Features and tRends

(Feb. 20, 2006)

FLUORESCENT BULB MARKET FUTURE SHINES BRIGHT!

  

Julie Grassley wanted to be more enviro – friendly and save money, so she replaced many of her Edison-inspired incandescent lights with compact fluorescent lamps, which are enjoying vast growth in a high-cost energy era.

Listening to all of the cons about fluorescent lighting, slow to light up, not very bright and expensive. She doesn't subscribe to those issues any more.

"They are bright and they come right on," said Grassley, 37, of Stowe. "Initially they are more expensive, but they last seven to 10 years longer."

The lighting industry has created brighter, less expensive compact fluorescent lamps (CFL’s) that seem to be shining bright in the homes of those wishing to cut costs on high energy expenses. CFL use has escalated from 2.3 percent of the bulb market in 1999 to 5.6 percent this year.

The surge in demand means a boom for CFL makers, from mega illuminator General Electric Co., Philips Lighting and Osram Sylvania to a smaller Ohio company, Technical Consumer Products Inc.

Though only a fraction of the size of its competitors, Technical Consumer Products has managed to increase its sales more than fivefold since 2000 to $115 million last year and claims 40 percent of the CFL market. This stroke of luck is in part to prime shelf exposure at Home Depot.

Technical Consumer Products president, Ellis Yan, has bet his career on educating Americans to use more CFLs. Yan believes the share can grow to 10 percent or 12 percent in three to five years. However, his biggest challenge in getting people to buy CFLs instead of regular bulbs is a century-old habit: people will buy an incandescent bulb without thinking.

Technical Consumer Products, whose CFLs are sold under the Commercial Electric and DuraBright labels, repeatedly stress the savings on its packaging: "This package saves you $118 in energy cost per bulb," "Lasts 7 years guaranteed," and "Lasts 8 times longer than standard bulbs."

CFL prices have slipped from $10 or $15 to the $5 range, even less in bulk, but that's still more than an incandescent bulb that can be had for 25 cents.

Technical Consumer Products rode the first wave of CFL buying in the 1990s, as environmentally conscious California led the way amid blackout fears. But the trend stood still with the passing of each crisis.

Yan believes this time will be different because he thinks Americans have become so saturated with talk of high energy and oil prices, that they are ready to move on to CFLs.

Lighting accounts for nearly 20 percent of electricity costs, with the average home having more than 30 light fixtures.

Yan's company was ranked by the government among the top five producers of Energy Star-rated CFLs along with GE, Philips Lighting, Osram Sylvania and Feit Electric.

Sales rise when talk of a power shortage emerges or gasoline prices spike.

"You can tie events to the upsurge in compact fluorescents," said Steven Goldmacher, a Philips spokesman. "Any issue with a brownout or blackout, sales go up."

According to a federal Energy Department-Environmental Protection Agency project to promote energy efficiency, CFLs that qualify for an Energy Star rating use a third of the energy of standard bulbs, last at least six times longer and come with a minimum two-year warranty.

In addition, the CFLs provide as much light as an incandescent bulb, while using fewer watts. CFLs will reduce pollution emissions and save $25 over the life of the bulb.

Dennis Plank, 53, a Sierra Club environmental activist who uses CFLs in his home, expects to save money but isn't convinced a CFL is bright enough.

Still, "they save energy," Plank said. "They last longer. It's better for the environment and cuts down on landfills."


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