, meaning the more you dim, the warmer the light effect.
When will these products be available?
Philips DigiStreet – Europe from September 2016
Philips CorePro LED PLC – available now
Philips Hue white ambiance – from Spring in Europe and North America
Philips classic LED range with DimTone – available across Europe, North America and Asia from summer 2016
Philips SceneSwitch LED – available across Europe, North America and Asia from summer 2016.
Which single product are you most excited about and why?
Philips DigiStreet range of road and street lighting luminaires is really exciting for us as we designed them to not only bring energy saving LED lighting to cities (typically around 40% compared to conventional street lighting), but also provide cities the option to upgrade to sensor rich connected street lighting when they are ready, allowing them to migrate at their own pace. Each luminaire’s specification and configuration may be identified via the QR code on our newly launched Philips Service tag. The smartphone app also allows drivers to be configured using Near Field Communications (NFC) technology, which further helps to simplify and reduce the cost of commissioning and maintenance.
Can you give us a couple of recent examples of lighting designs that best demonstrate the use of your products?
At Light + Building we announced our first connected lighting indoor positioning win in the Middle East with United Arab Emirates (UAE) based retailer Aswaaq, one of the world’s most innovative supermarkets and community malls. The system uses lights that act as a positioning system which allows customers to use smartphones to access new location based services. This empowers the retailer to provide a smooth shopping experience for their customers, which may help boost sales and customer loyalty. Working with Philips on the project is Aisle411, a leader in digital store mapping. Philips Lighting is partnering with the US company to extend its indoor positioning offering to deliver a comprehensive end-to-end capability, including professional services such as digital store mapping, product search and analytics.
We announced a new Power over Ethernet connected office lighting system for the Dutch energy distribution company Alliander. This was as a result of our global strategic alliance with Cisco, where we are working together to create value in energy savings, build efficiency and employee productivity. This was made possible by bringing together Philips LED connected lighting system for offices with Cisco’s secure IT network infrastructure.
What major challenges do you feel you face as a lighting manufacturer in 2016?
We recognize the need to simplify the confusing choices that many consumers face when buying a light bulb that still exists today. We also understand the growing desire consumers have to choose the right light for different rooms throughout the home. Not all LED lights are created equal, and we must innovate to help overcome these challenges, which is why we launched LED product ranges that provide more options, more light effects for our consumers, but all in a single bulb.
Another challenge facing our business remains awareness of the value that connected lighting brings. While many people understand the energy saving dimension of LED lights, the transformative value of systems is still at an early stage.
Philips appreciates that it cannot go it alone in this new connected world. The Internet of Things is just that – a collection of many things. So success necessitates embracing inter-operability and forging new partnerships. At Light + Building 2016 we announced the following partnerships:
With Vodafone to provide wireless connectivity for Philips CityTouch luminaires and connector nodes
Partnership with US based Aisle411, a leader in digital store mapping, product search and shopper analytics
Philips Hue partners: Telecoms (KPN), Insurance (AXA) and Energy (Engie)
What does the future hold for your business?
We see the game changer for lighting as the ability to integrate connected lighting systems into other systems, apps and devices. This is important as it creates new experiences for our customers and unlocks new value for them through new services. That is what we mean when we say we are taking ‘light beyond illumination.’ We also see partnerships as the key to the future of the lighting industry as we don’t see ourselves as an Internet of Things company but ‘the lighting company’ for the Internet of Things.
http://www.lighting.philips.com.au