The 19th HKTDC Hong Kong International Lighting Fair (Autumn Edition) was held from 27-30 October at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC), while the Outdoor and Tech Light Expo was held at the AsiaWorld-Expo from 26-29 October.
Organised by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC), the 19th Hong Kong International Lighting Fair (Autumn Edition), the second Hong Kong International Outdoor and Tech Light Expo and the 12th Eco Expo Asia concluded with close to 69,000 buyers from 151 countries and regions visiting the three events. The figure is 7 % higher than last year’s attendance. The number of buyers from several countries recorded double-digit growth, including India, Iran, Brazil, the United Arab Emirates, the Chinese mainland, Spain, Russia, Taiwan, Italy and France.
New LED Essentials Zone
The Autumn Lighting Fair was divided into various zones to showcase a wide range of innovative and personalised lighting products that allowed buyers to efficiently source targeted products. The Hall of Aurora featured more than 650 local and international brands this year, which included BJB, PHILIPS, LEDUS, MEGAMAN and VIRIBRIGHT.
In addition, the LED & Green Lighting zone gathers more than 1,100 exhibitors with a wide variety of energy-efficient products and latest green solutions. The new LED Essentials zone displayed a wide range of LED parts and accessories, such as lighting accessories and transformers. Meanwhile, the Smart Lighting & Solutions zone spotlighted stylish lighting designs, software, management systems and various smart lighting solutions.
At the Small Orders Zone, about 1,400 products were on display at the zone’s 140+ shelves. Price and minimum-order quantity (MOQ) information were readily available for instant comparison (usually available in quantities of between five and 1,000 pieces), providing greater business opportunities for suppliers and small/ medium scaled buyers, particularly retailers.
Exhibitors at their respective stalls
(L2R)One of the exhibitor talking to Mahadevan Iyer, Publisher & Editor-In-Chief, Lighting India at the fair
Eyes on the first Lighting Solutions and Systems zone
The Outdoor and Tech Light Expo showcased a variety of outdoor and industrial lighting products and systems for construction sites, factories, advertising, stadiums and studios. To cater to the needs of the development of the Bay Area, as well as Belt and Road markets, the Chinese mainland town of Henglan, the Zhongshan LED Lighting Industry Association, the Guangdong Lighting Association and the Gaoyou Lighting Association of Jiangsu had set up group pavilions, leveraging on Hong Kong’s exhibition platform to expand overseas.
The Expo has launched a new Lighting Solutions and Systems zone, featuring the latest energy-saving lighting systems and solutions to meet market demand for energy-efficient and cost-cutting technologies. Other zones included Outdoor Lighting, Professional and Industrial Lighting, and Advertising Lighting.
Like every year, this year too seminars held during the fair enabled industry stalwarts to exchange market intelligence and showcase latest technology products. Emeritus Professor Warren Julian gave an excellent and interesting presentation of what light is all about. He stressed the importance of contrast in lighting system and the three essential elements of human centric lighting. Of late the importance of IES TM30-15 and now CIE 224:2017 has gained more acceptance globally as a better and more consistent methodology for evaluating colour rendition. Fred Bass, Director, Neonlite International Limited, the brand owners of MEGAMAN, highlighted the benefits associated with this new system. He said more research is underway to establish how the new system allows better understanding of human perception and preference under artificial light.
Lighting Fixtures
Future of Outdoor Lighting
A highlight event, the ‘Future Way of Outdoor Lighting’ seminar of the second Hong Kong International Outdoor and Tech Light Expo, organised by the HKTDC, was held on 26th October 2017. The seminar attracted around 200 key industry players to participate and exchange innovative ideas on cutting-edge outdoor lighting technologies.
As the Editor-in-Chief and Managing Director of Germany’s leading lighting magazine Highlight, Markus Helle is familiar with the latest innovations and developments in outdoor lighting. During the presentation, he gave participants a comprehensive overview of German lighting technologies, focusing on outdoor lighting and the key future trends for public and private lighting.
He said, “There are 9.5 million street lights in Germany, and more and more of them have been switched to LEDs, whose higher energy efficiency, greater durability and lower exchange rates save both capital and recurrent costs. Moreover, with environmental champions encouraging stakeholders to replace current public lights by LEDs, the LED market is growing rapidly.”
From evolution to revolution in outdoor lighting – communicating to viewers
Simon McCartney, the laser show designer for ‘A Symphony of Lights’ – a popular nightly light show at Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong, delivered his presentation on the key trends in facade lighting at the seminar. He and his team have recently designed, manufactured and installed facade lighting for buildings, such as malls, casinos, hotels and residential apartments. Other than providing safety and energy-saving lights, McCartney revealed that they are also working on many projects to revitalise older buildings to make them look more modern, artistic, and at the same time adding character and ambiance to an outdoor space through creative outdoor illumination. “It is important to add unique character to the lighting of buildings, as it can make a building stand out clearly and elegantly at night from the concrete forest,” he added.
Evolution of stadium lighting – towards enchantment of audiences and broadcasting perfection
The last presentation of the seminar was given by Senior Manager (Product Management) of Zumtobel Group Asia Pacific Tung Wong, an expert in lighting and telecommunications, who has been engaged in the outdoor and stadium lighting industry for over 16 years. He shared the evolution he had witnessed over the years with regard to stadium lighting.
According to Tung Wong, nearly 95 % of the stadiums and arenas around the world are still using conventional lighting modules, which take 20-30 minutes to run and warm up for maximum system brightness. He highlighted that a new high-tech illumination system has recently been developed, which could reach its optimum effect immediately when it is switched on, even just right before kick-offs of sports matches and celebrity shows.
“I would say we are now so near to a lighting revolution of sports and stadium lighting. A new generation of lighting system has truly emerged.” Wong said, with excitement, to a captivated audience of outdoor lighting industry professionals.
