Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, Messe Frankfurt has decided jointly with its partners ZVEI and AVEH and the Trade Fair Advisory Council to resume its normal biannual schedule. They will hold the next Light + Building event from March 13 to 18, 2022.
The world's largest trade fair for lighting and building services, Light + Building presents the latest products in the fields of lighting, electrical engineering, home and building automation. It is known as the industry hotspot for architects, planners, electrical installers, retailers and the real estate sector from all over the world. For companies like GRE Alpha, it is easily the largest global event for the LED and solid-state lighting sectors.
In an email dated the 7th of May, the Light + Building team stated: "The health of all event participants, i.e. exhibitors and visitors, has the very highest priority for us. At the same time, we must take the earliest possible steps to ensure that all concerned incur no unnecessary costs. This was not an easy decision to take and we are now focusing all our efforts on ensuring that the next Light + Building in 2022 is a complete success."
GRE Alpha's Executive Director, Richard Fong was quick to respond: "Although we were looking forward to meeting our customers and presenting our newest innovations at the Light + Building Trade Fair, we support the postponement decision 100%. The health, safety and well-being of our employees, customers and partners has always been and will always be a number one priority for GRE Alpha."
2020 marked the 10th edition and 20th anniversary of the Light + Building Trade Fair. The theme of the fair was slated to be "Connecting, Pioneering, Fascinating." Here's hoping connected lighting and building services technology comes back just as strong as ever and Light + Building re-emerges as a beacon for the industry and a platform rich in the exchange of ideas.
Count on GRE Alpha to keep you posted with any further information on Light + Building. In the meantime, we are going all out to serve our valued customers through the pandemic and beyond -- and, as always, working behind the scenes to take our LED drivers and dimmers to the next level. Watch for news about GRE's SLD Dim 1X with digital filtering and the highest resolution to date.
From the entire team at GRE Alpha, stay well and stay safe!
Hong Kong – When the difficult decision to cancel LightFair 2020 was made, GRE Alpha supported it 100%. Against a backdrop of growing health concerns, there was no question about priorities. The show is now slated to take place in New York City in May 2021 with registration opening in early 2021. While supply chains have been signficantly impacted, it does not mean that the lighting industry has come to a halt.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, GRE Alpha has taken steps to ensure the well being of our employees is not compromised while also serving clients across critical industries. According to GRE's Executive Director, Richard Fong, "While GRE Alpha is laser focused on health and safety, we are simultaneously looking forward to the future and finding new ways to continue our LED driver development and helping our customers maintain sustainability through the crisis and beyond."
The logistics may be virtual, but GRE Alpha is most definitely open for business. In the spotlight today are two wireless LED smart powering solutions that are breaking boundaries in performance, flexibility, ease of installation and interoperability. These innovations in wireless diming have been made possible by GRE Alpha's work with leading partners in the LED lighting field.
GRE Alpha's 240 watt, constant voltage BLE Dimming Module enables hassle-free lighting control without compromise in performance. Utilizing the latest in Bluetooth mesh, the module features direct, peer-to-peer communication between nodes, ensuring instantaneous response to input from switches, sensors and mobile devices without the need for hubs or a central controller. GRE Alpha's BLD dimming module is part of the Xicalto's GalaXi ecosystem and runs on their GalaXi app, allowing quick and seamless installation and commissioning of lighting systems. This module is one of a series bringing new wireless design capabilities to:
GRE's EnOcean Wireless Constant Current LED Dimming Module (ENO-DIM-CC). This is a new version of GRE's cutting-edge ENO-DIM dimming module. While the original is constant voltage, the CC is constant current which fills a critical need when constant power supplies work best, like with high powered LEDs. Both are available in three regional power supply versions: 902MHz in North America, 928MHz in Japan, and 868MHz in Europe and China. With GRE Alpha's unparalleled LED dimming module and LED driver expertise and EnOcean's trailblazing wireless technology, trillions of IoT sensors can be powered and efficiently deployed. That will allow for quicker innovation and rapid adoption of IoT in smart lighting spaces, optimizing productivity, lowering costs and boosting the customer experience. Applications include:
Despite the postponement of trade shows like LightFair2020, GRE Alpha is determined to show their leadership in modular LED product development by providing virtual service and support with the same creativity and passion as always. GRE has a supply of legacy and new products available and ready to ship, including the LED dimming modules described above. The full line of GRE products and spec sheets are available online at https://grealpha.com/products and through their U.S. distributing partner Arrow Electronics at https://www.arrow.com/en/manufacturers/gre-alpha-electronics-ltd/view-all.
