Osram has gained the services of Thorsten Müller as its new Head of Innovation and Research. The 39-year-old is currently the CEO of the Connected Devices and Solutions division at Bosch and will take up his new position as Head of Corporate Innovation at Osram on December 1, 2016. “Thorsten Müller is an acknowledged expert on the Internet of Things”, said Stefan Kampmann, Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of OSRAM Licht AG. “He will provide us with valuable impetus for the ongoing digitization and connectivity in the lighting industry and drive forward our transformation into a high-tech company.”

Sony is known for its technology in displays, TVs, and other consumer electronics, but its latest gadget unveiled recently in Japan is focusing on LED grow light technology, according to reports by Nikkei Technology and other tech media.

Neutrogena launched an economic LED facial mask on Monday that uses red and blue LEDs that can treat acne on people’s faces, reportedEliteDaily.

Leti, an institute of CEA Tech, announced today it has joined the Stanford SystemX Alliance, a network of 100 renowned Stanford University professors and 27 world-class companies, joining forces in a pre-competitive environment to define tomorrow’s research strategies. Leti’s participation bridges the gap between two worlds – academia and industry.

A new $200 million Asian Development Bank (ADB) loan will finance installation of millions of energy-efficient lights in streets and homes and energy-efficient water pumps in farms across India, leading to energy savings of around 3,800 gigawatt-hours per year, equivalent to the annual output of two 300-megawatt coal-fired power stations. 

Global leading research institute CEA LETI (LETI) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Taiwan’s Institute for Information Industry (III) earlier Monday at the Howard Plaza Hotel in Taipei.

More than 300 attendees turned up at LEDforum 2016, large numbers of visitors that signed up for the forum last minute queued patiently in front of the registration desk, a sight event organizers have not seen since 2011, said Roger Chu, director of research at LEDinside.

The six month run of NEMA’s Electroindustry Business Conditions Index (EBCI) scoring 50 or higher has ended with September’s result of 47.1. Dropping below 50 suggests that current conditions are no longer conducive for expansion in the electrical manufacturing sector. Only 24% of respondents reported better conditions in September, versus 33% last month. The share of respondents reporting worse conditions nearly doubled from 17% in August to 29% this month, while the proportion of panel members who noted unchanged conditions showed little movement—47% this time compared to 50% last month.

The Munich-based lighting company Osram has received a major order from BMW Group to convert eight of the car manufacturer's plants in Germany and Austria to modern and energy-saving LED technology. The order is one of the largest for Osram's Lighting Solutions (LS) Business Unit to date. The up to 170,000 luminaires covered by the framework agreement are being installed in several phases through to the end of 2017. "We are delighted to have received this major order. Our innovative LED luminaires will convert the lighting in BMW Group’s plants to cutting-edge technology and bring considerable savings in energy", said Eladia Pulido, CEO of Osram Lighting Solutions.

NET LED Lighting is delighted to announce it is the sole distributor of the LG LED Essentials Low/High Bay range to UK electrical wholesalers. These products expand the range of High Bays available through NET LED and promise to make energy savings simple for businesses with a simple plug-and-play control sensor.

LEDinside team would like to apologize for the lack of updates over the last two days. Taiwan was particularly hard hit by Typhoon Megi over the past two days, and the country declared consecutive days off for workers. Although, we made the announcement through various social media channels, we would like to apologize for the lack of news during this time frame and the inconvinence caused.

Taiwanese LED company Lianovation announced last Friday it will be halting trade on the Chinese bourse as of Monday this week, due to uncertainties in a recent acquisition caused by changes in the capital market, management environment, and company restructure.

A city located in eastern India, Chennai is finanlizing its second phase streetlight extension which will value an estimated INR 1.45 billion (US $200 million) and install 74,000 new LED streetlights in an expanded area.

Udaipur, a city in western Indian state Rajasthan, recently rolled out a massive LED streetlight replacement.

GE has unlocked the wide color gamut potential for mobile phones, tablets, PCs and TVs with its RadiantRed™ Technology, delivering greater overall color and the truest red color possible in LED-backlit LCD displays. The technology offers manufacturers the ability to create the brightest, most colorful LED HD displays available for a wide range of devices, including the next generation of mobile devices and high dynamic range (HDR) TVs.

Feilo Acoustics the lighting arm of INESA announced it will be scaling up investments in smart lighting by forming a joint venture with two other Chinese companies, including a state-owned investment company.

Refond Optoelectronics recently announced its board members approved two proposals including the termination of its subsidiary in Dongyuan city in Guangdong Province, China, and forming a joint venture with foreign investors.

