Orion scores 22nd patent for efficient lighting technology

Plymouth, Wis.-based Orion Energy Systems (Nasdaq:OESX) said today that the U.S. Patent and Trademark office granted the company its 22nd patent for energy efficient lighting technology.

Shares of Orion were up nearly 3 percent to close at $3.24 today. Orion's shares have a 52-week range of $2.68 to $7.30.

Orion designs, manufactures and deploys energy management systems made up of high-performance, energy-efficient lighting platforms, intelligent wireless control systems and solar technology.

Orion sells its high-intensity fluorescent, or HIF, lighting system to commercial and industrial customers, estimating it increases the quality of light while cutting the cost of electricity by 50 percent when replacing traditional high intensity discharge, or HID, fixtures. That's accomplished through proprietary attributes, including the aluminum frame, side and front ventilation, and patented, roll-formed reflector that optimize the way heat is conducted and radiated, and the way light is harvested, the company said.

The most recent patent was awarded for a modular lighting platform that simplifies installation and allows for the addition of energy saving technologies in the future—a market that Orion said could be driven by utilities increasing the price of electricity or enacting real-time pricing. Typical lighting systems would require re-wiring to add controls at a later date.

Orion said it has 15 patents pending. The company has installed systems in nearly 4,800 facilities in North America and says the installations have prevented the use of 459 megawatts of energy since 2001.

Founded in 1996, Orion first turned a profit in fiscal 2007. The company went public that year, raising $100 million from the initial public offering (see Energy efficient lighting brightens with cash).

Prior to the IPO, Orion's investors included General Electric's GE Capital Equity Investments, The Clean Technology Fund, Expansion Capital Partners, Capvest Venture Fund and Custer Capital (see Orion Energy Systems lights up IPO).