LEDs & SSL Design

LEDs Magazine 40 Under 40 Profile: Clifton Manahan

July 24, 2020

Clifton Manahan joined HLB Lighting Design, Inc. already equipped with an artistic sensibility that, combined with his approach to complex lighting designs, results in creative solutions that streamline processes.

Carrie Meadows,

Maury Wright

CLIFTON MANAHAN. (Photo credit: Image courtesy of HLB Lighting Design, Inc.)

Clifton Manahan joined HLB Lighting Design, Inc. in 2010 with an already impressive resume, having received the School of Engineering Merit Scholarship at the University of Colorado at Boulder and placed first in the City of Fort Collins “Art in Public Places” competition.

Since then, his work has become a critical underpinning to some of HLB’s most complex design challenges. As senior associate, he has developed methodologies to transform and streamline the 3-D lighting modeling process to enable multiple quick test-fit design solutions, allowing for collaborative iterations in live modeling sessions with design teams and clients.

He also serves on internal technical committees that focus on design procedures, quality control, and specification integrity. As a result of these efforts, new techniques have been developed including systems to guide clients through lighting budget priorities, reinforcing design hierarchies and enabling alignment of project goals and resources early on.

But even these internal successes are secondary to his outstanding design work. Manahan has been the lead designer on several award-winning projects, with recognitions including four national Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) Awards of Merit, two local IES section Awards of Merit, and two Awards of Excellence. His extensive portfolio encompasses every market sector and touches all corners of the world, ranging from the Xiqu Centre opera house in China to the United States Embassy in the Netherlands to multiple efforts at LAX.

Manahan maintains a high level of involvement in the lighting community, is an Associate member in the IES and International Association of Lighting Designers (IALD), and is in the process of obtaining his Certified Lighting Designer (CLD) certification.

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About the Author

Carrie Meadows | Editor-in-Chief, LEDs Magazine

Carrie Meadows has more than 20 years of experience in the publishing and media industry. She worked with the PennWell Technology Group for more than 17 years, having been part of the editorial staff at Solid State Technology, Microlithography World, Lightwave, Portable Design, CleanRooms, Laser Focus World, and Vision Systems Design before the group was acquired by current parent company Endeavor Business Media.

Meadows has received finalist recognition for LEDs Magazine in the FOLIO Eddie Awards, and has volunteered as a judge on several B2B editorial awards committees. She received a BA in English literature from Saint Anselm College, and earned thesis honors in the college's Geisel Library. Without the patience to sit down and write a book of her own, she has gladly undertaken the role of editor for the writings of friends and family.

Meadows enjoys living in the beautiful but sometimes unpredictable four seasons of the New England region, volunteering with an animal shelter, reading (of course), and walking with friends and extended "dog family" in her spare time.

About the Author

Maury Wright | Editor in Chief

Maury Wright is an electronics engineer turned technology journalist, who has focused specifically on the LED & Lighting industry for the past decade. Wright first wrote for LEDs Magazine as a contractor in 2010, and took over as Editor-in-Chief in 2012. He has broad experience in technology areas ranging from microprocessors to digital media to wireless networks that he gained over 30 years in the trade press. Wright has experience running global editorial operations, such as during his tenure as worldwide editorial director of EDN Magazine, and has been instrumental in launching publication websites going back to the earliest days of the Internet. Wright has won numerous industry awards, including multiple ASBPE national awards for B2B journalism excellence, and has received finalist recognition for LEDs Magazine in the FOLIO Eddie Awards. He received a BS in electrical engineering from Auburn University.