EPREL regulations, energy labeling
What is the difference between a standard and a regulation?
The standard is voluntary. Complying with it is not an obligation, it is a benchmark for the manufacturer wishing to comply with it. On the contrary, regulation is the responsibility of the public authorities. It is the expression of a law, a regulation and its application is imposed (source AFNOR). Therefore, buying, reselling or installing a product that does not have an energy label is illegal.
What products are affected?
On this link you will find the complete list of all the products concerned by the EPREL regulations (more than twenty different product groups).
Let’s zoom together on the part that concerns us, white light (color sources are not concerned). Only the light sources are concerned and not the luminaires. We understand light source when the latter is removable (or still works after being disassembled).
Differences between old and new light source energy labels
Since September 2021, the energy labels of light sources have evolved. The energy label on the left corresponds to the old format, on the right the new one. The main visual differences include the appearance of a QR code on the new labels, the rating scale has evolved from A++ to E to a scale from A to G.
Another key point to understand are the new evaluation criteria. The latter are much more demanding than before September 2021, in particular thanks to the technological advances of the various players in the world of light. Thus, an LED bulb classified A+ is today classified F or G or even prohibited for sale. The goal ? Encourage all designers of light sources to develop more efficient, less energy-consuming solutions.
Which units of light affect the energy rating result?
The main point that influences the result is the efficiency (here the performance in lm/W, that is to say, the amount of light emitted for the amount of electricity consumed). The higher this efficiency, the better the classification of the light source. The quality of the light (CRI, color rendering index) is also a parameter taken into account. Indeed, the higher the CRI, the lower the efficiency of the LED will be, but the regulations still take into account the quality of the light (and therefore the CRI) allowing the most visually qualitative light sources to be able to make a place among the others.
Flickering and the stroboscopic effect are two other measured values which may call into question the validation of the product if these two results do not meet the thresholds expected by the EPREL regulations. Note that this problem mainly concerns light sources supplied with direct 220V.
All of these points therefore have a direct impact on obtaining the energy label for a light source.
How to measure light data?
At CisLED, we have invested in a state-of-the-art measuring device, the spectrogoniometer. Behind this barbaric name hides a high-tech tool allowing us to measure all the components of light. We publish a complete photometric report for each source we test. As designers, this totally indispensable device allows us to support you ever more qualitatively. Thus, we measure each of our developments and declare the data measured on the European EPREL database. These data are all in agreement with our technical documentation.
Eco-design in the palm of your hand
Sensitive to the environmental and energy issues we face, CisLED is constantly developing new and ever more efficient LED solutions aimed at improving their light output. Thus, we participate in reducing the energy impact of our light sources. It is by pooling our knowledge that we will reduce our consumption and energy bills.
Contact us for your current or upcoming projects!