Redwood Systems, a pioneer of network-based power and control lighting systems, today announced it had received a $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. The program was established to help drive innovation and growth through the engine of small business.
Last year, Redwood was awarded Phase I of the same grant to explore the feasibility of providing power and communications to LED lighting through a low-voltage networking system. After successfully demonstrating both the viability and effectiveness of its technology, Redwood applied for and received Phase II funding, which allows further commercial development and additional funds to bring the technology to international markets.
“Phase I of the SBIR grant helped us move our idea from concept to reality,” said Dave Leonard, co-founder and CEO of Redwood Systems. “With Phase II funding, we will be able to develop key applications that will both reduce lighting energy costs and enable smart buildings through our extensive sensor grid.”
Phase II will help Redwood advance their technology in the following ways:
- Optimize system performance for renewable energy and electrical grid inputs
- Deploy and expand solution for international markets
- Create demand-response and building-automation system modules
The DOE’s Solid State Lighting (SSL) group—which is part of its Building Technologies Program—developed the grant topic and provided independent peer reviews that resulted in Redwood being awarded the grant (one of only four Phase II lighting projects selected this year).
About Redwood Systems
Redwood Systems is pioneering an entirely new way to power, communicate, and control lights that will bring unprecedented energy savings and improve building performance. By combining three typically discrete systems (power, communications, sensors) into one network-based solution, Redwood’s platform will make smart buildings simpler, easier, and less expensive to own and operate. The company was founded in 2008 and is headquartered in Fremont, California. For more information, visit http://www.redwoodsystems.com/.
About the Department of Energy’s Small Business Innovation Research Program
SBIR is a U.S. government program in which federal agencies with large research and development budgets set aside a small fraction of their funding for competitions among small businesses only. Small businesses that win awards in these programs keep the rights to any technology developed and are encouraged to commercialize the technology. More information about the program can be found http://www.er.doe.gov/sbir/.
About the Department of Energy’s Building Technologies Program
The mission of the Department of Energy’s Building Technologies Program is to develop technologies, techniques, and tools for making residential and commercial buildings more energy efficient, productive, and affordable. The Program supports solid-state lighting (SSL) research and development to accelerate market introduction of high-efficiency, high-performance SSL products and encourages the lighting industry to higher levels of efficiency and quality than they might otherwise achieve. More information is available at http://www.eere.energy.gov/topics/buildings.html.
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