The Cree Cup Launches in China with Nearly 1,000 Students Submitting More than 100 Designs

The first Cree Cup - Creative LED Lighting Design Contest for China University Students jointly organized by the China Association of Lighting Industry (CALI) and Cree, Inc. has successfully completed its preliminary round. After evaluation by the Contest Review Committee, 50 design projects have been selected for the final round.

The first stage of the contest, lasting three months, produced more than 100 designs from nearly 1,000 students representing approximately 100 universities in China. The professional review committee consisting of LED industry experts, academic scholars and industrial design/lighting application experts examined all the submitted designs based on creativity, practicality and marketability. Following this comprehensive evaluation, 50 designs were selected to continue to compete in the next stage of the contest, physical production.

Professor Zhan Qingxuan, a renowned scholar in the building lighting industry and Professor and Ph.D supervisor at the School of Architecture in Tsinghua University has been appointed as Chairman of the Contest Review Committee. “Registration for the contest shows the great enthusiasm of our university students for LED lighting,” said Professor Zhan. “In less than three months, the Organizing Committee has received hundreds of submissions and we are very pleased to see some outstanding designs which are very creative yet practical.”

Throughout the review process, experts recognized the strength of the students’ creative designs, noting that many of the ideas and creative concepts submitted are both innovative and functionally sound. However, the experts also held the unanimous view that students still have some work to do in order to understand LED lighting. LED lighting courses have yet to be widely adopted in universities, explaining why some designs lack practicality despite featuring novel design. Professor Zhan added, “As the government increases requirements for energy-saving and environmental protection, we believe that LED lighting will achieve greater popularity. As university students at large have an opportunity to take part in such high-level contests, it will further promote knowledge of LED lighting and help to train a new generation of innovative talents!”

The core objective of the Contest is to develop new lighting sources of the 21st century and discover and motivate highly innovative and high-caliber LED design talents to support China as an LED manufacturing and innovation center. Mr. Tang Guoqing, Secretary-General of the Organizing Committee of the Contest and General Manager for Cree China Sales explained, “So far, the Contest has proceeded very smoothly. We are very pleased to see the great enthusiasm that the students at large have shown to the LED lighting industry. We look forward to seeing fine physical implementations during the final round. Meanwhile, we welcome more students to join the sunrise industry of LED lighting.”