LIghting Africa Newsletter November - December 2009

LIGHTING AFRICA BRIEFING NOTES - ISSUE No 1 - The first issue os this new series launched by Lighting Africa covers LED basics 

Lighting Africa launches its new Briefing Notes series with the objective to provide insights, practical guidance and advice on key issues of interest to off-grid lighting professionals. Topics treated in this series will cover technical, policy and business issues that are of particular relevance to the industry. This first edition explores two topics: “LED Lighting Basics” and “Thermal management of LEDs”. • Light Emitting Diode (LED) Lighting Basics: This article reviews important photometric terms and concepts such as brightness and luminous intensity, color (chromaticity), efficacy, glare and PCB Design (printed circuit board). It addresses some common misconceptions in lighting and is intended to give retailers, distributors, and consumers a basic understanding of the information that is included on an LED datasheet or LED lighting product. • Thermal Management for LEDs; Poor thermal management can lead to early LED product failure. Fortunately, these types of failures can be avoided in the design phase with the use of simple and inexpensive thermal management techniques. This article discusses these techniques and is intended to give manufacturers, engineers and product managers some basic tools for good LED thermal system design. Note that LED manufacturer guidelines should serve as the primary guide for thermal management of their LEDs. Read more. Enjoy your reading! Lighting Africa is preparing a study that will identify key policy and regulatory constraints to the penetration and the development of low-cost off-grid lighting technologies in eight countries: Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Rwanda, Senegal and Tanzania. The scope of the research covers customs, taxes, administrative procedures and regulatory standards perceived as inadequate. The study will propose relevant solutions for each country and recommend the best way to engage with the respective governments. In order to catalog recurring constraints and orient researches, Lighting Africa will survey its members in these eight countries to identify the key bottlenecks they are experiencing. The survey will be available on the Lighting Africa website as of mid-October 2009.

Other News

Market presence survey of off-grid lighting products in three Kenyan towns - Study Findings
Lighting Africa has finalized a market presence survey in Kericho, Brooke and Talek, three towns located in Kenya’s Rift Valley Province. The survey aimed to establish the availability, price and other characteristics of off-grid electric lighting products in each town. Data analysis and field observations show that the off-grid lighting product market consists primarily of torches, with very few task or ambient lights currently available for purchase. Products are most widely available through markets and at very low costs (110- 150 Kenyan Shillings i.e. $US1.50 – US$2.00). The estimation of the market size for low-cost off-grid lighting products in Kericho is 30,000 to 40,000 units annually and in excess one million units per year for the national market. Sellers of the products have indicated that many customers are dissatisfied with LED product quality while field observations indicate that LED torches provide the only experience that most end-users have had with LED products. This suggests that market spoiling for LED-based lighting products is certainly already occurring on a significant scale. Read more.A manufacturer of non-grid lighting products established in Tanzania, D.Light, has recently appointed UltraTec Limited as its distribution agent in Uganda. UltraTec Ltd, established in 1999, specializes in renewable energy and lighting products, and represents many international manufacturers in Uganda. It will distribute D.Light lamps via their franchise network and traditional distribution channels throughout Uganda. In Tanzania, D.Light’s Nova S200 is reportedly meeting a growing success, especially in rural areas. According to a D.Light representative, the high demand owes to the product’s affordability and additional functionalities such as the ability to recharge mobile phones. Read more

