Pentagon putting in Cree lights

DURHAM -- LED lighting company Cree announced that 4,200 of the company's light fixtures are being installed in the Pentagon.

The purchase by the Department of Defense, which tested the fixtures for several months, helps validate the product, said Greg Merritt, vice president of corporate marketing.

The overhead fixtures illuminate large interior spaces. They initially cost more but use less energy, last longer and provide more natural light than competing fluorescents.

Lighting fixtures are a small part of Cree's business; the majority of its revenue comes from selling LED lighting components to companies that package them into products.

Cree's fixtures are strategically chosen to pioneer markets that lighting companies are ignoring, said CEO Chuck Swoboda.

"Really, it's about creating an industry," said Swoboda. "When we ... [make fixtures], our major goal is to get other people motivated to try and do the same thing."