Meet the AVF’s First Hong Kong-based Members: Light Engine
Light Engine is a globally-recognised pioneer and leader in advanced LED technologies. With R&D at its heart, Light Engine has cultivated a reputation for bringing the best quality and latest innovation in LED lighting to the global market. Thankfully, they brought this pedigree to the Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) industry and, now, the AVF. I interviewed Product Innovation Director Mr. Teddy Lo and Business Development Director Mr. Roger Suen about the company’s product roadmap and upcoming activities.
CEA will be part of the solution to feeding China’s growing population
While the rate of growth is slowing down, population is still on the rise in China- the mainland population is now pushing toward 1.4 billion. With massive population coupled with massive pollution, Light Engine believes:
“CEA Technology will be needed to provide citizens with more locally produced vegetables, Chinese medicine and higher end organic food options. In addition, the decreasing carbon footprint due to transportation of vegetables will further the betterment of environment and society.”
The importance of indoor farms is slated to grow exponentially in the coming decades and we need the rate of innovation in this sector to keep up. Light Engine is looking critically and fearlessly at the problems facing CEA and coming up with timely solutions.
How can we make LED-lighting more responsive and adaptive to the needs of indoor farms?
Some of the biggest roadblocks to a more widespread implementation of indoor farming are the costs and inefficiencies of lighting. Light Engine is leading on innovations that make indoor farming more precise and cost effective. These include:
- Increasing LED efficiency
- Increasing durability and reliability of bulbs and fixtures
- Giving more control over light mixture to the user
- Making them more fire-safe
- Improving optical evenness
- Better function under humidity
Improved efficiency can only lead to a better ROI; but arguably an even greater innovation is this technology’s adaptability. Light Engine’s lighting systems can be used in an increasing number of configurations, fitting in seamlessly with each farm’s unique set of needs. Precision control over light mixtures is then handed over to the farmer who decides what works best for each crop.
LED Technology Engineered Specifically for Cultivation
Light Engine first became involved in horticulture in 2012 with a display of the biological effects of LED horticultural lighting at their showroom in the Hong Kong Science Park. Since then, they have developed a versatile line of products intended specifically for indoor farms. Many of these products act as direct replacements to conventional grow light fixtures; and they promise to drastically improve yields and ROI because they are designed solely for growing applications.
Highlights of the current range of products include:
- DRAGON Technology, a patent-pending design for an out-of-the-box bulb that offers a simplified retrofit solution with excellent efficiency.
- CabLED Technology- includes the best grow spectrum LED in the market for this patented linear lighting platform; this product line is waterproof and adaptive to any colour configurations or control possibilities.
Light Engine’s products allow for users to exercise precision control over light intensity, optical design and heat management; the end result is a lighting system that caters more precisely to their farming system’s needs. While Light Engine maintains a neutral position as the manufacturing supplier among different horticultural clients, it works closely with OEM customers to develop different specifications of products for different horticultural applications. They currently operate an R&D facility in San Diego that allows them to test their lights in an organic farm setting.
Light Engine continues to push the envelope of horticultural technology
Light Engine has an exciting future prospectus: current plans include the development of a smart control and monitoring system for vertical farms with Augmented Reality technology. As members of the AVF, Light Engine will play a crucial role in further developing the industry to help solve the world’s hunger problems.
Take a look through Light Engine’s latest product offerings here: https://www.lightengine-tech.com/en/leddownlight.asp