The Threat of our Time - Global Warming
The world is warming up. Global warming refers to the increase in the average measured temperature of the earth's near-surface air and oceans since the mid-20th century, and its projected continuation. Evidence reveals that a 0.6 degree rise would kill 150,000 people every year. Glaciers, permafrost and sea ice are disappearing. Sea levels are rising, seasons changing and extreme weather becoming more extreme. As temperatures increase further, there will almost inevitably be more flooding, more droughts, more disease, more famine and causing the destruction of entire ecosystems and species.
This massive and rapid change to our climate is likely to be caused by the greenhouse effect. Recent researches show that CO2 emissions are occurring at a rate doubling the capacity that the earth can assimilate. Furthermore, CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere are now 380 ppm, which is higher than any measured records over 4,000,000 years. The delicate balance of atmospheric gases that sustains life is thickening, trapping more and more heat and irreversibly changing our world.
Change One Light Bulb at a Time
Lighting is a necessity in the daily lives of people. Old-fashioned incandescent light bulbs waste as much as 95% of the energy they use. Compared with incandescent bulbs, LEDs and CFLs can save up to 80% energy. To save the world, it’s time to switch to eco-lighting products.
Energy Labelling Scheme
Many countries and regions have adopted energy efficiency policies and introduced the mandatory or voluntary Energy Efficiency Label scheme to provide information on energy consumption and efficiency to help consumers make better purchasing decisions. The energy efficiency of the appliance is rated in terms of a set of energy efficiency classes on the label. The labels also provide other useful information to the customers for comparison with various models.
Hong Kong Mandatory Energy Efficiency Labelling Scheme
"Energy Efficiency (Labelling of Products) Ordinance" has been officially announced on 9 May 2008. According to the ordinance, compact fluorescent lamp (energy saving lamp) has to carry an energy label on its package, providing information including energy efficiency category, lumen efficacy (lm/W), reference no., etc. to consumers, so as to allow them to distinguish products with higher energy efficiency and make a smart and eco-friendly shopping choice. There will be a grace period of 18 months provided to the manufacturers of the compact fluorescent lamp.
To allow for better understanding of the requirements of the "Energy Efficiency (Labelling of Products) Ordinance" by the industry players, the Electrical and Mechanical Services has issued a "Code of Practice on Energy Labelling of Products under the Energy Efficiency (Labelling of Products) Ordinance". According to the guidelines outlined in the document, the energy efficiency of the energy saving lamps will be assessed in three aspects: 1) Average Lamp Life 2) Lumen Maintenance (Assess the stability of the brightness level of the lamp) 3) Luminous Efficacy (Assess the energy efficacy of the lamp) Products will be assigned Grade 1 to Grade 5 based on its performance, with Grade 1 the most efficient and 5 the worst.
| Grade 1 | Grade 2 | Grade 3 | Grade 4 | Grade 5 | |
| Average Lamp Life | Over 8,000 hrs | Over 6,000 hrs | 6,000 hours or below | ||
| Lumen Maintenance (2,000 hours) |
Above 80% | Above 78% | 78% or below | ||
| Rated Lamp Wattage | Luminous Efficacy (X) Note (1) (Lumen/W) |
||||
| ≤10W | X ≥ 49.5 | 49.5> X ≥ 45.0 | 45.0> X ≥ 40.5 | X < 40.5 | N/A |
| 11-20W | X ≥ 55.0 | 55.0 > X ≥ 50.0 | 50.0 > X ≥ 45.0 | X < 45.0 | N/A |
| 21-30W | X ≥ 60.5 | 60.5 > X ≥ 55.0 | 55.0 > X ≥ 49.5 | X < 49.5 | N/A |
| ≥ 31W | X ≥ 66.0 | 66.0 > X ≥ 60.0 | 60.0 > X ≥ 54.0 | X < 54.0 | N/A |
1. 50% of the tested sample has achieved the their life time
2. The lumen maintenance at 2,000 hours =
The average luminous flux within the aging of 100 hours
3. Luminous Efficacy = Luminous Flux / Wattage
Energy saving lamps have to fulfilled other test requirements outlined in the document, for further details, please refer to the "Code of Practice on Energy Labelling of Products".
MEGAMAN® Helps Tackle Climate Change
MEGAMAN® is passionately dedicated to enhancing the quality of life and conserving the environment. Driven by the initiative of replacing incandescent and halogen applications, MEGAMAN® strives to improve the efficiency of its energy-efficient lamps.
Both MEGAMAN® LED and CFL lamps receive energy efficiency recognition from organisations worldwide, reassuring users of the lamps' luminous efficacy. Most MEGAMAN® energy-efficient lamps are rated CLASS A+ on the Energy Label recognised by the EU and carry the Grade 1 Energy Label of the Hong Kong Mandatory Energy Efficiency Labelling Scheme for Compact Fluorescent Lamps. Moreover, MEGAMAN® energy-efficient lamps meet the standard outlined in the Energy Efficiency Recommended Programme as certified by the Energy Saving Trust of the United Kingdom.
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