Cree Inc.

Cree Incorporated
Public
Traded as NASDAQ: CREE
Industry Electronics
Founded 1987
Headquarters Durham, North Carolina, USA
Products Light-emitting diodes
Revenue $1.3 billion [1]
USD $56,255,000 (Year Ending Jan 2010)[2]
Number of employees
 3,172[2]
Website cree.com

Cree Inc. is a multinational manufacturer of semiconductor light-emitting diode (LED) materials and devices, with its headquarters in Durham, North Carolina. Most of its products are based on silicon carbide.

Cree's high-power LEDs, XLamp 7090 XR-E Q4

History

Cree was formed in 1987 by researchers from North Carolina State University.

In 2005, Cree opened a subsidiary, Cree Asia-Pacific Ltd., in Hong Kong.[3][4]

In March 2007, Cree acquired Cotco Luminant Device Ltd of Hong Kong for $200 million.[5] Cotco is a supplier of high brightness LEDs in China.

In 2009, Cree announced an agreement to purchase a 592,000-square-foot (55,000 m2) facility in Huizhou, Guangdong Province, China, Cree’s first chip production facility outside of North America.[6] Also in 2009, Cree announced an expansion at its Durham plant.[7]

On February 8, 2012, Cree announced the XLamp XT-E, which they said delivers twice as much light for the same price as older LEDs.[8]

Consumer products

A Cree 800 lumen lamp, with 2700 K color temperature, introduced in March 2013. It is dimmable and is intended to replace a 60 watt incandescent lamp, while using only 9.5 watts.

In October 2013, Cree announced that two of its household LED bulbs had qualified for Energy Star rating by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, qualifying them for an (up to) $5 at-the-register rebate from many utility companies, bringing the final cost to between $5 and $8. The bulbs represent Cree's first consumer products, and are being marketed in the US exclusively through Home Depot. The company stated it was challenging established lighting manufacturers with aggressive pricing because it wanted to speed up the adoption of LED lighting and that it would work toward producing less expensive LED household bulbs.[9]

In March 2013, it introduced an A19 lightbulb called the Cree LED, which was one of the first LED offerings below $10.

Competition

Competing companies in the LED industry include Bridgelux, Inc, Nichia Corporation, Osram Opto Semiconductors, General Electric, and Philips Lumileds Lighting Company. Cree has 10% of the North American market.[14]

References

[15]

  1. ↑ Helman, Christopher (2013-05-22). "How Cree Perfected The 20-Year Lightbulb". Forbes. Retrieved 14 January 2014.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Corporate Information snapshot". Wright Investor Service. Retrieved 10 Aug 2010.
  3. ↑ "Cree Subsidiary Opens in Hong Kong - Cree, Inc. (Photonics Spectra | Dec 2005 | Light Speed)". Photonics.com. Retrieved 2013-02-27.
  4. ↑ "Cree to Open New Subsidiary Headquarters in Hong Kong Science and Technology Park". PR Newswire (press release). Sep 8, 2005. Retrieved 2013-10-10.
  5. ↑ "Cree buys Chinese LED manufacturer Cotco". LEDs Magazine. Mar 13, 2007. Retrieved 2013-10-10.
  6. ↑ "Cree Signs Agreement for Expansion in Huizhou, China; New Chip Production Facility to Help Accelerate LED Lighting Revolution". Bloomberg news. Business Wire (press release). November 9, 2009. Retrieved 2013-10-10.
  7. ↑ Ranii, David (2010-01-01). "Cree stock soared in '09". News & Observer. Retrieved 2010-01-01.
  8. ↑ Ranii, David (2012-02-08). "Cree launches another lower-cost LED". (Charlotte) News & Observer. Retrieved 2012-02-08.
  9. ↑ Funk, John (October 10, 2013). "Cree's LED bulb now Energy Star, qualifies for up to $5 price cut". The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer. Retrieved 2013-10-10.
  10. ↑ http://www.homedepot.com/p/t/204476612?storeId=10051&langId=-1&catalogId=10053
  11. ↑ http://www.creebulb.com/Products/Stardard_A-Type/60_Watt_Replacement_Soft_White_LED_Bulb
  12. ↑ http://www.creebulb.com/Products/Stardard_A-Type/75_Watt_Replacement_Soft_White_LED_Bulb
  13. ↑ http://www.creebulb.com/Products/Standard_A-Type/100_Watt_Replacement_Soft_White_LED_Bulb
  14. ↑ LaMonica, Martin (18 February 2014). "50 Smartest Companies: Cree". MIT Technology Review (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). Retrieved 25 August 2014.
  15. ↑ Matthew James. cree led light bar, Cree Inc., London, 03 Jan 2015. Retrieved on 03 Jan 2015.

External links