Day 1 of LEDucation 2024 was a packed one. Long lines early in the morning turned into busy booths by noon. We received word from the show that total registration at the event was 10,543, and total attendance (printed badges) was 7,337. That was as of 4 p.m.
I spoke with several attendees who expressed a bit of frustration at how packed the show floors were, and one attendee expressed a desire to return to simpler, smaller booths. But, in my eyes, these are positive problems, stemming from the show’s popularity – growing pains, of sorts. Is it time for a bigger venue? Is there a bigger venue available? These are questions LEDucation will have to answer before next year’s show.
There were some beautiful items on display, such as SATCO|NUVO®’s line of decorative fixtures.
Many companies seem to be in a race to produce the smallest products. Amerlux’s FINCH collection, a series of 1” downlights, are a beautiful example of packing power into a small but aesthetically pleasing fixture.
One key takeaway – we as an industry still have some work to do when it comes to sustainability. A few booths proudly displayed Declare Labels, but overall, there was a noticeable absence of any talk or promotion of sustainable products or practices. We hope to see more of this in the future.
Best Booth
Our award for best booth goes to Nanometer Lighting, booth 4704 in Americas Hall 2. Among a sea of booths filled with, in my opinion, too many products, Nanometer’s booth stood out for its simplicity. It was comfortably lit and paid homage to the city with its silhouette of a skyline.
I would also like to give a special shout out to Elite Lighting, whose booth (2904 and 2906), lined with acoustic panels, provided a refuge of peace and quiet amidst a chaotic show floor.
And although it didn’t win best booth, I enjoyed my stop at Isolite’s selfie station (booth 4118), which featured 42 color-changing lights that disappeared and then reappeared every two minutes.
The 24th edition of the IESNYC Student Lighting Competition
This year’s theme was “Proximal Light,” which many professors incorporated into their coursework. Students were free to take this prompt in any direction they desired – the only design constraint was that the piece must fit in a taxi (or Uber) to transport to the show.
The field in this year’s competition was one of the largest in its history – 165 participants.
Holding the competition concurrent with LEDucation, a recent change, has proven to be a great way to introduce the students to the lighting industry.
This year, the top prize was awarded to Taiwan Boulevard by Evan Wu.
Evan received a $5,000 prize and bragging rights for the next year. I was at the awards ceremony and watched the announcement – Evan was mobbed by his classmates in celebration, and he immediately called some friends and exclaimed, “I’m taking everyone out!” Congratulations, Evan.
Overall, it was a successful first day of LEDucation. Stay tuned to EdisonReport for coverage of Day 2.