LED lighting is in transition from being developed to replace conventional incandescent or fluorescent lamps for reducing electrical and maintenance costs, and for increasing reliability, to a new stage that the LED luminare designs no longer mimic the form factors of conventional luminaires and new features such as smart lighting technology and system integration are incorporated into the designs. LED tube lights, a once-superstar LED lighting product, are driving lighting manufacturers into a dilemma as the market is shrinking and the profitable price point is extremely difficult to maintain. This popular fluorescent lamp retrofit is facing the threat from other linear lighting fixtures such as LED wraparounds, triproofs, and more advanced trunking systems which beat T8/T5 LED tubes in both aesthetics and performance. More and more commercial lighting projects are using integrated lighting systems for smart control as well as to match the interior decors. Nonetheless there's still a big demand for LED tubes from lighting upgrading or retrofit projects with government rebates. The competition is steep, but there're manufacturers with competence due to high vertical integrations.
Let's discuss what're the success and risk factors for LED tube light manufacturers. What's your views on the market prospects for LED tube lights? What should small and medium-sized manufacturers do if they can not compete with big industry players in production cost?
