Noel S. Florence, FIES
1918-2012
Noel S. Florence passed away on December 28 at the age of 94.
For more than four decades, Noel was the leading light in Lightolier’s architectural design group, responsible for numerous lighting innovations that are still used today.
Born in Nutley, NJ but raised in England and educated in automotive engineering, Noel immigrated to the United States in 1949. While studying at Cooper Union, he met Bill Blitzer and joined the staff of Lightolier.
Among his many notable contributions are the tortiontite spring, patented in 1952. The device was originally designed to secure a glass diffuser so that could be pulled down for relamping while remaining attached to the fixture backplate. Today, the tortiontite spring is widely used to retain aperture trims in recessed downlights.
In 1969, he designed the first parabolic louvered troffer with over/under lamping, which became a signature Lightolier product for the next 25 years and the “A” fixture in prominent office and institutional buildings in New York City and around the country. As new fluorescent sources appeared in the 1980’s, Noel developed new fixture forms that exploited their small size while controlling the higher brightness.
Noel was an active member of the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America for sixty-one years, contributing several papers and was named a Fellow.
Noel was truly beloved by those who worked with and near him at Lightolier and by many lighting designers who relied on his mastery of luminaire design and photometry in their lighting design.
With wit, intellect, imagination, and integrity, Noel was a good friend, a patient teacher, and an inspiring colleague.
His light continues to burn in the people and places he touched.