New lighting product standard provides clarity for consumers

ST. LOUIS, Mo. Energizer announced Dec. 8 that the Flashlight Standards Committee has developed a set of flashlight features and benefits standards for consumers seeking information on such products.

Until now, there has been no consistency in how flashlight features and benefits were presented; consumers might see a flashlight that claims light output of  “3,000,000 candlepower” next to one that claims “40 lumens.” For the average consumer, these inconsistencies led to confusion and an inability to compare one product with another. The Flashlight Standards Committee published an American National Standards Institute standard, designed to help the consumer. The FL1 standard addressed six performance measurements to improve consistency and clarity for flashlight consumers.

“Consumers and the trade have been left in the dark to figure out the difference between candlepower, candela and lumens, among other inconsistent flashlight claims, which left everyone guessing about how to compare one light to another,” said Peter Nario-Redmond, technical marketing manager for Energizer and chairman of the Flashlight Standards Committee. “The goal for establishing standard measurement is to eliminate confusion and clearly communicate the features of flashlights so that consumers can make informed decisions about which product best suits their needs.”

The ANSI/NEMA FL1 – 2009 flashlight basic performance standard establishes consistent processes and definitions for reporting the following six areas of flashlight performance measurement, as well as simple icons to be printed clearly on packaging:

• Light Output – the light projected from a flashlight will be expressed in units of lumens
• Runtime – duration the light will operate continuously until projected light is dim
• Beam Distance – distance the light projects onto a surface
• Peak Beam Intensity – intensity of the projected light that does not vary with distance and expressed in units of candela 
• Water Penetration Rating – clear definitions outlined about the difference between water-resistant, waterproof and submersible
• Impact Resistance – after six drop tests, the flashlight must maintain all previous established measures