Workshop on 'Quality assurance of lighting products and importance of laboratories'

The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) in collaboration with Electric Lamp and Component Manufacturers' Association of India (ELCOMA) organized a workshop titled, 'Quality assurance of lighting products and importance of laboratories' on the sidelines of 'Lighting India 2014', an exhibition featuring green lighting technology, held on 18 September 2014, in New Delhi.

The aim of this workshop was to bring together leaders and experts from the lighting and off-grid lighting sector to share their experiences and to find solutions collectively and establish a network that can ensure and maintain lighting product quality.

The workshop was followed by a panel discussion on 'Quality assurance of lighting products and importance of laboratories' The panel was chaired by Mr Shekhar Bajaj, CMD, Bajaj Electricals and former President of ELCOMA, Ms Neelima Jain, Programme Coordinator, EESL, and Mr Amit Kumar from TERI. The key speakers of the events were Dr S K. Sharma, Scientist E, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Government of India, Mr Masanori Doro, Executive Managing Director, Japan Lighting Manufactures Association (JLMA), Ms Wang Zhuo, Vice Secretary General, China Association of Lighting Industry (CALI), Mr Michael Ng, President, AMKO Korea, Mr Ming Li of International Solid State Lighting Alliance (ISA), Mr Shirish Garud of TERI, Mr Pradeep Kumar of TERI, and Mr Arvind Sharma of TERI.

The experts at the workshop stressed on the following:

• Develop standards and codes in the Southeast Asian region. These standards and codes can be developed by taking reference from existing International codes of the International Electro-technical Commission (IEC) and the standard codes followed by various countries.
• Establish programmes to develop a labelling scheme for different off-grid lighting components;
• Enhance the use of off-grid lighting system through financial incentives, such as a cut in the value-added tax, reduction of import duty, and various other sustainable fiscal incentives.
• Generate awareness on the availability and benefits (health and monetary) of efficient off-grid lighting system through media campaigns, voluntary programmes and pilot projects, which should be taken up by various Governments.
• Ensure credibility of the test results generated by various laboratories. These results should be recognized by the nodal government body responsible for accreditation.
• Set up an enforcement body to look into the overall operations.
• Organize training programmes for professionals working in the field of testing laboratories and enforcement departments at regular intervals.

TERI's Solar Lighting Laboratory (SLL), which is a unique laboratory in India that adheres to the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) standards to test the solar lighting systems (SLS), has shared its experience and challenges occurred while establishing the Lab. Currently TERI's Solar Lighting Lab is the first laboratory in India which has got the recognition under the Lighting Global programme of the International Finance Corporation (IFC). IEC is an international body that sets standards for all electrical and electronic related technologies throughout the world. The laboratory is also supported by the Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), and is currently adhering to all quality procedures which comply to the National Accreditation Board for Laboratories (NABL).