Lighting is a good resource for shedding electrical loads at times of peak demand because it can be dimmed in many work environments without significantly affecting productivity. Turning off computers and production lines has a negative impact on businesses, but dimming lights for a short period of time has relatively little effect. The LRC is investigating solutions to several hurdles associated with load management through lighting.

Cost-effective load-shedding/dimming technology does not exist
Dimming ballasts are currently too expensive to warrant their implementation for load-shedding at times of peak demand, which may occur only several days per year. A low-cost, simple technology with high benefits to consumers and electricity suppliers is needed.

Little is known about people's acceptance of light level reductions
Before investing in the development of load-shedding lighting technology, it is essential to determine what levels of reduction are both noticeable and acceptable to workers in order to minimize negative impacts.

Load-shedding from a remote location requires a communications protocol
Load-shedding lighting systems require two distinct communications signals. The first signal comes from the electricity supplier or regional transmission organization to the building's load-shed controller. This signal would send instructions to the building's system to shed load. The second signal travels from the load-shed controller to the individual ballasts. Systems for the first signal already exist and can be tuned for the purpose of load-shedding. Systems for the second signal need to be explored and developed. These should not require additional rewiring, should not cause lamps to flicker, and must not interfere with other building systems. A formal standard that ensures the ability to interchange components between different manufacturers will also be important.