In a word, the old technology is TOAST! This is the case with high intensity discharge (HID) luminaires, lamps and ballasts. With rapidly improving performance, which is now in many instances superior to HID, LED luminaires are being used in new projects and replacing HID luminaires as the HID luminaires need to be changed. Typical applications for HID lamps are bollard lights, wall packs, area lights, and street lights. The net effect as reported by NEMA is HID lamp indexes continue to slide. NEMA’s shipment indexes for HID lamps in Q4 2013 continued to decline.
- Sodium vapor lamps fell 5.7% to 32.3% market share
- Metal halide lamps declined 3.6% to 63.7% market share
- Mercury vapor lamps dropped 5.6% to 4.0% market share
A telling trend is metal halide lamp sales contracted for the seventh consecutive quarter. The future is bright and LED. If you are changing your HID lighting, be sure to check out the latest LED alternatives. Your investigation will be worthwhile.
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