27 April 2011

Cree launches CR Series of LED troffers for commercial lighting

LED maker Cree Inc of Durham, NC, USA says that its new CR family of architectural troffers (including the CR24, CR14 and CR22) bring a combination of performance, aesthetics and affordability to a market of antiquated, inferior commercial lighting traditionally lit by outdated, flickering fluorescent tubes.

The firm claims that the CR series offers a no-compromise alternative when upgrading over fluorescent lighting. More affordable than comparable fluorescent options, fixtures deliver higher-quality light, longer life and greater energy savings, with an estimated payback of less than a year in a typical office installation (comparing the CR24 LED troffer with an architectural 2-tube T8 fluorescent fixture of comparable light output and features, assuming a typical office space of 200 units, 12-hour per day usage, $0.10kWh energy costs, lighting-related HVAC impact, and relamp maintenance).

“We chose the Cree CR troffers because the payback calculation was clear,” comments Richard J. Michal (PE, MBA, LEED-AP), facilities engineer planning design & construction at Butler University.

Picture: Cree’s CR Series architectural troffer family.

“The traditional lighting experts keep telling us what LEDs can’t do, and we keep showing them that anything is possible,” says Cree’s chairman & CEO Chuck Swoboda. “It is time to rid the world of the compromises inherent in choosing fluorescent lighting—the flickering, toxic mercury, poor color, ineffective dimming and disposal expense,” he adds.

“Our life-cycle cost analysis using Cree LED lighting on our projects decreased the watts-per-square-foot by upwards of 60%,” notes O’Brien/Atkins Associates' senior electrical engineer Nick Santore (PE, LEED-AP). “That decrease translated into measurable reductions in building HVAC equipment sizing requirements, delivering additional savings.”

The 2009 US indoor lighting fixture market is estimated at $6.4bn, according to market research firm Freedonia Group. Lighting represents 27% of US commercial building energy consumption according to the US Department of Energy.

The CR troffer family is powered by Cree TrueWhite Technology to deliver what is claimed to be an unprecedented combination of 90 color rendering index (CRI) and up to 110 lumens per watt, far outperforming any other current lighting options.

A thermal management system enables the LEDs to consistently run cooler, providing significant boosts to lifetime, efficacy and color consistency. All fixtures feature step or 0–10V dimming, are designed to last at least 50,000 hours and feature a five-year warranty.

As well as three models, the CR troffer family includes multiple performance options: 1ft x 4 ft, 2ft x 4ft and 2ft x 2ft. The CR series is made in the USA, sold through Cree LED Lighting sales channels and is currently shipping in volume. The troffers will also be demonstrated at Cree’s booth 1925 at Lightfair International in Philadelphia, PA, USA (17–19 May).

Tags: Cree LEDs

Visit: http://crseries.creeledlighting.com