International Boat Industry - December 2015

60 DECEMBER 2015 | International Boat Industry http://www.ibi-plus.com

TECHNICAL

SECTOR SPOTLIGHT | BOAT LIGHTING

Engineering Society (IES)
called LM-80. For good or bad,
this benchmark figure was
hastily adopted by luminaire
manufactures without regard
to other components and how
and where the fixture would
be used. Chevalier believes
that when making
longevity claims, LED
light manufacturers
“should take into
account the entire
fixture assembly,
not just the
LEDs. Long life
assertions need
to be credible and
backed up with
solid manufacturer
warranties”.

ENDLESS APPLICATIONS
John Kujawa, president and
founder of US marine lighting
company Lumitec, also questions
the credibility of the 50,000-hour service-
life claim. His company, which has been
developing, testing and manufacturing
lighting for marine and other extreme
environments since 2006 in Delray Beach,
Florida, remains
fully dedicated to
LED technology as
the replacement
for conventional
lighting
technologies and
also as a means of
enabling designers
to create new
aesthetic effects
with lighting which were not possible
before.
In the general rush to LED in the
marine lighting sector, Kujawa says:
“We definitely expect there to be a
bit of a shake-out among suppliers,“
observing that customers are growing
more sophisticated and less tolerant of
overstated claims, inferior technologies,
and less-than-impeccable reliability.
“There have been a lot of newcomers
to the (marine LED lighting) space and

while some will thrive, many

at this point seem to be too far

behind the technology curve to be

viable,” he says.

Kujawa foresees a period

of consolidation in the marine

lighting, with fewer but larger and

stronger companies emerging.

Having spent much of his career in

Silicon Valley, he observes that

as the segment becomes

more mature and

the products more

sophisticated, the

need for technical

knowledge and

sophisticated

equipment become a

barrier to entry. “I am

confident that many of

the newcomers to the

space are still in the

dangerous ‘startup’

period, and that

period is becoming longer

and more hazardous for

newcomers. As in the Darwinian

sense, it’s the fittest that will

survive.”

For those companies that can

stay the pace, Kujawa believes

that LED technology

will continue to offer

the best business

opportunities.

What’s more, as a

relatively new field,

the possibilities

for innovation in

marine lighting are

seemingly endless.

To some extent the

only solution for the consumer is

to see these devices for what they

are: sophisticated electronics not

unlike a chart plotter or a smart-

phone. But forward-thinking

manufacturers can help as well.

In Europe, Foresti & Suardi,

Cantalupi Lghting and Palagi

Marine Lights, are also strong

players in the marine lighting

sector.

Alessandro Palagi, Palagi

Marine Lights CEO, reflects that when

LED first appeared “many of our

competitors put them immediately on the

market. We didn’t do that, as they didn’t

provide the same light as an halogen

20watt, and light quality was not good at

all.”

This wait-and-see approach giving

time for the technology to mature has

paid off, he says, “with great growth rates

as we have now achieved an excellent

quality level of LED. It doesn’t make

sense to go back to halogen lights, even

when disregarding the energy savings

and 30,000/40,000 hours of life for LED

against a maximum 1,000/2,000 for

halogens. We are now lighting a boat with

4 Watt LED spotlights, and we use to do it

with 20 Watt halogens!”

BEST RESULTS

The longevity of LED lights, however, is

a great attraction, given that previously

with conventional technologies, “it could

be necessary to change up to 300 lamps

on a 45m yacht”, says Palagi.

But, like others in this review, he

points out that there are major

differences with LED technology

that need to be appreciated in

order to achieve the best results.

He mentions, for example, the

need for heat dissipation. “It’s

true that LEDs are famous for

not producing heat, but although

that’s true if you touch the

SJohn Kujawa

SLumitec

Maxillume h120

As a relatively

new field, the

possibilities

for innovation

in marine lighting

are seemingly

endless

SCEO

Alessandro Palagi

SDAME nominee Palagi IP65 socket