However, in the midst of a recession, oil prices have been falling so energy efficient technology has lost its appeal as a cost-effective investment. Sheer lack of capital has caused many organizations to be reluctant to invest in energy efficient measures. Although a variety of energy efficient technologies are available, such as the Intelligent Business System (IBS), which helps organizations seamlessly integrate their physical equipment layer into their IT network and promises immediate cost reductions, organizations are unable to come up with the initial costs of such an investment.
Despite the questionable outlook of the energy efficiency market as a whole, the European lighting control equipment sector seems to have a bright future. Spurred by sustained customer investment in solutions for energy efficiency and combined with technology developments in the broader lighting equipment markets, the European lighting control equipment market will experience robust growth up to 2014. The market has grown strongly in recent years and although the outlook for the next two years is subdued with demand projected to decelerate, the underlying demand drivers are strong enough to ensure solid growth in the medium and longer term.
New analysis from Frost & Sullivan, European Lighting Control Systems Market, finds that the market earned revenues of $620.5 million in 2007 and estimates this to reach $919.2 million in 2014. The product sectors included in this research were fixture mounted, wall mounted and integrated building automation systems (BAS).
At a time when the construction market is in trouble and there is uncertainty about energy prices in the future, successful competitors will be those that build their proposition around educating customers about the true benefits of better lighting control to achieve energy efficiency. The benefits include both improved environmental performance of the building and reduced operating costs.
"The environmental issue is growing but when compared to other energy efficiency technologies, customers are not aware of how much lighting control systems can contribute to reduce carbon dioxide emissions," counsels Frost & Sullivan's Partner John Raspin. "Suppliers need to work hard on the message and value proposition as well as push for lighting control to be seen as a more integrated form of energy management and energy efficiency within a building."
The global energy demand is still very much alive. It is estimated that world energy usage will increase by 26% between the years 2005 and 2015. However, the only remaining driver of the energy efficiency market is the green movement and the legislation that stems from it. The question is whether emissions regulations and related environmental legislation will be enough to keep the energy efficiency movement going at full-steam.
Companies now face an ethical dilemma: will they be driven to go beyond the minimum requirements even though it is no longer cost effective in the short run, or will they revert back to their old ways, taking advantage of the now declining fuel prices? "It is now that we will find out which companies are serious about 'being green,'" concludes Raspin.
