Royal Philips Electronics has announced an investment of approximately €30 million in its automotive head lighting competence centre in Aachen, Germany. The investment will pay for the installation of a new production line for Philips' Xenon car headlamps, enabling Philips to meet the increasing demand for Xenon lighting.
Philips Xenon lamps are used by many major car manufacturers, from BMW, Mercedes and Porsche through to Ford, Toyota and Volkswagen. The headlights use a gas-discharge arc instead of a bulb filament, producing three times as much light and consuming 50 per cent less energy than traditional halogen headlights.
Philips says the lamps increase safety for drivers by offering greater visibility and illuminating objects ahead on the road much sooner, whether they are obstacles, signs, others vehicles or pedestrians and cyclists. In addition, they stimulate the human eye in darkness or poor light, which helps reduce driver fatigue.
"This investment confirms our continuing ambition to grow and strengthen our position in the automotive lighting industry," said Paul van den Kerkhoff, Manager of the Aachen Competence Centre.
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