The Legacy of Lighting

Article Courtesy of Robin Johnson, Sales Director – Lighting Solutions

Legacy adj

: of, relating to, associated with, or carried over from an earlier time, technology, business, etc. (Merriam Webster Dictionary).

The one thing we can all count on is change! We have moved past the “back when” stage of lighting into a constant evolution of light engines with better performance and new product innovations. As an industry, most of us that knew HID technology are passing the torch on to generations that only know LED product. The one thing we have not replaced is the knowledge of how we went from HID to LED and how we move through the much more rapid-paced market changes. For example, a lot of us tie our descriptions to HID equivalents. Not only that, but we may also have used two completely different LED products to replace an HID product that we upgraded due to performance and cost. Does it really matter?

Consider this scenario: you have a light failure in the field that is under warranty, and you need to replace it. You have moved through one light engine upgrade on this fixture type and later moved to a new product that had better performance and cost but looks different. What do you want as the replacement? How do you make that decision? If it is a parking lot and everything is the old product format, you may want the old product with the current light engine so that the aesthetic is the same.  Conversely, if the light was on a distribution pole and there may be various generations of lighting along the roadway you would likely want to move to your most current product format reducing inventory items. History and circumstances matter. Legacy knowledge informs our decisions. Are we paving the way for newer employees to have the benefit of this history?

I can remember the first time someone referred to lighting as legacy; I thought it was a new brand! Now my computer is full of legacy products and legacy photometrics to document just how far we have come, and to save records so that we can address the next generation of changes, understanding where we were and what we can do better. I do believe it matters and that we are prudent to keep records as they are not easy to access any more.

Gresco’s Lighting Team has a repository of information, and we focus on developing capabilities that will allow us to serve our customers for the future. While we are eager to go after the new frontiers of lighting, I would hope what sets us apart is the understanding of what came before and the ability to align the changes with expectations.

Gresco has been recognized for the depth of resources we provide from product selection to problem solving. We have not done our job until the project is complete and correct from design to installation.  While any one member of our team may be a subject matter expert, we work as a team to grow and reinforce best practices in serving our customers.

We have team members that individually can address the integration of lighting controls and can provide expertise in solar lighting, decorative lighting, and specialized retrofits. Lighting design has long been a part of our service and we are training and have a great deal of enthusiasm for the art. You can call on the Lighting Team across the Gresco footprint and we will get you to the subject matter expert or draw on their experience to assist you.

The most humbling and the most exciting part of change is allowing the next generation to take this knowledge and exceed and excel in every aspect of serving you, our customer. I hold great confidence in our people and look forward to the future of Lighting at Gresco as the legacy continues.