Three years ago, Raleigh became the first city in the world to join the Cree LED City(R) program, a now-international initiative to deploy and promote LED lighting. Raleigh now boasts more than 40 installations, ranging from accent and indoor lighting to street and parking lot lighting.

"The city of Raleigh now favors LED lighting for all renovations and new projects," explained Raleigh Assistant Manager Daniel Howe. "Working with Cree and becoming the world's first LED City has given Raleigh the opportunity to jump ahead in deploying energy-efficient, solid-state lighting technology."

LED lighting can help cities save money from reduced energy consumption and reduced maintenance costs, as LED lights are designed to last longer and require less replacement than traditional lighting sources. Raleigh officials conservatively estimate the current use of LED lighting can save the city more than $200,000 annually.

"LED lighting is the best fiscal choice for our citizens in many cases," said Raleigh Mayor Charles Meeker. "As Raleigh enjoys some of the lowest energy rates in the country, if the business case works here, it most likely works anywhere. The fact that this cutting-edge LED technology is being driven by Cree, a local company, makes it even more exciting."

"The city of Raleigh has made a tremendous commitment to LED lighting during the past three years, and has become a global leader in the deployment and promotion of this technology," said Chuck Swoboda, Cree chairman and CEO. "Other municipalities around the world often look to Raleigh to guide their own evaluation and installation of energy-efficient LED lighting--and that's what I call leading the LED lighting revolution."

About LED City
The LED City is an expanding community of government and industry parties working to evaluate deploy and promote LED lighting technology across the full range of municipal infrastructure to:
-- Save energy
-- Protect the environment
-- Reduce maintenance costs
-- Provide better light quality for improved visibility and safety

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, 22 percent of electricity used in the U.S. powers lighting. In a world with soaring energy prices based on the availability and control of fossil fuels, and with growing concern about sustainability of the environment, a revolution in lighting is long overdue. Participants include Torraca and Appechio, Italy; Toronto and Welland, Ontario; Tianjian and Huizhou, China, Gwangju, South Korea; and the United States cities Raleigh and Chapel Hill, N.C.; Ann Arbor, Mich.; Austin and Fairview, Texas; Anchorage, Ala., and India Wells, Calif. For more information about the Cree LED City program, visit www.ledcity.org.