The Award Ceremony of International SSL Alliance (ISA) 2024 “Global SSL Award of Industry Development Outstanding Contribution” (AOID) was held in the morning of Nov. 20, 2024, at Suzhou International Expo Center, Suzhou, China, during ISA General Assembly 2024.

The award of AOID has been incepted since 2021. A total of 19 individuals and organizations have been awarded so far.

Mr. Xiaoming JIN, Co-Secretary General of ISA, Former Director General, Department of International Cooperation, Ministry of Science and Technology, China moderated the ceremony and revealed the winners.

In the year of 2024, a total of five SSL industry leaders were awarded.

The fifth winner went to Mr. Jeremiah Mathobela, Director of Electrotechnical department of South African Bureau Standards (SABS).

Mr. Jeremiah Mathobela completed a master’s degree in electrical engineering with the University of the Witwatersrand in 2019. He worked in various sectors of the industry ranging from government departments, Municipality, National utility, state owned institutions and private companies in the span of 17 years work experience. He has participated in various workgroups and care groups where resolving industry challenges and developments of new technologies were championed. He is currently registered with ECSA as a professional technologist since the year 2013. 

He is responsible for all the Electrotechnical Business Units BU’s at the South African Bureau Standards (SABS). The BU’s include several testing laboratories like Lighting technology, Appliances, Electromagnetic compatibility, High-voltage, short-circuit, Rotating Machines and explosion prevention technologies. These are around conformity assessment in support of those industries and certification schemes.

Part of his work include a contribution to refurbishment of the lighting lab and equipping it for solid state lighting. He also represents South Africa in the BRICS SSL workgroup and presented the development status in South Africa.

Brief introduction of the outstanding achievement of Mr. Jeremiah Mathobela

South Africa lacks capability and capacity to test Solid State Lighting (SSL) systems and components. The lightning industry stakeholders and the National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications have been raising concerns and requesting that the gap be closed. This is because the verification of the performance for imported lighting systems could not be confirmed in the country. The country also intended to improve local production of the lighting systems.

Mr. Jeremiah Mathobela has managed a project to get funding for the new integrating sphere and the goniometer to test solid state systems. The first part of this project has seen commissioning of the sphere and starting the accreditation of that section of the laboratory. The capability for testing is one of it’s kind in South Africa and since commissioned it has started supporting developers of lighting systems in the country with conformity testing. The laboratory has completed training of 4 x test officers in testing of SSL and continues to absorb interns to expand testing capability in the country.

The SADC region is in discussion to determine minimum energy and luminous flux performance levels for lighting systems which will move more than 80% of lighting towards SSL technologies. The completion of the integrating sphere has given the region the capability to verify the performance of SSLs, and which is about to replace all traditional lighting systems.

Jury Comments

1. Outstanding contribution to photometry in RSA (and the region) by improving the test facilities necessary for Standards compliance testing for designers, specifiers, manufacturers and importers.

2. Jeremiah has made an excellent start in setting up a national laboratory to make measurements that are critical to maintaining lighting standards in southern Africa. This is part of a broad set of important responsibilities. From one point of view, it would be good to wait until the success of this venture is apparent or further capabilities are added to their laboratory. On the other hand, it would be good to encourage him in his work and show that the international community is grateful for his efforts.

3. His contribution to initiate the testing lab and program for SSL products in South Africa is recognized, but it seems the contribution was limited within the country.

4. For the national markets of Africa, the task of verifying the technical parameters of imported products is very important. Mr. Jeremiah Mathobela's work on the development of the laboratory for the control of lighting parameters contributes not only to improving the quality of imported products sold and protecting the interests of consumers, but also helps to develop the national production of lighting equipment in the Republic of South Africa.

Mr. Jeremiah Mathobela delivered his acceptance speech via video recording at the ISA 2024 General Assembly.

Mr. Jeremiah Mathobela said it was honored to accept “Global SSL Award for Outstanding Industry Development” 2024. On behalf of the SABS and the lighting industry, and the Electrotechnical industry, he would like to bring his appreciation for this recognition. They were committed to bringing SSL South Africa, expanding its utilization in the region and the efficiency of these lighting systems and technology in the SADC region and eventually South Africa. And this Award was more for the Continent and they would like to take this moment to say thanks, and for our support, and for the exposure that we provide to them, and for the rest of the BRICS countries and also for his own country South Africa.

We would like to congratulate Mr. Jeremiah Mathobela being awarded this honor and thank him for his outstanding contribution to the global SSL industry.

Global SSL Award for Outstanding Industry Development

● Accept excellent applications

● Judged by worldwide authoritative experts

● Worldwide circulation and promotion

● Manifest outstanding leadership of people and organizations

ISA would like to invite the interested enterprises, organizations, research institutes and business leaders in the field of SSL to make their application of this award in 2025, with the aim to demonstrate these who made contribution to promote the process of advancing this industry and application, inspire new thinking, encourage the peers, and work together to promote SSL into a new period of development.