High-end smart home brand Savant acquires GE lighting business

According to foreign media Cnet, the two companies announced on Wednesday that Massachusetts-based Savant Systems has reached an agreement with General Electric to purchase the GE Lighting brand. GE, an ancient lighting manufacturer, can be traced back to the invention of incandescent light bulbs more than 100 years ago, and it still headquartered in the Nela Park factory in Cleveland. The transaction is expected to be completed in mid-2020, and its 700 employees will be transferred to Savant.

This sale is the latest development in GE's many years of restructuring work. In 2016, the conglomerate sold its home appliance division to Chinese manufacturer Haier for US$5.6 billion. Last year, GE sold its biopharmaceutical unit to Danaher, a medical technology company based in Washington, DC. This transaction totals 21 billion US dollars.

Currently, GE Lighting’s sale did not disclose any financial information, but the Wall Street Journal reported that Savant spent "about 250 million US dollars" for this.

Lawrence Culp (Jr.), Chairman and CEO of GE, said: "Today's transaction is another important step for GE to transform into a more focused industrial company. Our GE Lighting colleagues will join the rapid growth In the field of home automation, this company will share their enthusiasm. GE Lighting will inherit its legacy of innovation together with Savant, and we at GE will continue to develop infrastructure technologies that are critical to the company and draw on the foundations of our founders ."

Savant sells smart home systems centered on security, entertainment, comfort and lighting through a network of dealers and professional installers. The acquisition will include a long-term license agreement for the GE Lighting brand, which will expand the business scope of the two companies.

Robert Madonna, the company’s founder and CEO, said: “From the beginning, Savant’s mission was to build the world’s No. 1 smart home brand, and I am confident that the acquisition of GE Lighting will lead us to this end. The goal is a big step forward."

"We are committed to ensuring that GE Lighting's long-standing industry leadership continues, while bringing outstanding value and reliability to retail partners and consumers, making it the number one smart lighting company in the world."

GE Lighting’s latest products include an expanded product range of smart light bulbs and smart switches, all of which are designed in collaboration with Google to ensure seamless voice control through Google Assistant.