The Minister of Economic Affairs of the German Federal State of Bavaria, Martin Zeil, opens the new Optogan production site. LED chips from the German city of Landshut form the core of the lighting technology of the 21st century.

“Bavaria is gaining a shining example for future-oriented innovations“, declared the Minister of Economic Affairs of the German Federal State of Bavaria, Martin Zeil, in his opening speech. “I am delighted that Optogan has decided to use a site in Bavaria when expanding its operations in Germany. The site’s proximity to Munich Airport and its access to highly qualified specialists and experts form an excellent foundation for the company to develop its international business.”

The conversion of energy supplies to green technology means that LED lighting will become increasingly important in the future. One of the main tasks involved in this development is to make energy use more effective, for example by using high-performance LEDs that lead to energy savings of up to 80 percent. On top of this, a LED lamp has an operating life of up to 50,000 hours, while a conventional incandescent bulb has a lifespan of just approx. 1000 hours. Another advantage of LEDs is that they contain neither lead nor mercury.

“In Landshut, we have discovered the ideal infrastructure for our future high-volume production of efficient LED chips. Our LED lamps and luminaires are on the way towards lighting up indoor, outdoor and residential areas all over the world”, explains Hans Peter Ehweiner, the Managing Director of Optogan GmbH.

The foundation of the new site is the former Hitachi semiconductor factory, which offers a clean room area of up to 4,000m². Investments reaching double figures of millions of euros and up to 100 members of staff form the framework for the company’s production activities. An initial capacity of over one billion LED chips per year combined with innovative and cost-effective manufacturing processes means that Optogan is well equipped for a bright future.

The Landshut site also forms the basis of the international sales activities carried out by the Optogan Group. The company’s core business currently involves the European markets, but it is also becoming increasingly popular on a worldwide level.

The Optogan Group was founded by three Russian physicists in Finland in 2004. Since 2005, the company has been developing and manufacturing state-of-the-art chip technologies in the German city of Dortmund. At the end of 2010, Optogan opened the largest production site for LED components and moderns in the whole of Eastern Europe in St. Petersburg. The Landshut site is now home to the production of light-emitting diode chips, which are able to light up lamps for 30 years and carry the seal of “Made in Germany”.