Lighting Center owner expects costs to drop

Gannett Wisconsin Media

Gannett Wisconsin Media visits with people from a variety of business disciplines for "Q&A" features. Floyd Bissonette, owner of The Lighting Center, discusses the home lighting industry. Bissonette has 23 years experience in the lighting business. He bought The Lighting Center, which has stores in Manitowoc and Ashwaubenon, in 1995.

Q. There is a great deal of emphasis now on green and sustainable products. What are some of the advances in the lighting industry? Are compact fluorescents the future or is there something better available now or on the horizon?

A. Although the government has made a well-publicized push for the use of compact fluorescents over incandescent filament-burning bulbs, don't count the incandescent bulb out just yet.

Some problems have surfaced with fluorescents. Most are not dimmable and can take up to five minutes to get to full light output, not to mention the issue of getting rid of them when they stop working.

Fluorescents are not practical for use in rooms that you are not going to stay in, with the lights on for less than 15 minutes. If the bulb isn't allowed to reach peak performance, then not all of the phosphor powder located inside the bulb will ignite. This will greatly reduce the life of the bulb over time.

There is a minute quantity of mercury in all fluorescent bulbs, and if not disposed of properly, this mercury is getting dumped into our landfills. A bulb here or there you might think is not a big deal, but considering there are over 20 million of them sold in the United States each year, that's a lot of mercury.

The federal government is making incandescent bulb manufacturers reduce the wattage consumption of many popular styles to make them more efficient. Although this will make the incandescent bulb a little more desirable than before, it still isn't the end-all solution.

The introduction of the LED (light emitting diode) light should eliminate the problems that both incandescent and fluorescents present. An LED bulb can be more than 50 times more efficient than the fluorescent, consuming just a few watts of energy per hour while maintaining the equivalent light output. Because LED lamps generate little if any heat, they can be used in many applications that hotter lamps cannot. Most importantly, LED bulbs are on the market now that can last in excess of 100,000 hours.

Super long life, little to no heat output, very little energy consumption and no mercury make the LED bulb the bulb of the future. Look for the prices to drop as demand increases and technology improves.

Q. When building a new house, what are some of the important things people often overlook or should consider?

A. Many consumers overlook the huge importance of quality and effective lighting. A qualified lighting consultant is able to determine the right size and light output for any given application. We use formulas developed by the American Home Lighting Institute to determine proper spacing and foot-candle requirements.

One of the most common questions we get asked by new home construction customers is what is the difference between buying lighting from a showroom and a home center?

There are many quality differences to consider. Better quality lighting is generally manufactured with thicker gauge metal, better quality porcelain sockets that can hold up to a 100-watt bulb, and a better finish to maintain its color for many years.

Another important thing to consider is that lighting showrooms have the ability to order parts and glass for their product lines in the event something gets broken during or after its warranty. You don't have to throw it out and buy a new fixture because you can't buy the parts or can't find a replacement bulb anywhere.

Q. How cost-effective is it to update the lighting systems in an existing house? What should homeowners be aware of?

A. To update the lighting system in an existing home can be cost-effective if you are replacing an old lighting fixture with a more energy-efficient model. Many manufacturers have introduced entire collections of energy-efficient decorative lighting that you can only use special fluorescent or LED bulbs in. This will eliminate the temptation for the consumer to simply screw in a regular incandescent bulb when they burn out.

Almost all of these fixtures are Energy Star rated and can carry a substantial rebate through the Energy Star program. The energy savings you will benefit from will most likely exceed the cost of the fixture over the life of the product, making the update a pretty sound investment.

Q. How have you adjusted your business to address the change in economic conditions?

A. The struggling economic conditions along with the struggling housing market have caused numerous changes to our industry.

It seems to take longer to get merchandise here because many manufacturers have considerably reduced the quantities they keep on hand. If they run out of merchandise, it could take two months or more before their supply is replaced.

Many manufacturers have also increased their minimum order requirements and freight allowances to help offset their ever-increasing manufacturing costs. This means it takes longer for showrooms to meet these requirements before they can place your order with the factory.

Because of the amount of glass in our industry, many showrooms will only order lighting fixtures to be shipped by common carrier truck lines. With the cost of gas today, I've seen freight charges more than double over the last couple years. This makes it even more important to hold orders until you make the factories pre-paid freight levels.

Like many industries struggling right now, all you can do is cut every possible expense and be thankful for every customer that walks through your doors.

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