Rising VR, security and small pitch LED display demands has led to severe shortage in AlInGaP LEDs, reported Chinese-language newspaper Commercial Times.

The Fayetteville Public Works Commission (PWC) based in North Carolina, U.S. has finished 85% of its streetlight upgrade from sodium-vapor lights to brighter energy-saving LED bulbs, reported Fayobserver.

Men exposed to bright light therapy can receive a testosterone level boost that can lead to greater sexual satisfaction then those with a lower sex drive, according to a study presented by University of Siena in Italy at ECNP conference in Vienna.

Philips Lighting, a global leader in lighting, and Huawei Technologies have signed a partnership agreement to ensure the seamless interoperability of the Philips Hue connected lighting system for the home with Huawei’s OceanConnect Internet of Things (IoT) platform. Under the agreement, Huawei will become a ‘Friends of Hue’ partner and Philips Lighting an OceanConnect partner, so that customers using Huawei’s IoT platform will be able to offer their end users a certified user experience with full control of Philips Hue lighting.

Cree has been named the exclusive Official Lighting Partner of the Cleveland Browns. Cree and the Browns have partnered to continue to deliver a better fan experience with recent lighting improvements made to the Cree branded gate at FirstEnergy Stadium. This season, fans will enjoy a better lighting experience with new Cree® LED lighting installed throughout the gate, as well as a new escalator wrap that gives fans bright ideas for saving with LED lighting while having fun on game-day.

Philips Lighting, a global leader in lighting, announced the launch of its new five-year sustainability program ‘Brighter Lives, Better World’ during the Climate Week NYC. This is the first time Philips Lighting has set sustainability goals as a standalone, listed company, building on the long legacy of Philips’ world class performance in sustainability and its EcoVision programs. Earlier this month, Philips won anindustry group leader position in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index Capital Goods categoryafter four years of consecutive nominations. Philips Lighting had an integral role in this achievement with its sustainable revenues reaching 72% of its total sales in 2015.

Lighting Science®, a global leader in next-generation LED lighting solutions, today announced the signing of new perpetual patent license agreements with Osram-Sylvania and Hubbell Lighting, a division of Hubbell Incorporated. These new license agreements cover Lighting Science’s ‘968 patent family and apply to Osram-Sylvania’s and Hubbell’s respective low profile retrofit downlight products. The ‘968 patent family embodies Lighting Science’s first-to-market technology regarding a low profile luminaire for retrofit application. This technology was first introduced in Lighting Science’s groundbreaking Glimpse® flush mount retrofit downlight.

Traditional light bulbs in three areas in Dubai will be replaced with LED lights, the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) stated recently.

The U.S. Department of Energy's GATEWAY program has released a new report on a pilot installation of tunable-white LED systems at a senior-care facility in Sacramento, CA. The installation took place at the ACC Care Center and was conducted by the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD), which invited GATEWAY to document the performance of the new lighting systems. Two of the primary goals identified by SMUD and ACC were to learn more about how tunable-white lighting affects the sleep patterns, nighttime safety, and other behaviors of the residents; and to better equip the staff to provide excellent care by improving the quality of lighting relative to the incumbent system.

LEDVANCE announced Matt McCarron as Vice President of Industrial Commercial Channel for the U.S. and Canada, filling the role held by Mark Corcoran who retired this year but is acting as senior advisor for the trade channel over the coming months.  LEDVANCE is one of the world's leading providers of lamps for professional users and retail customers offering SYLVANIA LED lamps as well as a wide range of traditional light sources, standardized luminaires and connected lighting solutions in North America.

Swedish lighting experts, Aura Light, welcomes Craig Herriott as its new Northern Regional Sales Manager, as the company continues to expand its UK operation.

David Smart has achieved shareholder status at BioStar Lighting, thanks to his success as Vice President of Sales. David has sold over $4 million dollars in LED lighting retrofits within 2 years. His clients include nationally recognized businesses and large commercial property owners such as Hallmark, UMB Bank, Block Real Estate, DST, MC Realty, Tutera Group and US Toy Co. Smart possesses an entrepreneurial spirit and has been passionate about sustainability from a young age.  Selling and managing energy efficient lighting installations comes naturally to him.  He has set himself apart in the industry by providing customer-focused solutions that include best-in-class products resulting in maximum savings for clients.

Wait…..its Wednesday right? So why are LEDinside editors posting this? Due to the upcoming Chinese Moon Festival, we will not be in office from Sept. 15-16, 2016 and will not be updating our site during this time. So we’d like to wish all our readers Happy Chinese Moon Festival in advance, as we battle against natural elements caused by raging Super Typhoon Mernati in Taiwan.