Electrical Contractor - September 2016

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and equipment, and knowledge of systems and connections are
already woven into the daily work and routine of NECA con-
tractors and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers
employees. It is a natural connection to see our contractors and
electricians adding an element of consultation and maintenance
to the installation processes they’ve already designed and built
for the Io T.”
While NECA’s role in Io T standards has been more “obser-
vational,” Walter said decisions made by standards groups will
affect how ECs go about their jobs in PoE installations.

Efforts toward open standards

One of the IEEE’s goals is an Io T architecture that promotes interoperability and “cross-domain interaction.” Though the IEEE has more than 350 proposed and some approved standards applicable to the Io T (most notably IEEE 802.3 ethernet standards), its P2413 aims to be an umbrella or a “standard for standards” to serve an open, interconnected landscape. That openness includes working with other standardization bodies.

The IEEE cites some beginning discussions with the IEEE’s committee for 802.24 (local area networks and metropolitan area networks), the International Electrotechnical Commission/IEC SG8 (smart manufacturing), oneM2M (machine-to-machine communications), and more. For its part, the National Electrical Manufacturers Association would like to see what standards it might develop to better help electrical product safety in Io T power applications, cybersecurity and communications/information architectures.

“When we look at cell phones and apps, they coalesced
around open norms, and that’s the pattern we see in wireless
power,” Walter said. “I think that’s likely in related devices to
support Io T. The more proprietary your product, the harder it
can be to grab a portion of the market.”
With its SmartCast PoE-enabled luminaires, Cree Lighting,
Durham, N.C., is one of a handful of lighting manufacturers that
has ventured into the Io T marketplace.

“PoE is really great technology, but manufacturers like
ourselves need to look at standards,” said John Casadonte,
product marketing manager, Cree. “There is such a thing as
a proprietary system, but multiple vendors may not be able to
communicate with each other. You need a gateway to under-
stand the different translations.”
Then there’s the question of standardizing wattage for PoE.
“For example, the troffer is the most common light in cor-
porate America,” Casadonte said. “Internet power must provide
at least 40 watts [W], but today, there is no standard set by the
IEEE over 30W. The IEEE has been crafting standards for PoE
with a set goal of 90W or more. We will see the standard, though
IEEE might start at 60W. Troffers could run at that wattage,
downlights, as well as any fixture requiring 60W or maybe less.”
Some LED fixtures, such as high bay, are not likely PoE can-
didates because they require much higher wattage than it could
provide. PoE is a power delivery method in which you pick and
choose based on applications and the required wattage.