Lighting Rural Tanzania Competition 2010 - Two weeks to go - Apply now!
Lighting Rural Tanzania Competition (LRTC 2010) is a grant program seeking to support private enterprises in developing and delivering a wide array of modern lighting products for rural households and businesses. The competition will build upon the base of lighting technologies that exist today, seeking market solutions to provide an array of products with the quality, applications, costs or configurations needed by the low-income market segment of the population. The energy for these lights could be from renewable energy, mechanical or other non-fossil fuel sources. The objective of LRTC 2010 is to recognize and support innovative initiatives that increase access to sustainable and affordable energy services for people in rural Tanzania, with credible potential for replication and scaling-up. The Lighting Rural Tanzania is supported by the World Bank and Lighting Africa. Read more or more details. Lighting Africa has finalized a market presence survey in Kericho, Brooke and Talek, three towns located in Kenya’s Rift Valley Province. The survey aimed to establish the availability, price and other characteristics of off-grid electric lighting products in each town. Data analysis and field observations show that the off-grid lighting product market consists primarily of torches, with very few task or ambient lights currently available for purchase. Products are most widely available through markets and at very low costs (110- 150 Kenyan Shillings i.e. $US1.50 – US$2.00). The estimation of the market size for low-cost off-grid lighting products in Kericho is 30,000 to 40,000 units annually and in excess one million units per year for the national market. Sellers of the products have indicated that many customers are dissatisfied with LED product quality while field observations indicate that LED torches provide the only experience that most end-users have had with LED products. This suggests that market spoiling for LED-based lighting products is certainly already occurring on a significant scale. Read more.As many as 50 million people could lose their jobs in 2009 amid the biggest economic crisis since the Great Depression. Extreme poverty is expected to retain its hold on more than 50 million people who otherwise might have escaped it. IFC, the largest global development institution focused on the private sector, is playing a central role in efforts to build the foundation for a durable recovery. In helping our clients succeed, we are carrying out a vital mission—to create opportunity for people to escape poverty and improve their lives. The 2009 Annual Report tells their/our story. Read more

 

Lighting Africa extends its wings to Port-au-Prince, Haiti

Lighting Africa is reaching beyond Africa to the Caribbean Islands. SAFICO, a distributor of off-grid lighting products based in Port-au-Prince, Haiti called on Lighting Africa to assist in preparing its exhibition at the recently held Fair for Energy, Environment and Technology in Port-au-Prince, Haiti - E2Tech. Lighting Africa provided SAFICO with photos of off-grid lighting products used in the distributor’s booth and brochure. At the fair, there was quite a bit of interest in SAFICO’s products, especially those provided by Barefoot Power, a Lighting Africa network member. SAFICO and Lighting Africa’s collaboration illustrates the universality of the importance of off-grid lighting products and highlights the role both institutions play in developing the off-grid lighting market in their respective areas. It also indicates LA’s increasingly central place as a catalyst of that market worldwide. More details. Following their research on solar lanterns currently available on the Sub-Saharan Africa market, 12 innovative and promising models were selected for technical examination and tested by the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (FISE) in Germany. A key finding of the research is that there are still too few solar-powered lanterns that meet the required technical criteria when tested in laboratory. This examination is the preliminary stage of a number of field tests that GTZ plans to conducts in 2009. GTZ is a member of Lighting Africa’s National Advisory Committee in Kenya; FISE and Lighting Africa are collaborating to develop a new standard testing methodology for LED-based non-grid lighting products in Africa. Read more

 

Philips donates four prototype solar floodlights to underprivileged children
Lighting Africa witnessed the donation of four pairs of Philips’ new high-powered LED solar floodlights to the Mathari Youth Sports Center in Nairobi, Kenya. The donation occurred after a football tournament during which the floodlights were tested for the first time ever in the field. The floodlights lit the tournament to the satisfaction of players and spectators and showed great potential for social and economic change in the area. Philips, a Lighting Africa member, plans to launch the product at a later date but donated these prototype models as part their build up to the 2010 Football World Cup in South Africa. Philips has offered to avail the products during the Lighting Africa consumer education campaign set to be launched in the first quarter of 2010. Encouraging sustainable initiatives is everyone’s responsibility. Lighting Africa is playing its part by promoting the Ashden Awards 2010 for Sustainable Energy. The Ashden Awards are seeking entries from inspirational and innovative local sustainable energy programs from Asia, Africa and Latin America. Entry is free, and up to six winners will receive £20,000 each in prize money for program development, with one overall Energy Champion awarded £40,000. For further information and for a downloadable application form, click here or visit www.ashdenawards.org.