About GRE Alpha
GRE Alpha® Electronics, Ltd. specializes in the design and manufacture of solid-state lighting power supplies and lighting control accessories, which are the lifeblood of indoor and outdoor LED lighting systems. Their superior performance products are the power behind LED lighting systems. GRE's modular approach allows their dimming modules and drivers to be used either with existing systems or new setups.
For more information about GRE Alpha products or services, please visit the visit the GRE contact page. Their team of experts will bend over backwards to give you the support you deserve during this extrarodinary time.
Messe Frankfurt, the organizers of the Light + Building 2020 trade fair which was scheduled to take place at Messe Frankfurt’s exhibition space in Frankfurt am Main from March 8th to March 15th, has postponed the event due to the unexpected appearance of Covid-19 in Italy. The Light + Building 2020 trade fair is now slated to be held in Frankfurt am Main in mid-to-late September, though an exact date has not been specified.
In a press release published on February 24th, 2020, Messe Frankfurt lists several logistical challenges that lead to the decision to postpone the trade fair.
“The unexpected appearance of Covid-19 in Italy since last weekend demanded a new analysis of the situation in close cooperation with the public-health authorities of the City of Frankfurt. A multi-stage health check on guests from China has been called for, the implementation of which would be extremely challenging for Messe Frankfurt. Additionally, more and more travel restrictions are being put into place thus making it difficult for both visitors and exhibitors to attend the fair.”
GRE Alpha will post an update with new dates and times for the Light + Building 2020 trade fair when Messe Frankfurt makes them available.
GRE Alpha is excited to be returning to Messe Frankfurt for Light + Building 2020 – the world’s largest trade fair for innovations in lighting and building services engineering. This is the second year that GRE will join the EnOcean Alliance Booth; celebrating a valued partnership and putting a spotlight on the extraordinary results of their self-powered wireless LED dimmer collaboration. The fair runs from Sunday, March 8th to Friday, March 13th in Frankfurt am Main, and you can find GRE Alpha among 15 star members of the EnOcean Alliance exhibiting their energy harvesting, wireless building solutions at Booth C60 in Hall 9.1.
Mirroring the show’s theme of “Connecting, Pioneering, Fascinating” are the LED dimming modules created by GRE Alpha as a result of their EnOcean partnership. Integrating GRE Alpha’s proven smart dimming technology with EnOcean’s patented energy harvesting wireless technology, their leading-edge modules support multiple frequencies and are speeding up the path to industrial lighting systems that are flexible, sustainable and energy-efficient.
GRE’s Executive Director, Richard Fong, points out that “with GRE Alpha’s advanced LED dimming module and LED driver expertise and EnOcean’s innovative wireless technology, trillions of IoT (Internet of Things) sensors can be powered and efficiently deployed. That will allow for quicker innovation and rapid adoption of IoT in smart lighting spaces, optimizing productivity, lowering costs and boosting the customer experience.”
Powered by exploiting the energy generated at the push of a button, GRE Alpha’s ENO-DIM dimming modules allow for smooth flicker-free dimming of lighting fixtures. Compatible with Bluetooth, Zigbee, BLE, and other wireless protocols, ENO-DIM is pushing wireless LED lighting control to the future IoT level while providing significant savings in time, money and energy.
