GE Infrared Industrial Frosted
Incandescent lamps have long been used as a convenient source of heat. Even in the 1890s manufacturers offered special high power carbon filament lamps with tubular frosted bulbs for use in electric radiators. However it it was not until the late 1930s that filament lamps suddenly gained popularity for industrial heating, following the pioneering work of Ford in applying standard incandescent lamps to accelerate paint drying in its automobile production.

General Electric was quick to recognise this new application, and during WW2 introduced a specially designed infrared lamp whose filament was operated at reduced temperature so as to maximise the proportion of infrared energy, and to shift its radiation to more useful longer wavelengths. It was first produced in a 250W rating with compact G-30 clear bulb, with more powerful 375W and 500W versions soon following, as well as a smaller 125W rating to provide a slower ramp-up in temperature for conveyor-belt applications. These clear-bulb lamps were favoured for industrial applications due to the possibility to apply custom reflectors to deliver an optimal radiation pattern. For less demanding uses an internal reflector R-40 lamp was introduced, which gradually took over once this could also be made in the same high wattages.

This particular lamp is an experimental version obtained from GE's NELA Park laboratory, which appears not to have been marketed. Its glass bulb is lightly frosted, presumably to deliver greater uniformity of the beam pattern from an external reflector. The filament is also the horizontal grid C-11 construction rather than the usual C-7A type, again perhaps to achieve a particular heat distribution.
Manufacturer: General Electric U.S.A.
Lamp Power: 375 Watts
Lamp Voltage: 115 Volts
Lamp Current: 3.28 Amperes
Cap Type: E26s/38x51 Brass & Vitrite
Bulb Type: G-95 G-30 in eighths/inch
Bulb Finish: Light inside frost Soda-lime glass
Filament Type: C-11 Horizontal grid
Atmosphere: Nitrogen Red P getter
Luminous Flux: 2,450 lumens
Luminous Efficacy: 6.5 lm/W
Colour Temperature: CCT: 2400K
Colour Rendering: Ra 100
Chromaticity Co-ordinates: CCx: 0.487 CCy: 0.412
Lifetime: 5000 hours
Burning Position: Universal
Overall Length:
Light Centre Length:
Factory: NELA Park, Cleveland, OH U.S.A.
Date of Manufacture: Approx. 1950
Original Value: