NXP Semiconductors, the independent semiconductor company founded by Philips, has launched the world’s first integrated dimmable mains LED driver - the SSL2101, and has demonstrated it on the NXP booth at the Strategies in Light Conference(SIL) form February 18 – 20 at Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, California, USA.

Ruud Lighting has laid off about 50 of its nearly 600 employees. Company President and Chief Executive Officer Alan Ruud says the collapse of the construction industry forced the actions. He says the company is restructuring and the layoffs are considered permanent. The privately owned Ruud Lighting, 9201 Highway 20, makes lighting fixtures for commercial, industrial, institutional and residential settings. The dearth of construction work during the recession has sapped sales, Ruud says.

The Rs 220-crore Usha Shriram Ltd, plans to enter the LED lighting products segment. It proposes to import such lighting products from Europe and market them under its own brandname. Usha Shriram's mission is to position its LED portfolio in the consumer segment and launch them at more compelling rates than the compact fluorescent lamp (CFL) range. LED lighting products are more energy efficient than CFL items.

It’s reported that French Center for Building Science and Technology (CSTB), major French academic lighting laboratories and the French branch of Philips Lighting has formed a R&D program to research and promote the optimal use of LEDs in buildings.  

Recently, ITC Inc., a leading accessory manufacturer to the RV industry, announces that it is teaming up with Dynamax Corporation, a leading OEM of luxury motor coaches, to replace traditional halogen overhead lighting with high output LED technology. ITC’s LED lighting requires much lower amp draw, saving both energy and money. LED lights also contain no mercury.

Arrow Electronics, Inc. of Melville, New York USA, and Texas Instruments (TI) announce a new series of Analog eLab videocasts on solid-state lighting (SSL). Partnering with Cree, Inc., Arrow and TI will present six new videocasts that share expertise on developing driver solutions for several LED applications.

Carmanah, a maker of solar powered LED lighting based in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada announces that it has sold its Road Signs business to Temple Inc. of Decatur, Alabama. Two companies have signed the definitive agreement.

Lynk Labs Inc., the leading supplier of AC LED device, light engine and power supply technology, has been awarded its first U.S. patent for an AC LED drive method and aparatus. The newly awarded patent, U.S. Patent, No. 7,489,086 is entitled “AC light emitting diode and AC LED drive methods and apparatus."

Citizen Electronics of Japan appoints Supreme Components International (SCI) of Singapore as their official distributor for High Brightness LED for ASIAN market. Citizen electronics has been producing LEDs since 1983 and is a major player for mobile phone LED in the world with significant market share. Citizen LEDs have high reliability and high CRI.

Dialight has introduced a new ETL-recognized version of its ultra high brightness Powerwhite® LV Linear Modules. The company says it is the first complete LED solution product of its type on the market and it will enable the rapid development of many LED lighting applications including existing fixture formats and entirely new product designs.

Philips Lumileds has launched a free online tool that makes it easier for manufacturers of LED-based luminaires to show compliance with ENERGY STAR® standards. The new tool addresses the requirements of the “Chromaticity and Spatial Uniformity” test in the ENERGY STAR® specification for LED lighting that requires the beam of light to appear the same color to the human eye, regardless of which area of the beam the viewer looks at or where they are at in relation to the light source.

The Levi ski resort in Finland has installed LED street lighting from OSRAM Opto Semiconductors. It is the first LED street lighting in Finland. The local authority is investing heavily in its regional infrastructure, placing great emphasis on innovation and sustainability.

PerkinElmer, Inc. (PKI), a global leader focused on improving the health and safety of people and the environment, announced it has bought Opto Technology Inc., a supplier of LED based lighting components and subsystems, as PerkinElmer looks to broaden its presence in the LED lighting market. PerkinElmer did not disclose a purchase price for the Illinois-based company.

After landing big orders for LED lightings and winning bids for supplying solar cell panels, Delta Electronics Inc. projected its annual revenue to grow 5% from 2008 to hit NT$150 billion in 2009, despite the lingering global economic downturn.  

