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How to specify a Linear Light

What to put on an RFQ for Linear Light: the ratings, documents, and constraints that change the quote.

25 Oct 2026 · 3 min read · Tradinor Desk

Specification points for Linear LightTRADINOR · FIGUREWhat to lock for Linear LightColorDriverOptics and mountingEnvironment
Put these on the RFQ for Linear Light before you compare prices.

A buyer searching for Linear Light is usually trying to stop a bad substitute. A luminaire or lamp is specified by light output, color, the driver, and the environment around the optic. The notes below are selection criteria for a Linear Light. They are not a catalog promise. Confirm every rating on the current datasheet, drawing, or test report for the revision you will receive.

What has to be true of Linear Light

A luminaire or lamp is specified by light output, color, the driver, and the environment around the optic. For a Linear Light, start from the duty, then the interface to the rest of the machine or the room, then the document that proves the claim. A lower price that leaves one of those blank is a different product.

Linear Light is easy to confuse with Christmas Light. If the quote could be read as either, add the line that separates them: the rating, the fitment, or the standard named below. Link the drawing number to that line so receiving inspection can reject the wrong one.

Numbers that change the quote

Line What to write for Linear Light
Color Correlated color temperature and color rendering.
Driver Current or power, dimming method, and where the driver sits.
Optics and mounting Beam angle, and ceiling, wall, pole, or high bay.
Environment IP code, ambient, and whether the fitting is indoors only.
Lifetime The hour figure and the lumen maintenance it refers to, such as L70.
Lumens and candela Delivered light, not only the LED chip claim.

How to compare two offers

Lay both quotes for Linear Light on one sheet and line up color, driver, and optics and mounting. If a cell is empty, the offer is not finished. Ask for the missing line in writing. When those match, the honest difference is lead time, the test evidence, and who carries the warranty. Do not average a fully specified Linear Light with a cheaper line that omitted color.

Documents worth having before the deposit

Ask for a photometric file if the lighting layout depends on it. The file should name Linear Light and the revision, not only the supplier’s homepage. A factory quality certificate such as ISO 9001 can sit beside that file. It does not replace it.

Failures that show up after delivery

  • Using an indoor fitting outside because the photo was taken at dusk.
  • Buying watts instead of lumens.
  • Pairing a lamp with a dimmer the driver does not support.

On a Linear Light, the expensive version of the first mistake is discovering it after the goods are in the crate. Put the rejection condition in the purchase order while the supplier can still restate the offer.

A worked RFQ line

Use this shape, then replace the brackets with your duty: “Linear Light — State lumens, color temperature, driver type, beam, IP code, and ambient.” That sentence is a template, not a rating of any brand. If a supplier’s datasheet uses different units, convert them onto this sheet so the next offer can be compared.

Where words like automotive grade belong

Searches often add a constraint to Linear Light: automotive grade, or RoHS / CE. Keep those on this page. Automotive grade is a temperature, vibration, and documentation claim. Ask which AEC or customer spec is actually met, and for which part number. RoHS is a material limit. CE is a declaration that lists the rules relied on. Ask for the document that names this part number and revision. If you need a third constraint, add it as another line on the same drawing. A second URL that only swaps the adjective does not give a buyer a second fact.

Related in this section: how to specify Christmas Light.

Questions buyers actually ask

What should an RFQ for Linear Light include?

State lumens, color temperature, driver type, beam, IP code, and ambient.

Is a cheaper Linear Light the same part?

Only if color, driver, and the documents match. A missing line is a different offer.

Do waterproof, OEM, or IP words need their own page?

No. For Linear Light they are extra lines on this specification. Ask for the test or the drawing that gives the word a value.