The 40-year-old Huang Chun Hao says he still breaks out in a cold sweat when he thinks back over the six years since he and Michael ­Huang founded Xing Tai Guang Co., Ltd.—XTG Lighting—because neither of them had a background in tech or relevant work experience.

XTG has received numerous patents for its products. Even Philips, a giant in the lighting field, has sent representatives to the company to learn from its efforts. (courtesy of XTG Lighting)

From outsiders to gurus

“I used to be in real-estate sales,” recalls Chun Hao. “I even sold disinfectant during one slow period. Michael has a law degree and managed the legal affairs office of a private company for years. It was probably the brilliant rays of light shooting out of these bright bulbs that started us dreaming about going into business for ourselves.”

In the runup to establishing their company in early 2010, the two men focused their attention on the LED lighting market. The competition in the field was intense. Chun Hao says that they had set aside NT$1 million in capital to get things going, but soon discovered that all of their rivals were transnational companies with billions at their disposal, and experienced a moment of panic wondering how small fry like themselves were going to fend off such whales.

They founded XTG Lighting together, determined to build it from the ground up. Chun Hao says they bought examples of every kind of light on the market, including mercury vapor, sodium, and LED lamps, as well as a variety of other new products, then tested them all. They found that Philips’ ceramic discharge metal-halide (CDM) lamps outperformed everything else they tested in terms of luminosity, color temperature, color rendering, reflectance, and luminous flux. They were also long lasting, with small bulbs standing up to 15‡20,000 hours of use.

XTG has received numerous patents for its products. Even Philips, a giant in the lighting field, has sent representatives to the company to learn from its efforts. (courtesy of XTG Lighting)

Small but powerful

Chun Hao, who serves as the company’s chief executive, explains that CDM lamps were originally used for interior lighting in commercial markets, but the results of their own testing persuaded them that these high-efficiency lights deserved a broader market. They felt that they could make them much more effective by bundling them with reflectors, ballasts and lamp sets.

CDM lamps were originally designed for interior use, but with good water and dust protection and good reflectors they can also provide outstanding illumination to large exterior spaces, including streets, factories, and public areas.

After years of research, XTG has developed lamp modules that deliver highly energy-efficient lighting. Chun Hao says that the company’s fifth generation of products meet more than 20 domestic energy-efficiency standards. After innumerable on-site checks at client locations, XTG has further determined that high-intensity, high-efficiency CMD lamps outperform all other lamps.

Many domestic entities, both public and private, are now using XTG’s lamps for street lighting and other applications requiring lamps mounted high above the illuminated space. The company has also received orders from firms in 12 other nations, including mainland China, the Philippines, and Myan­mar. CMD manufacturer Philips was surprised that Chun Hao and Michael had found ways to utilize their bulbs in such high-efficiency integrated applications and sent representatives to Taiwan to see what XTG was doing. The two companies have since gone on to form a close partnership.

XTG has received numerous patents for its products. Even Philips, a giant in the lighting field, has sent representatives to the company to learn from its efforts. (courtesy of XTG Lighting)

Long-lasting bulbs

XTG’s production facility in the Feng­shan District of Kao­hsiung employs just five people. Michael acts as the general manager and handles most of their development of overseas markets. Chun Hao serves as the chief executive and manages the factory and the domestic side of the business. XTG’s other three employees handle technical and administrative tasks.

Many of the senior executives of large firms who visit them are surprised to find such a small company holding its own in the fiercely competitive lighting market. Chun Hao says that the company is a fully vertically integrated business that uses specialist firms to carry out functions at every level, both in Taiwan and abroad.

Chun Hao took advantage of the economic slowdown to break into the market. Touting the energy-­saving properties of CDM bulbs, he encouraged public and private entities to use XTG’s products. He stressed that the bulbs would last an average of 15 years, which meant that each cost less than NT$3 per day to use and would save the purchaser an average of NT$15,000 in electricity costs over its 15-year life span. By extension, a large purchaser using 1,000 of his company’s lamps could save more than NT$10 million.

Firms want to see a product’s capabilities for themselves before they buy. When company CEO ­Huang Chun Hao told China Steel that XTG’s lamps were one-quarter the price, brighter, and longer-lasting than those imported from abroad, China Steel had doubts and decided to test this no-name upstart’s products for itself.

XTG has received numerous patents for its products. Even Philips, a giant in the lighting field, has sent representatives to the company to learn from its efforts. (courtesy of XTG Lighting)

Saving energy, lighting Taiwan

There are many hurdles to overcome when selling to a big company. China Steel told XTG that the high temperatures and particulate matter in the air of its steel mills caused normal lamps to fail at a high rate, and that it had to replace them several times a year. It said that if XTG’s new lamps could last two months without failing, it would buy them.

Chun Hao felt that this was XTG’s great opportunity to test its products in the real world and immediately agreed to install its lamps free of charge. The lamps didn’t merely meet China Steel’s two-month criterion, they far surpassed it, lasting for three years in the harsh environment. China Steel was very satisfied with their performance, and ultimately installed them throughout the entire plant.

XTG also operates something it calls an “energy-saver program” under which clients purchasing the com­pany’s products don’t pay for them upfront, but instead pay XTG the money they save on power expenses. One participant in the program, a township administration in central Taiwan, received 2,300 street lamps at no upfront cost, and will instead remit its electricity savings to XTG on an annual basis. XTG firmly believes that focusing on distribution rather than price will help it open doors in emerging markets.

The company’s products are now illuminating streets in southern Taiwan, and are also mounted atop skyscrapers along the banks of Kao­hsiung’s Love River. Chun Hao says that now that they’ve established a solid foundation for the company, they plan to work on extending its footprint around the world, and that he and Michael get very excited every time one of their products receives a patent in another country. Nonetheless, the team continues to strive towards a more immediate objective, which remains, as their product brochure says, “illuminating Taiwan.”

Michael Huang and Huang Chun Hao seemingly never stop striving to reach their goals. But, on the rare occasions when they do pause for breath, they can lift their eyes and see their own products illuminating Taiwan’s urban skyline. Their hope is that the lighting equipment they are developing will one day light up night skies the world over, just as they have in Taiwan.

XTG has received numerous patents for its products. Even Philips, a giant in the lighting field, has sent representatives to the company to learn from its efforts. (courtesy of XTG Lighting)

The pinnacles of these two tall buildings on the banks of Kaohsiung’s Love River are brightly lit by CDM lamps. (courtesy of XTG Lighting)

XTG Lighting’s “green” R&D has focused on energy-saving lighting, and made the company a true “light of Taiwan.” (courtesy of XTG Lighting)

The pinnacles of these two tall buildings on the banks of Kaohsiung’s Love River are brightly lit by CDM lamps. (courtesy of XTG Lighting)

Kaohsiung now uses CDM lamps to light some of its streets. One small CDM lamp can light up the night.