DURHAM, N.C., Oct. 21 -- Cree Inc. co-founder Neal Hunter today announced he has co-founded, with a group of former Cree scientists and engineers, a company to develop LED-based lighting fixtures. Hunter will serve as chairman and his partners as the principle officers. Cree is a maker of semiconductors used in solid-state lighting, power and communications products. The new company, temporarily named LED Lighting Fixtures Inc., plans to open offices in North Carolina and Hong Kong and is currently being funded by the founders. Hunter says he expects additional funding from private investors on an as-needed basis. "We believe the time for LED lighting for general use has arrived. Our goal is to integrate Cree's chip and lamp products into finished fixture assemblies targeting high-volume consumer and industrial applications. Industry sources estimate the domestic market for lamps, lighting fixtures and lighting controls is about $12 billion annually and $40 billion globally," Hunter stated. Hunter co-founded Cree in 1987, served as its CEO from 1994 to 2001 and as chairman from 1995 until April 2005, when he resigned to pursue other interests. LED Lighting Fixtures Inc.'s management team includes Gerry Negley, who acquired nine patents for Cree in LED chip and packaging technology and who Hunter says was instrumental in numerous other pending applications and filings. Antony van de Ven was the technologist behind Cree's real color display before forming Lighthouse Technologies Ltd. in Hong Kong and will bring his expertise in color management and LED systems to the new company, according to Hunter. Tom Coleman, a co-founder of Cree, brings a background in equipment, systems and LED electronics. For more information about LED Lighting Fixtures Inc., contact PR representative Jessica Blue by phone at (919) 277-1159 or e-mail: jblue@fwv-us.com