Essential News

● With US $ 1 million investment, Sylvania LAB has a high-tech area to continue innovating in the design and manufacture of lighting products.

● More than 155 luminaries are manufactured in Costa Rica and exported to different markets worldwide such as Central America, South America, the Caribbean and Mexico.

Costa Rica, August 10, 2018 - Sylvania, leader in the development of professional lighting solutions, opened the doors of Sylvania LAB, a 350m2 high-tech space that represents an investment of US $ 1 million, created for products’ development of high specification for different industries.

The Minister of Foreign Trade, Dyalá Jiménez, was very pleased and indicated: "Sylvania, a leading company in the development of professional lighting solutions, is a good example of the sustained growth of foreign direct investment in Costa Rica with an annual average rate of 3.7% since 2007. The presence of Sylvania, its constant evolution and the construction of this new laboratory, evidence the hard work that, as a sector, we do to attract quality companies. We are very proud of the trust it has placed in the country, where it is generating employment and quality opportunities for 370 employees and their families. We remain committed to strengthening the conditions of education, services, connectivity and infrastructure to allow more companies like Sylvania to continue growing in Costa Rica. My congratulations and thanks to this great company that has bet for our country and our people."

"Sylvania LAB will support the Research and Development department, where Costa Rican engineers design luminaires that are exported to South America, Central America, the Caribbean and Mexico; as well as the Project Engineering, Products and Quality Control departments. This is possible thanks to the new lab’s high-tech machinery, which allows measurements of all the light characteristics,” said Tiago Pereira de Queiroz, General Manager of Feilo Sylvania Central America, the Caribbean and Mexico.

The laboratory has more than 20 high-tech equipment, that speed up the testing processes of products designed in the country, as well as the verification of imported products. Some of the equipment is unique in Central America, and the laboratory is the first one operated by a private company in the region.

Jorge Sequeira, Managing Director of CINDE, commented: "Costa Rica ranks first in innovation in Latin America according to the World Economic Forum in 2017-2018. Precisely, the capacity shown by the Costa Rican human talent helps companies like Sylvania to expand their research and development areas (R andamp; D) by adding value to their local operations and positively impacting the country’s growth. Costa Rica’s Central Bank estimates that R andamp; D exports, of the Free Trade Zone regime companies, were more than $ 300 million in 2017, which represents almost 10% of exports of knowledge-intensive services in FTZ that year. "

Segmented into four areas: photometric, electrical, thermal measurements and mechanical testing area such as impact, vibration and hermeticity, Sylvania LAB facilitates the development of specific luminaires for different industries.

Among the tests that can be performed are light measurements, simulating the effects that a lightning would have on the power line; resistance due to vandalism, wind effects, submission to strong pressures of water or heat, movement generated by vehicles on the roads, among others.

"Sylvania LAB will allow us to develop products for the specific needs of our customers from different sectors throughout the region, relying on local talent, promoting the use of LED technology and reducing delivery times," said Pereira de Queiroz.

Currently Sylvania exports more than 155 luminaries manufactured in Costa Rica, some designed by local engineers and tested in the laboratory, allowing them to reduce the delivery time of the final product, giving a better attention to the clients and the possibility of increasing the export volume.

"The product manufactured at Sylvania LAB will have technical support. In the mid-term, we intend to create a legal entity in the laboratory to expand the services as an additional business to the company, and sell the service to the market, "added Tiago Pereira de Queiroz.

New plant supports growth

The investment made in the laboratory is complemented by US $ 2.5 million for the construction of the new manufacturing plant in Costa Rica, which will begin operations in 2019.

The two-level structure, will host a wide space to manufacturing LED products and the administrative area, creating 100 jobs. In addition, it will be installed under the Free Trade Zone regime and will be built adjacent to the company's current facilities, in Pavas’ Industrial Zone.

"Thanks to a growing demand of the market, we want to expand the operation and increase the production capacity in Costa Rica, always promoting the conversion to LED technology", emphasized the General Manager of Sylvania for Central America, the Caribbean and Mexico.

In Costa Rica, Sylvania has 273 employees, divided into administrative and manufacturing tasks. The new plant will be a complement to the existing operation and with both areas are fully operational, the company will have around 370 collaborators in Costa Rica, which will be added to another 180 that work in countries of Central America and Mexico.

About Feilo Sylvania

It is a leading company that develops professional lighting solutions with 50 years of operations in Central America that provides products and services focused on the public’s needs, commercial, industrial and private sectors. It is one of the world's leading producers of lighting sources and manufactures a wide range of lamps and luminaires of various technologies: Light Emitting Diodes (LED), Incandescent, High Intensity Discharge (HID), Halogen and Fluorescent.

In Costa Rica, Sylvania has the only UL certified Central American metalworking plant that manufactures LED luminaires for regional and Latin American market.

Its presence in the region extends to Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Dominican Republic, Panama, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Cuba, Trinidad and Tobago, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Guyana, Suriname, Haiti, Barbados, Grenada, Saint Lucia and Bahamas. http://www.sylvania-americas.com/