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LED Innovator Relume Technologies Closes $7M Financing Round

OXFORD -- Relume Technologies, a manufacturer of light-emitting diode (LED) products and smart grid control systems for outdoor lighting, has closed its $7 million Series D financing round.

Farmington Hills-based Beringea, which led the round, invested $3.2 million. San Jose, Calif.-based Western Technology Investment and other existing investors comprised the remainder of the round.

"Relume has seen tremendous growth over the past year, as evidenced by recent sales in multiple municipalities, new product launches and several key additions to our engineering team," said Crawford Lipsey, CEO for Relume. "These funds will allow us to build up our sales and manufacturing infrastructure and further expand our team."

Relume's LED products and lighting control systems are used in street and area lighting, commercial signage, outdoor advertising, transportation and U.S. military applications and improve a city's operating costs, commerce and resident safety. Relume's LED luminaries feature superior thermal management and low LED junction temperatures -- key to long LED life -- and enabling Relume to offer a market-leading 7-year product warranty.

"Relume is growing rapidly -- it roughly doubled its revenue in 2011 -- and through its innovative technology and world-class management team, Relume is poised to secure a dominant position in the outdoor LED lighting market," said Jeff Bocan, managing director for Beringea.

"Given the company's marquee customer base and accelerating sales traction, WTI is pleased to support Relume's impressive ongoing growth," said Maurice Werdegar, partner of Western Technology Investment.

Relume has installed outdoor lighting solutions in more than 1,000 outdoor facilities, producing up to a 50 percent energy savings per product. The company's customers include Starbucks Coffee, US Cellular, McDonalds, Chase, Best Buy, and Lexus, among others. In addition, Relume has re-lit many cities across the country, including Ann Arbor; Arlington, Va.; Canton, Ohio, and West Nottingham Township, Pennsylvania.

Relume's products are also American-made and ISO 9001:2008 certified.

Relume is a founding member of the Michigan Solid State Lighting Association, and supports the organization's mission of ensuring that Michigan is a global leader in solid-state lighting, research and development, and manufacturing. Relume was recently recognized as one of Michigan's 50 Companies to Watch by the Edward Lowe Foundation. For more information, visit www.relume.com.

More about Beringea, Michigan's largest private capital company, at www.beringea.com.

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