Lighting up India’s way ahead

Industry analysis on the major factors that contribute towards the growth of the lighting market

Lighting is one major sector that is expected to gain momentum as well as good business opportunities in the coming years. Present lighting systems are technologically highly-advanced. Moreover, internet of things (IOT), digitisation will bring value addition for the lighting sector. LED lights have emerged as a powerful source for lighting over the past few years. Due to their numerous advantages over conventional lighting technology, they have swiftly gained prominence in the Indian lighting market. Although Indian LED lighting market is at a promising stage, it offers innumerable opportunities for growth over the next few decades. As India represents one of the biggest lighting markets, it offers a lucrative option for LED manufacturers to set up their facilities in the region.

Government’s initiative to lower power consumptions of lightning industry
The country is expected to face power shortages at the national level, for a long time to come, and our resources for power generation is limited. Further, Sharmila Kumbhat, Director, K-Lite Industries says, “The constraints and bottle necks for adopting nuclear power has driven the government to accelerate the various plans for energy saving over and above the exploitation of new and renewable energy sources.” Lighting industry per se consumes around 17 to 18 per cent of the total energy and the initiatives by the Indian Government for energy saving measures applicable to the lighting industry are implemented by:

• Establishing a separate Non conventional and renewable energy sources department for a focused approach in energy saving measures at the national level. The transition from GLS lamps to CFL was the initial stage for energy saving. Several government initiatives supported this transition, including use of CFLs in government offices, providing consumers with CFLs through DSM schemes, free lamps to BPL houses, etc. Promotional measures for the LED lighting by way of tax incentives and lesser import duty for these light sources. Developing domestic manufacturing capability for LED chips and encouraging entrepreneurs with more than 25 per cent investment cost reimbursement through the Department of Electronics and Information Technology (Deity) under the Modified Special Incentive Package Scheme (M-SIPS). This is expected to lessen the dependence on import of LED chips and electronic components.
• Incentivising the establishment of R&D facilities, testing laboratories etc. for the lighting components.
• By establishing a separate company known as EESL, and directly procuring and distributing millions of LED lamps, the government has made a turn around to bring down the prices considerably. In fact, the prices are less than 30 per cent of what it was earlier. Now, the general public are themselves opting for LED lamps.

Lighting market in India
“Favourable government initiatives, growing environmental concerns and awareness and the declining prices of LED components due to scaled up demand are the factors to be considered for the growth rate of the lighting market in the years to come,” said Sharmila. According to TechSci Research report, the LED lighting market in India is projected to register a CAGR of over 30 per cent, during 2016-2021, on account of rising personal disposable income, growing government initiatives encouraging use of LED lights and increasing focus on smart city projects. Rising urban population of the country, which stood at 31 per cent of the total population in 2011, and rose to over 33 per cent in 2015, is expected to further drive demand for LED lighting in India during next five years.

Factors that contribute to the growth of lighting market in India
Free and cheap imports, particularly from China, are really killing the development of domestic manufacturing of lighting components. “Such imports have brought down the quality to very low levels. The market has become trader’s market. Even the locally available components for the luminaires are imported as a cheap item,” Sharmila observed.

“Government should impose restrictions so that except the LED chips from reputed manufacturers, other imports are curtailed. Unless we increase the domestic manufacturing contribution more, we cannot scale up the local production,” says Sharmila

Creating more public awareness programs to choose the energy efficient lighting and making the usage of LED lamps and fixtures in all government departments and projects mandatory.

• Establishing government testing laboratories and provide the testing facilities at competitive rates as against the existing limited facilities with very high rates coupled with the typical delays to provide the services in time.
• A uniform standard for the LED chips in line with the emerging technologies.
• Providing special assistance for the manufacturers through concessional land allocation, lesser rate of interest for the bank loans.

Latest technology
Speaking about the latest technology that is going to hit the lighting industry Rambo Zhang, Country Head, Opple Lighting says, “Opple had unveiled a new product the Diamond ceiling light IP 44. It is a highly durable and efficient lighting system that goes well with all kinds of interiors. Like all our other products, Diamond IP 44 too is high on energy saving and yet provides the best lighting experience. OPPLE has significantly expanded its product line to include a vast array of products and services—ranging from electrical appliances to large-scale commercial lighting solutions.”

The modular design LED chip board comes in a simplistic design which is as thin as 35mm to fit into the ceiling with matching multi-deco styles to go with any kind of interiors. The IP 44 technology ensures that the light is not only dust and moisture resistant but also keeps insects out of the luminaries. With an amazing lifetime of 20K hours, the Diamond IP 44 comes in two unique shapes; round and square, DiamondR and DiamondS. The product is available in two variants of 3,000 and 5,700k to fit to individual needs. The Diamond IP 44 is known best for its multipurpose use, these lights do not cause heat build-up as they come in 6W, 12W and 9W power so you can use it in the kitchen, corridor, porch or balcony.