We had such a great response to our webcast on lighting for public spaces last August that we decided to bring speaker Bob Parks back for a second installment on Feb. 22. If you missed that webcast, it will be available on demand for only a little longer, but you can read about some of the municipal lighting tips that Parks touted in that webcast on a previous blog.
Initially, Parks outlined many of the misconceptions about replacing traditional outdoor lighting with more advanced solid-state lighting (SSL) technology, and explained that some of the hesitation or objections from city officials and planners hinges upon a lack of communication about LED products’ capabilities and setting appropriate expectations that do not revolve solely on a price per fixture. He closed the prior webcast with some brief statements on how lighting decisions impact the community, but that idea certainly deserves expansion.
(Photo credit: Smart Outdoor Lighting Alliance; volt.org.)
In “Designing public lighting for the client,” Parks will focus on the specification and design decisions involved with developing community-friendly lighting. He’ll use his experience as a public lighting consultant and as founder of the Smart Outdoor Lighting Alliance (SOLA) to explain why the process for outdoor lighting projects needs to involve experienced lighting designers and more open communication between the designers, installers, city officials, and especially the community.
It makes sense to me. In fact, I wrote about public involvement on this very blog prior to last summer’s outdoor lighting webcast. In that prior blog, as a constituent in a small town, I noted that citizens are usually pretty vocal about something they don’t like and why they don’t like it…and it doesn’t always mean their complaint is tied to why taxes were raised. I’m looking forward to hearing how Parks addresses the lighting design equation from each variable and best practices on design and education of all stakeholders.
Register for the Feb. 22 webcast and you’ll have the opportunity to ask Bob Parks your burning questions about community-friendly lighting design.
Looking for other solid outdoor SSL resources? I recommend:
10 challenges facing exterior lighting engineers in 2018
Designing streetlighting for the real client
Community Friendly Lighting Program
And don’t forget the experts available at the upcoming Strategies in Light conference, co-located with The LED Show and Lightspace California. On Thursday, Feb. 15th in Track 1, “Thriving in a disrupted market,” lighting consultant Jim Benya, American Medical Association (AMA) representative Dr. Mario Motta, and Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) director of standards and research Brian Liebel will debate SSL standards and related safety concerns regarding outdoor lighting. View the event schedule here and register at strategiesinlight.com.
