Philips announced that it has acquired Dynalite, a maker of lighting controls headquartered in Sydney, Australia. Dynalite has become part of the Lighting Electronics business within the Philips Lighting sector.
“The acquisition of Dynalite enables us to further strengthen our offering of integral energy management solutions to major corporations, property developers, and hotel groups,” said Rudy Provoost, chief executive of the Philips Lighting sector. “Having a prominent lighting controls business will help us to further capitalize on the growing demand for energy saving solutions. This is fueled by trends toward net zero CO2 buildings and the accelerating global switch to green energy-saving solutions, partly enforced by increasing government legislation.”
Dynalite was founded in 1989 and has a focus on energy management and building automation, architectural lighting control, home automation, and residential applications solutions. The company has offices in Australia, the U.K., China and Dubai, and around 130 employees.
Cyber spies raise concerns on U.S. electrical grid security
Cyber spies have penetrated the U.S. electrical grid and left behind software programs that could be used to disrupt the system, according to an April 8 report in the Wall Street Journal that was picked up by many general media outlets.No damage has been reported as a result of the penetration, but the article suggested that the software could be used during a time of crisis to disrupt the system.
In response, the North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) issued a statement, saying it is not aware of any reports of cyber attacks that have directly affected the reliability of the power system, but the industry is always working to stay ahead of such threats.
“Cyber security is an area of concern for the electric grid,” NERC said. “There is definitely more to be done, and we look forward to continuing our work with the electric industry and our partners in U.S. and Canadian government to improve reliability standards, ensure appropriate emergency authority is in place to address imminent and specific cyber security threats, and ultimately ensure a safe, secure, and reliable energy future for North America.”
Transmission & Distribution World points out that potential threats always exist for the electrical grid. In an article from that magazine’s e-newsletter, Etrain, Albert Carlson, POWER Engineers cyber security specialist, said, “Part of being a security professional is that you see reports about all the attacks that occur almost daily. Most people only see what happens in their companies and that happens once in a blue moon. But when they get hit, the damage can be extensive.”