By Stephanie Weaver, Marketing Manager at Nadarra Lighting
Light. This singular word has so much meaning. Light is the one element that helps us see and interpret the world around us. Without light, we live in the dark. Without light, we do not exist as we are accustomed to today. Think about all that the sun does for our planet. The sun warms our seas, stirs our atmosphere, generates our weather patterns, and gives energy to the growing green plants that provide the food and oxygen for life on Earth.
For most of human history, civilizations relied on the sun’s rising and setting to conduct their daily activities. There was no electricity, so most tasks had to be completed during daylight hours. Today, this is no longer the case. Advancements in technology have led to lights on 24/7 and less reliance on the sun’s natural clock. However, the question remains, do these technological advancements have a positive impact on one’s overall well-being? It is this question that led to Nadarra Lighting‘s focus on healthy lighting and OLED technology.
Why OLED?
Nadarra knew there was a better way to light indoor spaces. Today, incandescent lighting has almost universally been replaced with LEDs. However, incandescent lighting has benefits of its own. Incandescent technology produces pleasing, warm light with excellent color rendition. These benefits were side-stepped for LEDs’ energy-efficient nature, but is the change in light emitted worth it? Should we give this up for the cold, harsh light which LED often delivers? What about poor circadian rhythm management, or glare that causes eyestrain, headaches, and fatigue? In short, the answer is no; we should not give up healthy light for energy-efficient light, because we can have both with OLED lighting technology. As Nadarra’s President and Founder Bill McDonnell states:
“When you look at the lighting market, it is abundantly clear that the adoption of LED technology has been beneficial in terms of energy cost savings and greater illumination. In addition, because of LED’s solid state nature, it integrates into technological systems which help us manage and control our homes and workplaces. We believe that there is a need for an additional light source that addresses society’s increasing interest in health and wellbeing. More specifically healthy light. OLED technology does just that – it is a solid state lighting source that produces a wonderful output like an incandescent bulb, but is very efficient like an LED lighting source”.
OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) lighting technology is energy-efficient, organic, and provides for a healthy and pleasing light experience. It is free of glare, provides evenly diffuse light with low contrast and shadows, and contains no damaging UV light. It is thin, flexible, and lightweight, leading to the ability to create unique designs. Understanding this pushed Nadarra to design and manufacture light fixtures that utilize OLED technology, even while the technology is still in its infancy. While there is still R&D to be done to bring the price point of OLED lighting technology down, we are passionate about the need for society to have access to healthy lighting in their homes, when they travel, and popular places outside of their home like restaurants or bars. Healthy lighting should be one piece of a lifestyle built on proactive health and wellness. This passion paved the way for our focus on providing light fixtures that look and feel good.
The REX, a flagship OLED fixture by Nadarra Lighting
Proactive Health and Wellness
We believe the conversation around proactive health needs to be pushed forward. Many of our current conversations surrounding health are reactive: what to do once you are already sick or injured. But we believe that proactive health, making choices that support our health before there is an issue, is critical. And no time in recent history has health been as top of mind as during the COVID-19 pandemic. With the increased global focus on healthy choices, now is the time to start being proactive and setting ourselves up for long-term wellness.
Proactive health has grown to be so much more than what we eat and how we exercise. The conversation now includes mental health and well-being, taking “me time,” spending time outdoors, sustainability, organic foods and materials, and will continue to expand to discuss how artificial environments impact us. A key element of any indoor environment is the lighting. Without lighting, we cannot see to complete our tasks, so it is a crucial element in designing livable spaces. As people spend more time indoors, this conversation will continue to morph solely from lighting up spaces to see, to lighting up spaces that also support our health.
The Flur, part of the Poehlmann Collection x Nadarra
With any new technology, you need early adopters. We believe many of OLED lighting’s early adopters will be those who want to incorporate health and wellness into every element of their life. They will be people who want to ultimately design and live in spaces which are good for their emotional and physical well-being. They will find value in one of a kind, beautiful lighting fixtures for their home or establishments they own. Early adopters will be people who understand the need to create a lovely ambiance through the external and internal attributes of OLED lighting fixtures.
OLEDWorks Partnership
Nadarra and OLEDWorks are both headquartered in Rochester, NY. Nadarra is focused on solely designing and manufacturing OLED lighting fixtures, and OLEDWorks is a pioneer and world leader in OLED lighting technology. This provided all the synergy needed for Nadarra to join the OLEDWorks Channel Partner Program. Being a member of the Channel Partner Program means Nadarra will solely utilize best in class OLED lighting panels in our fixtures, manufactured by OLEDWorks. This program also gives us access to marketing and educational materials to arm our team with all the necessary information to fluently discuss OLED technology’s benefits. One of the key pieces of our marketing efforts is educating consumers on the value of OLED technology.
The Orpa, part of the Poehlmann Collection x Nadarra
We are excited for what’s next. OLEDWorks continues to lead the charge when it comes to R&D of OLED technology. We believe that OLED and LED technology can work synchronously, and OLED will eventually become a household name for lighting. With the continuous technological advancements OLEDWorks is making, and with companies like Nadarra working tirelessly to establish sales and distribution channels, it will not be long before society understands that OLED lighting fixtures can help create beautiful, healthy spaces.
At Nadarra Lighting, we are thrilled to be one of the first companies that exclusively designs and manufactures lighting fixtures which utilize OLED technology. More importantly, we are proud to be part of the solution of bringing healthy, beautiful lighting to all the spaces where we live, work, and play.