 

Resources & useful links

New standards for the performance of flashlights and fire safety of LED'sts
The American National Standards Institute (AINSI) and the National Electrical Manufacturers Association published "ANSI/NEMA FL-1: Flashlight Basic Performance Standard," which "covers basic performance of hand-held/portable flashlights, spotlights and headlamps providing directional lighting." Read more. AINSI and Underwriters Laboratory have published a new electrical and fire safety standard for LEDs and LED system components: "ANSI/UL Light Emitting Diode (LED) Equipment for Use in Lighting Products UL 8750." The scope covers: "LED equipment that is an integral part of a luminaire or other lighting equipment and which operates in the visible light spectrum between 400 - 700 nm. More details. The increased penetration of LED technology in the flashlight market is significant since over half of all Kenyan households report owning a flashlight (Kamfor, 2002). While this shift from conventional incandescent technology to modern LEDs may appear to be a promising development, end users still express a number of complaints about the quality and performance of these new flashlights. The Lumina Project cultivates technologies and markets for affordable low-carbon alternatives to fuel-based lighting in the developing world. Read more

Glossary of useful lighting terms

The glossary of lighting terms available on the GE Lighting website covers terms from AC (Alternating Current) to more specific expressions like Working Distance (Typical). Read more Lighting Africa Market Development workshop. October 15, 2009, Accra, Ghana The workshop will be based on the Kenya model held on September 30, 2009. More details.

 

CREE achieves 186 lumens per watt from a high-power LED

Cree, Inc. announced that it has achieved industry-best reported R&D results of 186 lumens per watt for a white power LED. Cree’s tests confirmed that the LED produced 197 lumens of light output and achieved 186 lumens per watt efficacy at a correlated color temperature of 4577K. The tests were conducted under standard LED test conditions at a drive current of 350mA, at room temperature. Read more CIE 2010: Lighting Quality & Energy Efficiency. March 14-17, 2010, Vienna, Austria Send your abstract proposals, latest by October 15th. The final day of the conference will be dedicated to "Lighting and Renewable Energy, with a special emphasis on lighting in developing countries”. The conference highlights some of the latest developments and results on lighting issues and it aims to enhance lighting quality and reduce energy consumption worldwide. Read more.

Update your agenda

Lighting Africa in partnership with:   Lighting Africa workshop for importers of off-grid lighting lanterns in Kenya – Jan 2010 Lighting Africa is seeking to meet with importers of solar lanterns to provide them with technical insights on how to identify good quality solar lanterns during a workshop scheduled in January 2010. The workshop will also highlight the support that Lighting Africa will provide to importers and distributors of good quality off-grid lighting products.  Follow the Copenhagen conference through a dedicated IFC website IFC and S&P Launched the World’s First Carbon-Efficient Index for Emerging Markets. Read more.  Follow the Copenhagen conference through the UN website

 

Lighting Africa International Business Conference & Trade Fair 2010

Main attractions Events information

• Conference and knowledge exchange sessions

• Off-grid lighting trade fair (exhibition)

• Lighting Africa Outstanding Product Awards ceremony

• Business-to-business networking opportunities Side events

• Policy roundtables • Product quality assurance sessions

• Discussions on carbon finance • SME business training

• When: 18 – 21 May 2010 • Where: Nairobi, Kenya

• Participants: over 500 expected

• Main topic : Coming in January 2010

• Proposed agenda: coming soon Contact details

• For registration to the conference • More details 

Read previous newsletter editions

The UK Department for International Development (DFID), the Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP), the Global Environment Facility (GEF), Good Energies, Inc., Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Public-Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility (PPIAF), the Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency Partnership (REEEP) and the Asia Sustainable and Alternative Energy Program (ASTAE)