5 Things to Know: September 6

On Thursday, September 6, PG Enlighten hosted its annual Showcase, held this year at Morgan Manufacturing in Chicago’s Fulton Market District.

The Showcase is known for switching up its venues, with past stops including Chicago’s old U.S. Post Office and other notable Chicago spaces. For the third straight year, Inside Lighting was there as hundreds of lighting specifiers, architects, and commercial building professionals filled the room. Food and drinks flowed freely as dozens of manufacturers exhibited their latest lighting and controls innovations.

But the night didn’t end with product demos. After plenty of conversations and hands-on explorations of new technologies, guests migrated to a second gathering area, greeted with even more food, cocktails, and live entertainment. The energy carried on as old friends reconnected and new relationships were sparked in an atmosphere equal parts professional and celebratory.

Formerly known as Pilipuf-Grist & Associates, PG Enlighten has long been one of the most storied agencies in the country, serving one of North America’s most sophisticated lighting communities. The leadership team — Jim Haworth, Marc Pilipuf,, Tom Benton, Patti Geier, and Jim Sychta — were out front alongside the broader PG staff, engaging with clients and partners well into the evening. Their presence highlighted what this event is really about: not just products, but people, and the enduring connections that keep this industry thriving.

Signify, the world’s largest lighting company, announced that Harsh Chitale, CEO of its Professional Business segment and member of the Board of Management, will leave the company at the end of 2025. The news comes just days after As Tempelman officially began as Signify’s new Chief Executive Officer on September 1 — the company’s first permanent CEO following Eric Rondolat’s 13-year tenure leading both Philips Lighting and Signify.

Chitale, while not a widely known figure in the U.S. lighting market, has overseen the Professional segment, the company’s largest business unit:

• In 2024, the segment generated approximately $4.6 billion USD, representing 64% of Signify’s total revenue, though down 8% from the prior year.
• The other segments are Consumer (21% of revenue), OEM (7%), and Conventional (7%...legacy products).

Chitale has held key roles within the company for a decade, guiding the Professional division’s evolution in connected and energy-efficient lighting systems for professional clients. Upon his departure, the Board of Management will consist of CEO As Tempelman and Chief Financial Officer Željko Kosanović, reflecting a streamlined executive team as Signify navigates ongoing financial headwinds and begins a new chapter under Tempelman’s leadership.

Anyone who has walked the streets of Manhattan knows that sidewalk scaffolding (or sheds) can be a hot-button issue, with some unsightly structures lingering for years and changing the city’s streetscape. That resonates with one of our favorite social media posts from 2021, when award-winning lighting designer Matthew Tirschwell, known for high end commercial and residential designs, shared a short video of one of his more unique design projects: a scaffolding installation transformed through thoughtful lighting.

The New York City Council is now taking action to change scaffold lighting requirements. As reported by the Mann Report, lawmakers passed a package of five bills designed to reduce the duration and visual impact of scaffolding, while also modernizing requirements. Permits for façade-repair sheds will now be capped at three months, penalties for delays will escalate, and the Department of Buildings must propose new shed designs with more color options and taller structures.

For scaffold-focused lighting people, the updates are especially notable. The legislation doubles the required illumination under sidewalk sheds, mandates LED lighting, and reinforces code standards that call for uniform levels of 1.5 footcandles (17 lux) along walkways, or 5 footcandles (55 lux) near subway entrances. Fixtures must also prevent light trespass when close to residential windows, ensuring brighter and more considerate city streets.

Turn off the lights: the Apple Valley High School Eagles have lost their stadium — at least to ospreys. A pair of federally protected birds built a massive nest on a football field light pole, forcing the Minneapolis suburb school to move football and soccer to daylight hours, the Lakeland Minnesota PBS affiliate reports. Stadium floodlights couldn’t be used without risking fire or roasting the chicks.

Athletic Director Cory Hanson said drone flights twice a week have tracked up to four young birds, who have recently begun flying. Once the nest is vacated, crews will relocate it to a nearby platform. Officials note ospreys return to nests annually and can build them up to 10 feet deep.

In a bird-on-bird rivalry no one scheduled, the Ospreys have claimed home-field advantage as the scoreboard reads Ospreys 1, Eagles 0.

The Institution of Lighting Professionals (ILP), a UK-based professional body for the lighting industry, has issued guidance warning against the unauthorized attachment of flags to lighting columns. Working with the Lighting Column Technical Forum, the ILP noted that columns are designed to carry only lanterns or luminaires. Most are not engineered to withstand the added stresses of banners or flags, which can introduce wind loads, vibrations, and premature structural failure.

PSA: Light poles are designed for lumens not logos.https://t.co/jSWRhDNjIX

— Inside Lighting (@InsLighting) September 6, 2025

The ILP emphasized that unauthorized attachments not only compromise safety but also pose risks to road users through distractions and noise in windy conditions. Members of the public attempting to climb or rest ladders against columns to install flags also risk damaging the structures and injuring themselves.

The organization stressed that only competent personnel using proper equipment should remove unauthorized attachments. Councils in the UK have processes for approved displays, and all other installations should be avoided.