Directives and standards

The Ecodesign Directive, 2009/125/EC (ErP Directive)

The Ecodesign Directive pertains primarily to electric and electronic appliances, and it is implemented through the WEEE and RoHS directives, which have already entered into force. It applies to all energy-using products, with the exception of transport equipment used to transport people or goods.

The goal with this directive is to encourage manufacturers to design products that take less energy to manufacture and use throughout their service life. In Finland, the Ecodesign Act entered into force on 1 January 2009. Under this act, manufacturers must take energy consumption and other environmental impacts into account when designing and manufacturing goods. Products that do not meet these requirements are not granted CE marking and may not be placed on the EU market.

The Low Voltage Directive, 2006/95/EU (LVD)

The Low Voltage Directive protects people and property from harm caused by electrical equipment. The directive covers such risks as electromagnetic fields, fire, and electric shock. In Finland, the Finnish Safety and Chemicals Agency (Tukes) is the supervisory authority dealing with matters covered by this directive.

The Electromagnetic Compatibility Directive, 2004/108/EC (EMC Directive)

The Electromagnetic Compatibility Directive ensures that radio and telecommunications equipment and other electrical and electronic equipment does not generate, and is not affected by, electromagnetic interference. It limits electromagnetic emissions from equipment and also governs the immunity of such equipment to interference. Tukes is the supervisory authority handling matters covered by this directive.

The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive, 2002/96/EC (WEEE Directive)

The primary purpose of the WEEE Directive is the prevention and management of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). It encourages manufacturers to design and manufacture electrical and electronic equipment in a manner that minimises waste generation and promotes reuse and recycling of the products. Manufacturers and importers must pay the cost of recycling and ensure that the collection and recycling of the products are carried out in an appropriate manner. In Finland, the Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment of Pirkanmaa is the supervisory authority handling matters related to this directive.

Directive 2002/95/EC on the Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment (RoHS Directive)

The RoHS Directive restricts the use of mercury, cadmium, lead, hexavalent chromium, and two flame-retardants (PBB and PBDE) in electrical and electronic equipment placed on the market after 1 July 2006. This directive applies to product classes 1–7 and 10 pursuant to the WEEE Directive. In Finland, Tukes is the supervisory authority handling matters related to this directive.

The standard EN 12464-1

The European standard EN 12464-1 defines the lighting requirements for people in indoor work spaces, which must meet the needs for visual comfort and performance of people with normal sight. It specifies the requirements for lighting solutions for most indoor work spaces and their associated areas in terms of the quantity and quality of illumination. In addition, it offers recommendations for good lighting practice. The standard covers all the most common visually oriented tasks, such as working on a computer.

The standard specifies the minimum required illuminance levels for the task area and its surroundings (see Table 1). The minimum illuminance allowed is 50 lx for walls and 30 lx for ceilings. In some indoor spaces, such as corridors and stairways, the walls and ceiling must be better lit. In such spaces, the following illuminance values are recommended for the most important surfaces: Em > 75 lx for walls and Em > 50 lx. Illuminance in the surrounding areas must be no less than a third of the illuminance in the immediate vicinity of the task area. This improves the luminance ratio in the space, increasing visual comfort and performance. The illuminance uniformity value must be no less than 0.4 in the immediate vicinity and no less than 0.1 in the background. Examples of lighting requirements for spaces, areas, tasks, and activities are presented in Table 2.

TABLE 1: The luminance ratio for a task area and its immediate vicinity

TABLE 2: Examples of lighting requirements for spaces, areas, tasks, and activities

The standard EN 12464-2

The European standard EN 12464-2 specifies the lighting requirements for people in outdoor work spaces, to meet the needs for visual comfort and performance of people with normal sight. It covers all the common visual tasks.

The standard EN 12193

The standard EN 12193 pertains to lighting for indoor and outdoor fitness facilities and sports events. It specifies the minimum requirements for properties such as illuminance values, glare ratings, colour characteristics, and control systems.

Pre-standard IEC/PAS 62717

The ICE/PAS 61717 publicly available specification (PAS) sets forth the general performance requirements for LED modules. Because of the nature of LED technology, a failure may occur in individual LED luminaires in the course of the product’s service life. In most products, a failure in a single LED module does not affect the product’s lighting-related technical properties. International standards specify tolerances of +/- 10% for luminous flux and connected load. For colour temperature, the tolerance limits are +/- 150 Kelvin in relation to the specified value. Ensto Lighting products use tested components from quality producers of LEDs and power sources.

The standard EN 15193

The European standard EN 15193 specifies the calculation methods for evaluation of energy consumption in indoor lighting inside a building and provides a numeric indicator (LENI) for lighting energy requirements used for certification purposes. It can be applied to both existing buildings and new or renovated buildings. It also offers reference schemes for setting energy-consumption targets for lighting.

CIE 97, ‘Maintenance of Indoor Electric Lighting Systems’

The maintenance factor, FM, is the result of several parameters, such as the dirtiness of the environment, the maintenance interval, decline in the luminaire’s output, and the lighting fixture’s air-tightness.

CE marking

CE marking is the manufacturer's declaration that the product meets the requirements of the applicable EC directives and that it has undergone any necessary investigations. For lighting systems to be sold within the European Union or European Economic Area, CE marking is mandatory.

The component of the luminaire’s maintenance factor that takes into account dust accumulation on the luminaire.

For LEDs, the definition of service life differs from that used with conventional lighting types. The definition commonly used with LEDs allows a 30% lumen depreciation (L70), which is higher than the corresponding figure for conventional luminaires.

Some luminaires also come with a system providing compensation for lumen depreciation. With this system, the luminaire’s connected load increases as its service life progresses.

There are currently no industry standards for calculating a maintenance factor for an LED light source. This results in differences in calculations.

Service-life definitions for LED luminaires

Lx (as in ‘L70’) refers to the LED module’s luminous flux being x per cent after the specified period.

By (as in ‘L70B10’) indicates that y per cent of products do not meet the Lx criterion stated after the specified period.

Cz means no more than z per cent of products having undergone total failure after the specified period.

Fw is a combination of the By and Cz indications. For instance, a specification of 50,000 h (L70F10) means that after 50,000 hours, 10% of products have failed or their lumen output is less than 70% of the original luminous flux.