AIA continuing education · for architects, designers, engineers and contractors
Lunch and Learn Sessions on Lighting
I bring the session to your office. An hour on one lighting subject, taught by people who specify and supply it in South Florida every week. Twenty-three registered courses, each 1 LU and HSW.
Hold the Spec specifies lighting across South Florida, from 163 SESCO manufacturer lines. A lunch and learn is an hour of that experience, brought to your office, on whichever subject is giving your team trouble.
My own sessions are not a product pitch. Because I represent 163 lines rather than one, I have no reason to steer a room toward a particular manufacturer, and the fixtures come up only where a real example makes the point clearer. Where a session is a manufacturer’s registered AIA course, that is a different thing and I will tell you whose course it is before you book it.
Subjects I can cover
- Florida energy code and lighting power density. What actually triggers compliance on a retrofit, how the allowances are calculated, and where the 9th Edition, still in development, will change the arithmetic.
- HVHZ and Notice of Acceptance for exterior lighting. What Miami-Dade and Broward require, why a fixture without an NOA will not pass inspection, and how to check before it is specified.
- Coastal corrosion and material selection. Why fixtures rated for outdoor use still fail within sight of the water, and which finishes and substrates survive it.
- LED dimming compatibility. Why a driver and a dimmer that both look correct on paper still flicker on site, and how to avoid finding out at final inspection.
- Lighting controls. Occupancy sensing, daylight harvesting and partial-off control, and what the code now requires rather than merely encourages.
- LEED lighting credits. Where the points actually sit under v5, what changed from v4, and which of them a lighting package can realistically reach.
Who they are for
The sessions are pitched at people who make specification decisions and live with the consequences.
- Architects and interior designers. Working through fixture selection, finishes and how a scheme survives the value-engineering stage.
- Electrical engineers and lighting designers. Code compliance, controls, dimming and the calculations behind a compliant schedule.
- General and electrical contractors. Substitutions, lead times, what passes inspection in this county, and what to check before it is installed.
- Property managers, condo boards and developers. Retrofits, what triggers a code obligation, and where the money goes on a large fixture count.
How it works
These are usually run over lunch at your office, anywhere in South Florida. I plan for about an hour including questions, and will fit whatever time you actually have.
If your team would rather see fixtures in person than slides, I can bring cut samples and lit mock-ups to you, or arrange a factory visit. That works well for anything involving finishes, glare or color rendering, where a photograph is a poor substitute for standing under the light.
Common questions
Do these sessions carry AIA credit?
On the courses that carry it, yes. Those are AIA/CES courses registered by the manufacturer, and the manufacturer is the registered provider that reports the credit. I arrange them and present them at your office. My own subject sessions, where I am not presenting a manufacturer course, do not carry credit. Say when you enquire that your team needs the LU and I will tell you which courses are available.
How long does a session take?
I plan for about an hour including questions, and shape it to the time you have. If your team can only spare thirty minutes I will cover less ground rather than talk faster.
Is this a presentation for one manufacturer?
No. I represent 95 manufacturer lines, so I have no interest in steering the room toward one of them. Where a specific product comes up it is because it illustrates the point, not because it is this month’s promotion.
Where do the sessions take place?
At your office, anywhere in South Florida.
Can you cover a subject that is not on the list?
Yes. The list above is what I am asked for most often. If your team is stuck on something specific, tell me what it is and I will build the session around it.
Related: Florida lighting codes and standards · HVHZ and NOA guide · Coastal lighting guide · LED dimming compatibility · Lighting controls · Project services · The Controls Brief · Tour a lighting factory in Miami
Request a session for your firm
Tell me a little about your office and I will come to you. Sessions run about an hour over lunch, I bring the food and the samples, and there is no cost and no obligation to specify anything.