Domestic LED industry started in the 1970s. After nearly 40 years development, 7 national semiconductors lighting engineering bases have been set up in seven large cities: Shanghai, Dalian, Nanchang, Xiamen, Shenzhen, Yangzhou and Shijiazhuang. Products are widely used in landscape lighting area and general residential lighting area. Currently, China has become the world’s largest producer and the second largest exporter of LED lighting applications. By the end of 2011, there are more than 3000 LED companies, among which, only 140 companies have annual output value of more than 100 million yuan. However, among these 140 companies, no one has an annual sales of more than 1 billion yuan.
What is the real reason for domestic LED industry advancing in difficulties? Lacking of core technologies. Large LED enterprise mainly concentrated on downstream application area. Researches and developments for upstream (LED chip technologies), mid-stream (packing technologies) are much less. Almost all core LED technologies are in the hands of foreign LED giants or large enterprises from Taiwan. Companies from the mainland had no choice but paid more attention on downstream application area.
There is no doubt, domestic LED industry lacked competitiveness in core technologies. A great number of LED patents are created by all kinds of research institutes. In the field of epitaxy, the top three research institutes with the most patents are the Semiconductor Department of Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Physics and Beijing University of Technology. In the field of chip, the top three institutes with the most patents are the Semiconductor Department of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing University of Technology and Beijing University. Compared with research institutions, domestic enterprises are more likely to apply for application patents.
Strengthening the cooperation among production and researching is the most effective way to speed up the development of LED High Bay Light industry in China. Some domestic research institutes have independent research abilities, while some LED enterprises have strong manufacturing capabilities. Sense of cooperation between enterprises and research institutes should be strengthened, transmitting research results from research institutes to manufacturers.
Overall, China’s LED companies much attach importance to the early accumulation of intellectual properties, arm themselves by suing science and technology, exploit overseas market via patents, change every “trap” into good market prospect.