LED LIGHTING
LIGHTEN UP
Imran Hussain at Multibrands International outlines why LEDs are one of the best options for sustainable living .
Up until recently , LED bulbs were perhaps seen as ‘ luxury ’ items , mostly because of the high prices they were retailed at . Concepts such as sustainable living or eco-friendly were considered to be alternatives and not a ‘ must have ’ by most consumers .
Improvements
Now , constant improvements in LED technology and with LEDs being used on a much larger scale ( such as for headlights in the automotive industry ), mean that costs are coming down , making them more affordable to the average consumer . Therefore , customers have started comparing the short term advantages of incandescent lightbulbs ( the low price ) to the long term advantages of LEDs ( energy saving and environmentally friendly ). In addition to that , increases in global energy prices have made LEDs even more attractive for both domestic and commercial lighting .
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LEDs come with a range of benefi ts that mean they can often be viewed as a shrewd investment . For instance :
• LED lamps turn on instantly and do not need to warm up like CFLs .
• LED lamps are not prone to fl ickering like some CFLs .
HIGH QUALITY LEDS COME WITH A THREE YEAR GUARANTEE AND CAN LAST UP TO 25 YEARS – THAT IS MORE THAN 30,000 HOURS OF USE .
• They are easy to control via remote programmable systems and mobile technology .
• They can be fi tted in just a few seconds .
• They come in dimmable and nondimmable options .
In addition to all this , LEDs last much longer than fi lament bulbs – high quality LEDs come with a three year guarantee and can last up to 25 years – that is more than 30,000 hours of use .
Savings
Manufacturers of LED products are consistently bringing improved products to the table and some of the recently launched ranges ( such as the Supacell LED ) can provide energy savings of up to 90 per cent energy compared to the classic incandescent bulbs and up to 50 per cent when compared to CFLs .
Needless to say , the energy savings will be directly refl ected in the electricity bill – when replacing all the classic lightbulbs with LEDs , the costs can drop from approximately £ 850 to £ 85 for the year .
In terms of watts savings per year , by using high quality LEDs consumers can notice a drop down from 4,000W ( when using incandescent bulbs ) to an amazing 40W .
Another advantage when using LEDs is that they produce less heat . Furthermore , as going green is becoming a natural choice nowadays , products that can last up to 25 years become a fi rst-hand option as they do not produce so much waste . Using LED lights in the entire home can reduce a carbon footprint from 4.4 tonnes to only 0.44 tonnes in just one year . In addition , LEDs do not contain any harmful elements , such as mercury , and do not generate any UV or thermal radiation – helping to further cement their position as the eco-friendly option .
All these features help make a compelling case for LEDs gaining market share against CFLs and normal fi lament bulbs . Moreover , with the prices expected to drop even further this trend is expected to contribute substantially to the growth of the sector until at least 2020 .
Manufacturers of LED products are consistently bringing improved products to the table .
Imran Hussain is the managing director at Multibrands International . He has more than 25 years of experience in the lighting industry and developed more than 12 high quality brands that are currently distributed in more than 100 countries worldwide .
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