Learners Live

Did you Know?
Menu

NEMA Celebrates Make It American™ Program’s First Anniversary with Landmark Schneider Electric Certification Milestone

William Attardi on June 16, 2026

In a first for American manufacturing, the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) today announced that Schneider Electric has earned Make It AmericanTM certification for each of its 20-plus U.S. manufacturing facilities – the first company in the program’s history to certify its entire domestic manufacturing footprint. The milestone coincides with the one-year anniversary of the Make It American program’s launch and underscores the growing momentum among American manufacturers to demonstrate and validate their commitment to domestic production. NEMA Celebrates Make It American™ Program’s First Anniversary with Landmark Schneider Electric Certification Milestone – NEMA

LCA Publishes Education Video Covering Occupancy and Vacancy Sensors

William Attardi on June 4, 2026

The Lighting Controls Academy has published a video version of EE102A: Occupancy and Vacancy Sensors, a free course available at YouTube. Occupancy and vacancy sensors are devices that detect when a space is unoccupied and accordingly automatically turn Off (or dim) the lights, thereby saving energy. Due to their relative simplicity and high energy-savings potential, these sensors are a staple in new construction and a feature of many retrofit projects. By the end of this course, you will be able to: 1) select an appropriate sensor technology based on a given application’s characteristics, 2) select appropriate features for the sensor to optimize performance in the given application, and 3) apply sensors to spaces based on their characteristics. . Lighting Controls Academy Publishes Education Video Covering Occupancy and Vacancy Sensors

NEMA Launches New Digital Storefront

William Attardi on April 3, 2026

The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) announced the launch of the NEMA Standards & Publications Store, a new NEMA-owned and operated digital storefront that serves as the authoritative source for NEMA technical standards and related publications. The launch represents a significant step forward in NEMA’s commitment to making its industry-leading standards more accessible to the product designers and engineers, manufacturers, electricians, procurement officers, and other end users who depend on them. The new store offers a more seamless experience for discovering, accessing, and purchasing NEMA’s full retail catalog – encompassing more than 800 standards, technical documents, and guidance materials – while also connecting users to other NEMA programs such as the Make It American™ program and NEMA Academy. NEMA Launches New Digital Storefront – tEDmag

NEMA Commends House on Passage of Urgent Electrical Supply Chain Legislation

William Attardi on December 12, 2025

“NEMA commends the House for passing the Electric Supply Chain Act (R. 3638) championed by Rep. Bob Latta (R-OH). This legislation represents a critical step toward securing America’s energy infrastructure and strengthening our nation’s global competitiveness. “As artificial intelligence, advanced manufacturing, and data centers drive once-in-a-generation electricity demand growth, this bill ensures electrical manufacturers have the supply chain visibility needed to support American energy reliability and affordability. Enabling grid componentmanufacturers and supply chain vendors to provide greater transparency into current and future production capacity, investment needs, and potential constraints gives the energy sector the ability to plan, grow, and strengthen supply chain resilience. STATEMENT: NEMA Commends House on Passage of Urgent Electrical Supply Chain Legislation    – NEMA

NEMA’s 2025 Guide to the Electroindustry

William Attardi on December 11, 2025

NEMA’s 2025 Guide to the Electroindustry provides an in-depth analysis of the electroindustry, underscoring its vital role in the economy, grid reliability, and powering the future. The electroindustry is a powerful force. We contribute a full 1% of U.S. GDP and directly provide over 580,000 American jobs.  NEMA’s world-class market insights offer a look at the electroindustry’s economic footprint on a state-by-state level, including detailed analyses of local impact and perspectives on the industry’s future.  State and district-level data break down the industry impact at more local levels.   Industry Impact – NEMA

Welcome to the Lighting Controls Academy

William Attardi on September 6, 2025

In keeping with its alliance with NEMA and the NEMA Academy, the Lighting Controls Association is now the Lighting Controls Academy, a NEMA coalition. The LCA remains the leader in lighting controls education. Under the “Learn” tab, you can click the “Video Courses” button for a roster of free video courses that will be dramatically expanded over the next year. Under the “NEMA Academy” tab, you can access our Education Express courses that are registered for education credit. The new platform includes an enhanced website, comprehensive learning experience, and access to a broad and growing curriculum covering lighting controls in addition to other topics and categories such as lighting. Learn About Controls

NEMA Expands Make It American™ Certification to Connected Building Systems and Controls

William Attardi on August 8, 2025

The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) has expanded its Make It American™ certification program to include a new product specification for connected building systems and equipment. These integrated hardware and software platforms, such as HVAC, building automation, and security platforms, are essential technologies for optimizing infrastructure resiliency and performance in the built environment.  NEMA’s Make It American program supports domestic manufacturing by helping companies demonstrate that their manufacturing processes, facilities, and supply chain management systems have undergone rigorous third-party expert audits to meet Build America, Buy America Act (BABA) domestic content rules – providing greater certainty and confidence to manufacturers, government agencies, and procurement officials seeking to source materials with enhanced levels of U.S.-manufactured content.  For more information about NEMA’s Make It American program and the Make It American BABA Registry of certified companies and products, visit here.  NEMA Expands Make It American™ Certification to Connected Building Systems and Controls  – NEMA

NEMA Urges Passage of Critical Mineral Legislation

William Attardi on May 2, 2025

A Senate committee unanimously approved the Critical Mineral Consistency Act, legislation aimed at boosting the development of reliable critical mineral supply chains. NEMA Senior Vice President of Public Affairs Spencer Pederson thanked the committee for quickly advancing the legislation and urged lawmakers and President Trump to turn the bill into law. “The advancement of [the bill] through Committee brings us one step closer to reaching our goals by removing dependence on unreliable foreign sources like China for the raw materials that are essential to the electroindustry and will help bolster supply chains,” Pederson said. NEMA urges passage of critical mineral legislation

NEMA Academy to Reshape Industry Education by Craig DiLouie

William Attardi on April 12, 2025

For 25 years, the Lighting Controls Association, a council of the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), has educated the building industry about lighting control technology and application, notably through its Education Express courses. The organization is proud to announce that starting May 1, 2025, the Education Express curriculum will be incorporated into a new learning management system, NEMA Academy. The new platform will feature an improved website, a comprehensive learning platform, and access to a broad and growing curriculum covering lighting controls in addition to other topics, from lighting to safety to emergency preparedness. NEMA Academy to Reshape Industry Education

 

Remembering the Solemn Purpose of Memorial Day

Memorial Day is a federal holiday in the United States observed on the last Monday in May to honor and mourn U.S. military personnel who died while serving in the armed forces. The holiday traces its roots to the years immediately following the American Civil War (1861–1865), which caused massive casualties—roughly 620,000 soldiers dead, about 2% of the U.S. population at the time. Communities across the North and South began spontaneously decorating the graves of fallen soldiers with flowers, wreaths, and flags, a practice that gave rise to the original name: Decoration Day. On May 5, 1868, Major General John A. Logan, commander-in-chief of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR)—a powerful Union veterans’ organization—issued General Order No. 11. This proclaimed May 30, 1868, as a nationwide “Decoration Day” to honor those who died in the Civil War. After World War I, the holiday expanded to honor all American service members who died in any war, not just the Civil War.  In 1968, Congress passed the Uniform Monday Holiday Act to create more three-day weekends for federal employees. This moved Memorial Day to the last Monday in May, effective in 1971, when it was also officially named “Memorial Day.” As one 1868 quote put it: “That Nation which respects and honors its dead, shall ever be respected and honored itself.”