Domestic LED Mandatory Standards to Take Effect Next Year

　　Earlier this year, the European Union released the "Latest Energy Efficiency Regulations for LED Lighting Products," requiring that all LED lighting products exported to Europe comply with the new energy efficiency standard requirements starting September 1 of this year, and gradually raise the energy efficiency standards for LED lighting products in three phases on September 1 of this year, September 1, 2014, and September 1, 2016.

　　With the continuous expansion of LED lighting applications, products are becoming increasingly diverse, and consumers are gradually accepting this new type of light source. At the same time, LED products have also exposed many problems, and industry standards are urgently needed for regulation.

　　Insiders revealed that the mandatory national lighting safety standards for mainland China are currently being formulated and are expected to be issued next year.

　　The introduction of new standards presents both risks and opportunities for enterprises: companies whose products fail to meet the standards will inevitably be shut out and gradually eliminated by the market; while those with superior quality will continue to thrive.

　　For a long time, the LED lighting market has been accused of severely disordered competition. Due to the lack of upstream core technology, this young emerging market is deeply mired in homogeneous competition from which it cannot extricate itself. "Both large and small factories can produce, and everyone competes on price" — this is the helpless voice of a technician from a listed company.

　　"Currently, China's LED lighting market has fallen into a misconception of price wars, with all products basically centered around price. Excessive price competition makes product quality difficult to guarantee. Many European and American buyers have abandoned Chinese LED products, developing a certain fear of MADE IN CHINA." Nie Pengxiang, President of Li Ce Testing, expressed concern about the current domestic LED lighting price war, which reflects the lack of industry standards behind it.

　　In Europe and the United States, all lighting products including LEDs must comply with the international standards issued by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). These international standards divide lighting hazards into four levels, among which household lighting products must have a safety level of 0 or 1, and products with hazard levels above 2 must be labeled to remind consumers. However, in the past, the LED standards in mainland China have become "recommended standards," leading to concerns about the safety performance of some domestic LED products.