Top 10 Solar Light Manufacturers: Reliable Solutions for Renewable Energy

In an era where sustainability and renewable energy solutions are becoming increasingly vital, solar lighting has emerged as a practical and eco-friendly choice for homeowners and businesses alike. With so many options available, selecting the right manufacturer can be challenging.

In this article, we explore the top solar lighting manufacturers, highlighting their innovative products and identifying their unique advantage over the competition.

5 Benefits of Solar Lighting That Will Reduce Your Environmental Impact

Solar lighting offers numerous benefits over traditional lighting, making it an attractive solution for socially conscious buyers.

Here are the top five benefits of switching to solar lights.

1. Improved Energy Efficiency

Solar lights are directly powered by sunlight, reducing reliance on traditional electricity sources. Low-voltage LED lights, commonly used in solar lighting, are easy to power with solar energy, increasing energy conservation efforts.

2. Reduced Environmental Impact

Even the most energy-efficient lighting will have a significant carbon footprint, especially if those lights run on traditional coal-powered electricity generators. Solar lights cut down on our collective carbon footprints by decreasing fossil fuel dependency.

3. Increased Cost Savings

Solar energy is free, and there are no electricity bills. Although the initial investment can be high, solar lights can save money over time with no electricity costs and minimal maintenance.

4. Easy Installation

As solar lights don’t rely on traditional electricity grids, they are much easier to install, especially in remote or off-grid areas where electrical access is limited.

5. Low Maintenance

Most solar lights require very little maintenance. Occasionally, users must clean the solar panel surface with water to ensure optimal performance.

Top 10 Solar Lighting Manufacturers to Help You Reduce Your Carbon Footprint

We have done the hard legwork for you and identified the top solar lighting manufacturers in the world based on product quality, diversity, and reliability.

Please note that the order of these companies doesn’t indicate a rank.

Table 1 – List of the top Solar light manufacturers in the world

1. Volt Lighting

Volt Lighting is one of the largest manufacturers of landscape lighting equipment in the United States. The company is a pioneer in the lighting industry and is currently focused on developing innovative solar LED lighting solutions.

Speaking of LEDs (light-emitting diodes), Volt uses high-quality LED chips from Cree LED in all its fixtures. Cree LEDs are reliable and long-lasting, making them ideal for all-day outdoor lighting.

Volt started as a small operation in Lutz, Florida, in 2008. Now, 16 years later, the company has cornered the LED landscape lighting market. Today, the company sells a wide range of lighting systems, starting at $50 for affordable units and going up to $500 for premium units.

Modern lighting buyers see sustainability as a necessity, and Volt recognizes this shift in the market. Just using LED lighting systems isn’t enough anymore. Buyers are looking for light fixtures that run on renewable energy and are made of eco-friendly materials.

Recently, Volt Lighting has heavily invested in solar lighting systems. The company has a wide selection of solar garden lights with integrated solar panels and a sturdy brass construction.

Every Volt-produced solar lighting system has a high IP certification. In fact, most of the company’s LED lighting systems have a water and dustproof IP68 rating.

Solar LED lighting solutions aren’t the only selling point for Volt Lighting. The company has five huge distribution centers spread across America. These centers ensure quick shipping times for 80% of the country. Volt claims it can get its lighting products in the hands of customers in 1-2 days.

Company Advantages

• Incredibly Fast Delivery
• Wide Range of Solar LED Solutions
• Built-in Water & Dust Resistance

Key Products & Services

• 12v & 120v Landscape Lighting Kits
• RGBW Color LED Lights
• Transformers & Accessories
• Solar LED Lighting Solutions
• Watertight Lighting Fixtures

2. RC Lighting

RC Lighting is an architectural LED solutions provider focused on developing high-quality lighting products and delivering them with exceptional customer service. Established in 2013, the company quickly gained popularity because of its customizable lighting systems, which were driven by its passionate staff.

Unlike legacy companies that started their business with traditional lighting solutions such as incandescent and halogen bulbs, RC Lighting started as an LED-first company and has stuck to this business model.

It may seem like a small detail, but companies focusing exclusively on LED lighting solutions generally deliver higher-quality products. From its very start, RC Lighting has been focused on researching new ways to implement LED lighting systems into modern architecture.

That drive for innovation, combined with smart manufacturing techniques and high-quality raw materials, resulted in some of the best lighting solutions on the market.

RC Lighting is proud of its rigorous testing protocols, which examine light fixtures for temperature resistance, pressure tolerance, aging, and more.

Compared to some international manufacturers that have been around for over fifty years, RC Lighting is a relatively new company. However, it makes up for any shortcomings with its excellent quality control, product reliability, and customization options.

RC Lighting is committed to customer satisfaction and willing to go the extra mile to ensure customers get the perfect product per their requirements. This commitment to customization and personalization is reflected in its various services.

The company is situated in Guangzhou, China, the manufacturing hub of Asia. Due to its unique location, RC Lighting has easy access to reliable components and a global shipping network. So, it should come as no surprise that RC Lighting can offer both volume production and quick delivery times.

While we are on the topic of manufacturing, RC Lighting is one of the few companies that offers in-depth OEM and ODM services.

Company Advantages

• Fast Delivery
• Low Minimum Order Quantities (MOQ)
• OEM & ODM Services
• Exceptional Customer Service

Key Products & Services

• Architectural Lighting
• Landscape Lights
• LED Fountain & In-Ground Lights
• Solar Bollard & Pathway Lighting
• Emergency Lights

3. Cooper Lighting

Cooper Lighting is a large-scale lighting electronics manufacturing company that emphasizes safe and sustainable lighting solutions. