July 2025IES Insider

Photo: Lightfair

LightFair 2025 Takes Center Stage in Las Vegas

LightFair marched to a new beat as it kicked off its 2025 edition in Las Vegas in May with an energetic drumline opening the Exhibit Hall. Lighting professionals and innovators explored global manufacturers’ offerings, artistic visuals, and interactive displays.

The educational sessions were very well received across the five-day event. Among the highlights, IES Industry Relations Consultant Mark Lien and Hartranft Lighting Studios Principal Paula Ziegenbein continued the tradition of presenting the longest-running LightFair session, “Keeping Up with Change,” which covered how new technologies such as AI and quantum computing will require the lighting industry to adapt and evolve.

Photo: Craig Causer

While the number of attendees and exhibitors fell well short of pre-COVID levels, many people described their LightFair conversations as “valuable,” “meaningful,” and “intimate.” The reception of the new blackout show floor, where 95% of the lighting was turned off to provide an environment conducive to better product discovery, received mixed reviews, with some exhibitors reporting that booth illumination was inadequate.

Following the conference, IES CEO and Executive Director Colleen Harper commented on this year’s event and the future of LightFair. “While attendance figures haven’t yet returned to pre-pandemic levels, the energy and engagement we witnessed at this year’s LightFair were remarkably encouraging. The quality of the educational sessions and the meaningful interactions among attendees and exhibitors demonstrated that our community remains deeply committed to advancing lighting technology and design excellence.”

Harper added that both the IES and the LightFair partnership recognize that the challenge ahead includes rebuilding momentum, which requires patience and adaptation. As a result, the LightFair partners are actively reviewing feedback from exhibitors and attendees to evolve LightFair’s format and offerings to better serve today’s lighting professionals.

“Looking forward, the IES remains confident in LightFair’s fundamental value as our industry’s premier gathering,” Harper said. “Together with our partners, we’re exploring new approaches to ensure LightFair not only rebounds but emerges stronger and more relevant for the future of lighting.”

Photo: Lightfair

Photo: Craig Causer

Photo: Lightfair

Member Mentions

Samantha Barwin has joined the specification sales team of Engineered Representation Inc.

Keith Gelman has been promoted to director of business development with Lighting Services.

James Highgate has joined Red Sky Lighting as national business development manager.

Ken Lager has joined the Specification Sales—Specialty Lighting team of REPCO II.

John Majca has joined GVA Lighting as regional sales manager, Central, U.S.

Bold = Individual or Sustaining Member

DALI Alliance and IES Collaborate to Advance Lighting Industry Standardization and EducationThe DALI Alliance and the IES have announced a strategic collaboration to advance the development, adoption, and harmonization of educational initiatives around global lighting standards. The DALI Alliance and the IES will coordinate on activities such as education and training programs as well as outreach to designers, engineers, and specifiers with the goal of creating greater alignment across lighting technologies and accelerate the deployment of intelligent and sustainable lighting solutions worldwide. As part of this collaboration, the organizations will explore opportunities for joint initiatives including marketing committees, publications, and knowledge-sharing efforts that benefit manufacturers, lighting professionals, and end users.“This partnership reinforces our shared commitment to open standards, cross-industry collaboration, and delivering real value to the global lighting community,” said Paul Drosihn, general manager of the DALI Alliance. “By working closely with IES, we’re better positioned to support the evolution of lighting systems that are smart, interoperable, and standardized.”“We’re excited to work more closely with the DALI Alliance to further IES’s mission of improving the lighted environment through science and education,” said Colleen Harper, IES CEO and executive director. “Together, we can better serve the needs of lighting professionals and support a more integrated, forward-thinking approach to lighting design and technology.”In MemoriamWillard Warren, Member IESWillard Lee (Bill) Warren passed away in April 2025 at the age of 96. A graduate of Cooper Union with a degree in electrical engineering, Warren was a Professional Engineer and worked on some of the most prestigious landmarks in New York and abroad. He continued to consult on lighting and energy conservation into his 90s. Warren was an IES Member for 71 years; served as a Member of the IES Education, Library, and Office Lighting Committees; and authored the “Energy Concerns” column for LD+A. “As a columnist, Bill Warren was an editor’s dream; his columns were never late, and they were so thorough and well written that very little work was required on my end,” said former LD+A Editor Mark A. Newman. “Before he started the column, he insisted that he take me to lunch, the goal being to ‘sell’ me on a column authored by him focusing on energy in the lighting industry. We went to lunch at the now closed St. Maggie’s on the first floor of 120 Wall Street, the glorious Art Deco building where the IES headquarters was located for decades. Bill was not only friendly, funny, and affable, but he was so knowledgeable and passionate about his subject matter. Honestly, I was sold on the idea of a Bill Warren column every month way before our lunch on Wall Street. Aside from his passion and love for the lighting industry, the one thing that everyone says about Bill when his name pops up is, ‘He was such a nice man!’ That’s a legacy we should all shoot for.”CoverSPI LightingGammaluxAluzEditor's Note and Editorial BoardLandscape FormsContributors and Board of DirectorsPure Edge LightingPresident's PerspectiveInsightsEventsAsk an EPHow They Did ItHistoryTNT Industries US, Inc.CareersLet's Get ElementalIES ConferenceLink By Link2025 SALCA Ripple EffectBetween Land And SeaEnhancing Safety in Industrial PlantsProject In PicturesIES InsiderShare Your VoiceProductsIES Sustaining MembersIES ToolsIES LibraryAd IndexLast LookLDA on InstagramMeteor IlluminationArchives