While the ENO-DIM model is constant voltage, the newer ENO-DIM-CC is constant current, filling a critical need when constant power supplies work best (like working with high-powered LEDs. Both ENO-DIM and ENO-DIM-CC are available in three regional power supply versions: 902MHz in North America, 868MHz in Europe and 928MHz which is specially customized for Japan to work smoothly in any environment.
Applications for ENO-DIM include:
Light + Building 2020 is a trade show of innovation. And GRE Alpha’s EnOcean Dimming modules are only the beginning for IoT lighting control products that provide more performance flexibility and meet specialized customer needs. Visit Booth C60 in Hall 9.1 for a hands-on demonstration of GRE’s ENO-DIM dimming modules and other GRE smart powering solutions. You will be warmly welcomed by the team of LED lighting experts.
GRE Alpha® Electronics, Ltd. specializes in the design and manufacturing of solid-state lighting power supplies and lighting control accessories, which are the lifeblood of indoor and outdoor LED lighting systems. Their superior performance products are the power behind LED lighting systems. GRE’s modular approach allows their dimming modules and drivers to be used either with existing systems or new setups.
For more information on GRE Alpha products and services or to speak with a service representative and set up a one-on-one appointment with a technical expert, visit https://grealpha.com/contact/.
DALI-2 is the updated and improved version of the DALI lighting protocol, which extends and enhances the strengths of DALI as a dedicated, standardized protocol for digital lighting control. In 2019 a number of updates were made to the DALI-2 standard that created some confusion. To understand the latest changes, it is necessary to be familiar with DALI basics.
DALI Simply Explained
First drafted in the late 1990s, DALI (Digital Addressable Lighting Interface) was the language developed to allow digital control, configuration, and querying of fluorescent ballasts, replacing the simple, one-way broadcast-like operation of 0/1-10V analog control.
DALI control signals are transmitted over two low-voltage wires that connect to each DALI ballast or relay, each of which has a unique address. Control commands are sent out over the wires to tell individual devices or groups of devices to turn on and off, dim up and down, etc. The devices even have the ability to report back to the controller indicating a lamp failure or how much power they are using.
DALI is an open protocol defined by the International standard IEC 62386 and IEC 60929. Using an open protocol means anyone can develop their own DALI devices, ballasts, relays, sensors, etc. While DALI’s impact has been far-reaching, as digital lighting evolved, the need for a DALI update became apparent.
Enter DALI-2 and the DiiA
In 2017, the original DALI standard was restructured and improved, upgrading it to version 2 of the DALI standard IEC6236. DALI-2 added new features including color control and introduced standardization of control devices including the addition of input devices such as light sensors, push button switches, and occupancy sensors, which are the “brains” of a DALI system. Backward compatibility has been maintained.
In response to industry requests for an independently verified DALI-2 certification program, came a new consortium (Digital Illumination Interface Alliance or DiiA), which is now the key organization for promoting DALI on a global basis. The more detailed and rigorous testing requirements enable DiiA member companies to certify that their products meet the requirements of the DALI-2 standard, including features that ensure interoperability.
DiiA organizes regular Plugfests, which are events to allow member companies to get interoperability of their products with those from other manufacturers. DALI-2 certification is granted only after DiiA verifies that testing is complete and successful. Certified products can be identified by the DALI-2 logo and are all listed in the Product Database on the DiiA website.
Here are the 2019 milestones from the DiiA DALI-2 timeline...
GRE Alpha and DALI
GRE Alpha Electronics, Ltd., a driving force in the design and manufacture of LED power supplies and systems, has hit its own milestones with DALI. In November 2019, GRE became certified as one of the first and only DALI accredited test labs in ASIA offering full-service DALI-1 and DALI-2 testing. And, as part of their effort to deliver the benefits of DALI-certified dimming modules to lighting designers, GRE introduced two DALI-2 certified drivers which will be added to the DiiA database:
With new test specifications in progress, you can expect to see many more certified DALI-2 products in 2020. Count on GRE Alpha to keep you posted on any further changes to the DALI-2 standard. For information about GRE’s DALI testing program or easy-to-install DALI compliant dimming modules, visit www.grealpha.com/contact.