Raymond James Stadium, Tampa's host venue for the Super Bowl, has been temporarily illuminated with state-of-the-art LED technology as part of a city-wide beautification effort for the championship game on February 1. Philips/Color Kinetics is helping illuminate the stadium from dusk to dawn with the newly launched ColorReach™ Powercore, one of the biggest, brightest exterior LED's in the world.

LED lighting was a $400 million market in 2008, however, experts predicts that this market will see an impressive compound annual growth rate of 35%, which will cause the market to grow to $1,8 billion by the end of the forecasted period.

Over the past few years, Taiwan LED manufacturers, from chipmakers and packagers to lighting-module and lamp makers, are beginning to see a payoff from energy efficient products. Taiwan has ranked No. 2 in the global LED supplier, with 2008 revenue estimated to reach around US$1.9 billion, or 26% of world’s total.

Delta Electronics Inc., a world-caliber supplier of power supplies for mobile devices, has unveiled a series of LED lightings, showing its ambition to venture into the market. Bruce Cheng, chairman of Delta, stressed that his company has won several orders for the new product line and is scheduled to start mass production and delivery in the first quarter and the second quarter, respectively. These orders have enhanced Cheng’s confidence in welcoming a promising year in 2009, despite the lingering global economic downturn.

LED lighting has long held the promise of replacing energy-thieving incandescent bulbs without the drawbacks of fluorescent lighting and is finally taking hold in some sectors of the marketplace, says Chuck Swoboda, CEO of Cree Inc.

With recent significant advancements made in LEDs, some insiders claim may be the next wave in green lighting. LEDs are currently some of the most energy-efficient lighting, even exceeding compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs).

Intematix Corp., a phosphor-technology powerhouse, has begun to carve out its niche in the global LED lighting market by poaching expertise, acquiring facilities, and upgrading LED know-how. The program began last year, the company has opened its Taiwan subsidiary Intematix Technology Center (ITC) in Taoyuan County, northern Taiwan; acquired a phosphor factory in Suzhou, China; and named Jeff Lagaly, the former Global Sales Director for Cree Lighting, as Vice President of Sales, LED Lighting.

Cree Inc., announces that University of California, Davis is joining the LED University™ program in conjunction with the unveiling of new bi-level LED lighting at UC Davis’ South Entry Parking Structure. The LED light fixtures, featuring activity-sensing technology adapted and developed at California Lighting Technology Center (CLTC) at UC Davis, provide enhanced nighttime visibility while reducing energy consumption by up to 80% compared with the metal-halide fixtures that were replaced.

Audi first introduced a green automobile R8 sports car, while this vehicle lighting that can be green and reduce carbon emissions that have nothing to do with fuel economy.

This year retailers have offered more LED holiday lighting choices than ever before and at lower prices. To demonstrate the energy efficiency of LED lighting and to reduce energy use, Otter Tail Power Company replaced about 780 C7 incandescent bulbs outlining the roof and corners of its general office building in Fergus Falls with C9 LED bulbs, whose bases were compatible with the existing light sets.

During the economic downturn, many manufacturers are setting to reduce the output and dismiss workers at manufacturing lines. But, small and mid-size LED makers are busy running manufacturing lines.

Artist Leo Villareal has completed a light sculpture along the walkway connecting the East and West buildings of the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC. The work, called Multiverse, uses about 41,000 LEDs that run along the 200-foot-long corridor.

LiquidLEDs is a Taiwanese LED manufacturer, which is experienced in developing AC LED lighting solution. It recently made AC LED bulbs the only lighting source for its new office in Taipei, Taiwan. This office is the first in the world to use AC LED bulb as it's main source of lighting.

Recently, RiTdisplay Corp., a reinvested company of Taiwan’s larges-sized disc maker RiTek Corp., has received orders for 35 million units of passive matrix organic light emitting diodes (PMOLEDs), with 30 million units to be delivered this year, making it the world’s No. 1 supplier of this product presently.  

Recently, ilumisys, Inc., developer and producer of next-generation solid-state lighting technology, announced that LED Lighting Inc. is becoming a reseller of ilumisys lighting.  

Recently, PowerSecure International, Inc. announced that Walgreens will purchase the Company’s state-of-the-art green EfficientLights LED lighting technology for refrigerated cases installed in the majority of their new store openings in 2009.