Appliance Design - October 2007 - (Page 48)

ASSOCIATION REPORT: CEA Innovate — Don’t Legislate — to Save Energy Gary Shapiro President and CEO Consumer Electronics Association T oday, it seems everyone is “going green.” As attitudes toward climate change shifts from conjecture to globally accepted reality, and “energy independence” becomes a part of the everyday vernacular, business and government are responding. For corporations, commitment to the environment has become good business. For venture capitalists, green investing has created a new investment opportunity. And, wind, solar, biomass and other alternative energy sources have seen a new demand and created a fertile ground for a new class of entrepreneurs. Globally, lawmakers and governments are increasingly accepting the need to put a price on carbon emissions and taking the opportunity to decrease dependence on the oil and gas of politically unstable regions. Energy Star works because it is market-oriented, ﬂexible, and based on science and good-faith discussions between public and private sector stakeholders. In the U.S., lawmakers — particularly at the state level — have developed energy consumption mandates for a variety of consumer products, including consumer electronics. More than a dozen states are considering energy mandates for a range of products from compact audio to digital television. These laws and proposals, if approved, could hurt energy-saving efforts. Incentives work. Mandates hurt. The highly successful Energy Star program is a government run, market incentive-based approach. Since 1992, Energy Star has propelled a renaissance in energy-efficient electronics by creating voluntary, practical and effective standards for more than 30 product categories. In fact, of the 2 billion Energy Star products sold, more than half were consumer electronics. These 1.1 billion Energy Star consumer electronics products have saved 18.8 billion kilowatt hours of energy and 48 applianceDESIGN October 2007 avoided emissions totaling 3.8 million metric tons of carbon equivalent (the equivalent of the carbon offset capability of nearly 8-million mature trees). The principles that make the Energy Star program a phenomenal success will be hurt by legislative and regulatory proposals that take elements of this program and make them mandatory. Energy Star works because it is market-oriented, flexible, and based on science and good-faith discussions between public and private sector stakeholders. Mandates diminish the careful process and durable results of Energy Star. Losing marketplace incentives hurts. Applying Energy Star specifications to the top 25 percent of the product market would result in the loss of the energy savings and carbon emissions reductions that the Energy Star program achieves year after year. Electronics are part of an energy-savings solution. Home networking products save energy by providing increased control over home heating, cooling and lighting systems. Information technology and telecommunications products allow workers to telecommute and gives them remote access to information and entertainment content, both of which save fuel and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Telecommuting alone saves more than 840 million gallons of fossil fuel, according to a new CEA study. If every U.S. home viewed and paid its bills online, greenhouse-gas emissions would be curbed by 2.1 million tons a year, according to a study by Javelin Research — enough to offset the green-house gas emissions of two small American cities and eliminate four landfills worth of solid waste. Consumer electronics — which make these environmentally friendly alternatives possible — should not be carelessly miscast as bad actors and subject to ill-advised regulations. It is a good thing that the U.S. is snapping out of its environmental lethargy and channeling the original environmental movement, but we should be sure to steadily move forward, preserve progress, and recognize successful approaches already in place. Voluntary, marketoriented approaches allow the consumer electronics industry to do what it does best — innovate and improve quality of life, while contributing to the preservation and improvement of the environment. < www.applianceDESIGN.com http://www.appliancedesign.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Appliance Design - October 2007

Contents Editorial Shipments/Forecasts News Watch Applying Powder Coatings to Plastic Parts is No Longer a Pipe Dream New Technology Platform Provides the Ability for a single IC to Control Two- Motors in a Single Appliance, Simplifying Motor Control Design Advanced Motor-Control Techniques have Become More Accessible to a Wider Array of Appliances, Helping to Improve Efficiency and Reduce Noise Adding USB Host Capability to Appliances Permits In-Field Programming and Acquisition of Test Data ZigBee Modules Make it Easier to Design Wireless Connectivity into Applications New Concepts such as Rapid Tooling and Rapid Injection Molding Provide Stepping Stones Between Prototyping and Full Scale Production A Number of Factors and New Developments Affect the Decision on Whether to Build Prototypes In-House or Outsource to a Service Bureau DesignMart Advertiser’s Index Association Report: CEA

Appliance Design - October 2007

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