NXP Semiconductors (formerly Philips Semiconductors) today announced the
latest milestone of its environmentally conscious design process by
announcing it has sold 250 million fluorescent lighting driver ICs.
Fluorescent lamps are highly energy-efficient lighting solutions that
save 80% energy compared with traditional incandescent light bulbs.
Thanks to these fluorescent lamps, NXP has helped save 500 million kg CO2
per year compared to more traditional lighting solutions.
Electricity used for lighting homes, shops, offices, signs, public
spaces, and streetlights – accounts for
roughly 20 percent of all electricity consumption worldwide. With a
number that high, it’s no surprise that
consumers, companies, and governments around the globe are looking for
energy-efficient alternatives to traditional lighting. NXP calculates
that switching to more efficient technologies, such as CFL (Compact
Fluorescent Lighting) would enable up to an 80 percent saving in
electricity costs from lighting. These energy efficient CFL lamps have
become a familiar replacement for incandescent lights and promise to
continue growing in popularity.
“Lighting is a vital area of focus for the
semiconductor industry because of the clear impact that we can have on
the world’s energy resources,”
commented Stephane Curral, manager, Power and Lighting Solutions Product
Line, NXP Semiconductors. “We were one of the
first semiconductor companies to recognize the importance of
energy-efficient lighting, and have made lighting a focus for more than
15 years.”
NXP is committed to supporting energy-saving trends in the lighting
industry, for example, daylight harvesting, in which lighting levels are
adjusted according to the amount of natural daylight available. NXP
supplies the dimmable drivers for a range of technologies used in
everyday lighting for shops and offices, such as HF TL (High Frequency
Tube Lamp), CFL, HID (High Intensity Discharge Lighting) and Solid State
Lighting (SSL), amongst others.
NXP is also supplying a broad portfolio of driver IC’s
for a new lighting technology called Solid State Lighting, which is
based on high-brightness LEDs. Solid State Lighting shows great promise
for reliability, design flexibility, and longevity. It delivers bright
colors at a high intensity, while consuming less overall power.
Potential uses include, amongst other, outdoor applications, where it
can provide efficient, dimmable lighting along city streets and
highways. During quieter periods, using the dimmable drivers supplied by
NXP, SSL lights can control light intensity. This saves energy and
reduces light pollution while maintaining safe driving conditions. Solid
State Lighting is also penetrating residential lighting applications,
where the demand for dimmability is increasing. In this area too, NXP
can offer dimmable driver solutions.
“At NXP we believe that taking responsibility
for our impact on the world around us is fundamental to success.
Environmental conscious design principles are reflected across the NXP's
leadership domains, involving home electronics, automotive and
multi-market semiconductors. After our recent achievement in lowering PC
power wastage with our GreenChip™ PC solution,
which attained the 80plus GOLD level, I am proud that NXP technology has
been able to play such an important role in driving energy saving in the
lighting application area,” commented Rene
Penning de Vries, chief technology officer, NXP.
For more information on NXP’s corporate
social responsibility (CSR) strategy and updated activities, please view
the company’s recently published 2007
Sustainability Report, “Applying our company
values, responsibly”. The report can be
viewed and downloaded at http://www.nxp.com/profile/corporate/report/index.html.
NXP is a leading semiconductor company founded by Philips more than 50
years ago. Headquartered in Europe, the company has 31,000 employees
working in more than 20 countries and posted sales of USD 6.3 billion
(including the Mobile & Personal business) in 2007. NXP creates
semiconductors, system solutions and software that deliver better
sensory experiences in TVs, set-top boxes, identification applications,
mobile phones, cars and a wide range of other electronic devices. News
from NXP is located at www.nxp.com.
Forward-looking Statements NXP
This release may contain certain forward-looking statements with respect
to the financial condition, results of operations and business of NXP
and certain plans and objectives of NXP with respect to these items. By
their nature, forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainty
because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will
occur in the future and there are many factors that could cause actual
results and developments to differ materially from those expressed or
implied by these forward-looking statements.
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