Solid-state lighting developer Bridgelux, Inc. announced that it has raised an additional $50 million Series D financing, led by VantagePoint Venture Partners.
The company intends to use the capital to "aggressively" develop its
manufacturing technologies and expand its global manufacturing
infrastructure.
Bridgelux's lighting technology replaces
traditional technologies (such as incandescent, halogen and fluorescent
lighting) with integrated, solid-state lighting that enable
lamp and luminaire manufacturers to provide more energy-efficient white light for interior and
exterior markets, including street lights, commercial lighting and
consumer applications. Bridgelux
says it is the only vertically integrated LED manufacturer and developer of
solid-state light sources that designs its solutions specifically for
the lighting industry.
The Sunnyvale, California-based company also announced the
appointment of William D. Watkins as CEO and a member of the board of
directors.
"We view solid-state lighting as an advanced technology capable of
rapidly transforming the $100 billion lighting industry by offering a
more cost-effective, efficient and environmentally sensitive lighting
solution, and Bridgelux is uniquely positioned to drive its adoption,"
said Alan E. Salzman, CEO of VantagePoint Venture Partners, the
company's largest investor. "Bringing on a leader of Bill's caliber and
adding to the company's financial resources mark the beginning of what
we believe will be a remarkable growth phase as the company continues
driving down the cost of its solutions, which in turn opens successive
new markets for them."
Watkins comes to Bridgelux from Seagate
Technology where he was CEO. Seagate is the world's largest hard disc drive and storage solutions
company.
Mark Swoboda, who has served as CEO of Bridgelux since June 2007, will remain with the company and become president, leading product development, R&D initiatives and sales and marketing efforts.
