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What is an IP Rating and why have IP Ratings?

An Ingress Protection Rating, or IP Rating, grades the resistance of an enclosure against the intrusion of dust and water and the ease in which individuals can access potential hazardous parts within the enclosure. Used widely in the industry, it provides a standardized method to evaluate/test a device’s resistance to environmental conditions and the suitable environment for the device, or lighting fixture.

The numerical rating consists of two numbers, the first digit [zero (0) to six (6)] refers to the protection against solid objects and the second numeral rates the protection against water [zero (0) to nine (9)]. In both cases, zero (0) represents no protection.

In some instances, the numeral position may contain the letter X, indicating no data/testing to specify ingress protection. IP Ratings may also contain a third supplemental digit, which indicates additional protection or testing conditions. This is more commonly seen in industrial equipment and enclosures, not typically in luminaire IP Ratings.

When evaluating IP Ratings for lighting fixtures, the ratings help to evaluate the appropriate environmental conditions that the luminaire can withstand since environments can vary greatly. Think of interior spaces such as bathrooms, covered porches, or fully exposed exteriors , all these spaces have different levels of exposure to contaminants and water.

The most common IP Ratings for exterior luminaires include IP65, which indicates a fully dust-tight lighting fixture that is also protected against water jets, and IP68, also indicating a fully dust-tight product but can also be fully submerged in water, such as in a pool or pond.

IP Ratings give the user and specifier the confidence that the product will not prematurely fail because of intrusion from dust or water and help determine if a fixture is safe for use in that environment.

DMF Lighting offers several fixtures with IP Ratings that can be used in exterior applications with frequent exposure to water and harsh elements. Those fixtures include:   

• M Series Commercial Downlights – The M Series Commercial Vandal Trim features a gasketed seal and IK10 (impact-rated) lens that offers IP66 level protection when installed in an appropriate ceiling. Available in both round and square standard trims, look for the “VP” option at the end of the trim product code.

VP = Vandal Proof/IP66  

• M Series Cylinders & X Series Cylinders – These cylinders are highly configurable with up to 14+ million possible combinations. Each have options for IP65-Rated Pendant, Wall Mount, and Surface Mounted versions. When building your configuration, look for the water droplet next to the options that will fulfill an IP65 Rated option:

• H Series Wall Mount Cylinders – These cylinders are easy to order and do not require any special configuration to meet the IP65 rating.  

Numeral Definitions

For a deeper dive into IP Ratings, including the rigorous testing procedures and the differences between IP Ratings versus UL Listings, check out our Technical Bulletin.

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Representing the very finest innovative commercial products

Honoring outstanding commercial solutions that balance beauty and functionality, the Interiors + Sources (i+s) Product Innovation Awards (PIAs) are guided by the magazine mission to “design with purpose,” and the A Series Illuminated Signage certainly embodies this ethos.

A specifier’s favorite, the sleek, ADA compliant, and elegantly diffused illuminated room sign offers complete customization including the choice of orientation, text alignment and faceplate color.

Featuring a thin design with only a 1/2-inch depth, the surface-mount sign can be mounted in either Landscape or Portrait orientation and text alignment can be positioned in any of the four upper/lower corners. Elegantly illuminated through a clear, diffused lens, the standard faceplate color is black, but specifiers can choose any custom color (RAL) to compliant their project’s décor.

The sign’s modular design features an integrated driver – versus remote – allowing for straight-forward installation and simplified serviceability, saving time and money.

Judged by an esteemed and experienced panel of judges from the interior design community, the i+s PIAs celebrate unique solutions to help its readers of interior designers, architects, and product specification influencers to create beautiful, functional and high-performance commercial projects.

Check out the i+s issue featuring the A Series.

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Architectural Products magazine highlights ground-breaking products

Created to celebrate innovative products, systems, and materials that help architects achieve new levels of creativity or performance in their design, DMF is pleased to celebrate that Architectural Products magazine has honored the X Series Cylinders with a 2024 Product Innovation Award.

DMF Lighting’s small 3-inch modular cylinder system is offered in pendant, surface-mount and ADA compliant wall-mount configurations. Featuring field-changeable optics and trims, the X Series Cylinders provide an unmatched level of flexibility and customization with a choice of over a million configurations and the ability to swap onsite.

Judges Comment: “The field-swappable components are a welcome change in the industry and hopefully a game changer. I also love that this is one of the few LED fixtures with a Declare list showing Red List compliance.”

The interchangeable trims choices include Snoot, Wall Wash, Standard and unique decorative choices including Floating, Hyberbolic and Open trims. Our decorative options feature finely crafted acrylic with transparent and frosted visual elements to help to achieve and assist with your vision.

Read the article in the November/December issue of Architectural Product.