Ledvance is announcing today a new initiative that will move 200 jobs from manufacturing of traditional lighting products, whose demand has been declining, to new LED lighting technology and adding another 20 jobs along the way. The company said it is investing millions of dollars in upgrading its Sylvania production plants in St. Marys, PA, and Versailles, KY, and will be celebrating the announcement today with an event involving Walmart at its St. Marys factory. Walmart has made a 10 year commitment to buy an additional $250 billion in products that support American jobs.
Ledvance said it is the first general lighting company to now have a significant LED light bulb portfolio made in the U.S. with U.S. and imported parts. “This is one of the fastest producing assembly lines in the world for LED light bulbs, working three to four times faster than other lighting manufacturers,” the release said.
Ledvance said its officials looked at how to meet the increased demand for LED lighting but change how the company brought some products to market in order to prevent the loss of U.S. jobs and manufacturing. A majority of LED light bulbs in the industry are imported from Asia. With this new initiative, individual components for LED general lighting products are delivered to the St. Marys and Versailles factories for assembly on the new manufacturing lines. Most of the products use glass made at the Versailles factory. In addition to LED lamps, the factories also make Sylvania traditional lighting like halogen bulbs and fluorescent tubes.