Illumitex
 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Lighting |
| Genre | Manufacturing |
| Founded | 2005 |
| Founder | Matt Thomas Dung Duong Paul Winberg |
| Headquarters | , |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Jeff Bisberg (CEO) |
| Products | LED lights |
| Website | Official Website |
Illumitex is an American lighting manufacturer largely specializing in the production and development of LED lights for indoor farming and vertical farming.[1][2] In addition to grow lights, Illumitex also creates lights for the Commercial & Industrial space, as well as digital horticulture solutions.[clarification needed] The company is based in Austin, Texas and has manufacturing facilities in Austin, China, and Malaysia.[1][3]
History
Illumitex was founded in 2005 by Matt Thomas, Dung Duong, and Paul Winberg.[4] The company largely stayed under the radar until they began receiving funding in 2008. They raised $10.5 million in a B round of funding in 2008 and, in 2009, added an additional $10 million in another round.[5] By 2010, the company had received around $22 million in investor funding from groups like New Enterprise Associates,[6] DFJ Mercury, and Applied Ventures.[4] Also in 2010, Illumitex released its first product line (dubbed "Aduro")[6] which consisted of square-shaped LED lights that could theoretically provide more light coverage than traditional rounded LED lights. The company's original goal was to provide residential and commercial lighting solutions[buzzword] for indoor rooms, parking lots, streetlights, and more.[7][8] One of Illumitex's early clients was an apartment complex in Singapore.[9] In 2011, Illumitex added an additional $13.5 million in equity.[5]
In April 2012, the company received an additional $9.3 million from existing investors, bringing the total money raised to $50.3 million. The company continued to pursue options in vertical farming, contained environmental agriculture, and tissue culture laboratories as well as general illumination.[10] Illumitex had 35 employees in 2012.[11] The company raised $3.8 million in 2013[12] and added around $6 million in 2014. In August 2014, Illumitex announced plans to double the size of its headquarters.[11] In 2015, the company secured $16 million in a funding round led by WP Global Partners.[1] As of 2015, greenhouses account for the largest portion of Illumitex's customer base. The company has also provided lighting to prominent vertical farms like the Chicago-based FarmHere, which provided crops to Whole Foods.[3]
Products
As of 2015, most of Illumitex's products are used in contained environmental agriculture and vertical farming operations. The company produces a wide range of LED lights with customized intensity and wavelengths. The company's lights produce the "theoretical maximum amount of light for photosynthesis."[3] Illumitex also produces its own fixtures and other lighting accessories. Everything that goes into light construction (e.g. phosphors, dies, packaging, etc.) is produced by an Illumitex factory.[13] Illumitex lights have been used to grow plants like tomatoes, basil, kale, and other vegetables. Marijuana is also frequently grown under Illumitex lights. Illumitex also makes patented LED white light fixtures for the food-processing industry and for architecture.[3]
Awards and recognition
In 2015, the Austin Chamber of Commerce listed Illumitex among its class of A-List Startups. The list identifies the 12 "most promising" startups in the Austin area.[14][15]
References
- ^ a b c Chernova, Yuliya (11 August 2015). "Investors Pack $16M Into Illumitex for LEDs as Medical Marijuana Gains". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
- ^ Wistrom, Brent (6 August 2015). "New Money: These Austin Tech and Startup Companies Raised Major Cash in August". AustinInno. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
- ^ a b c d Wistrom, Brent (19 August 2015). "From Basil to Marijuana to Acne, This LED Tech Company is Lighting the Future". AustinInno. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
- ^ a b Arndt, Michael (28 July 2010). "LED Maker Illumitex Hopes for a Spotlight". Bloomberg Businessweek. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
- ^ a b Wang, Ucilia (14 June 2011). "Illumitex raises $13.5M for LED lighting". Gigaom. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
- ^ a b "Illumitex unveils Aduro series of high-power LEDs". LEDs Magazine. April 2010. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
- ^ Richard, Michael Graham (30 June 2010). "Illumitex Wants to Make Your Lightbulbs Square (and More Efficient)". TreeHugger. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
- ^ Kanellos, Michael (29 June 2010). "The Square Light Bulb from Illumitex". Greentech Media. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
- ^ Clancy, Heather (20 July 2010). "Hip to be square: Illumitex sheds new light on LED design". ZDNet. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
- ^ Hawkins, Lori (10 April 2012). "Austin tech company Illumitex names new CEO, lands $9 million in funding". Austin American-Statesman. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
- ^ a b Calnan, Christopher (12 May 2015). "Investors pony up more cash; see bright future for Austin LED company". Austin Business Journal. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
- ^ Calnan, Christopher (12 April 2013). "Lighting developer Illumitex raises $3.8M". Austin Business Journal. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
- ^ Hammelef, Christopher; Grey, Paul (4 December 2014). "Urban Agriculture 11: Growing the light fantastic with Illumitex". Urban Agriculture (Interview). Interviewed by Dickson Despommier and Vincent Racaniello. Archived from the original on 23 April 2015. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
- ^ "Austin's 12 'most promising' startups revealed". Austin Business Journal. 15 May 2015. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
- ^ Holley, David (15 May 2015). "Austin Chamber Awards A-List Startups: Slideshow". Xconomy. Retrieved 23 September 2015.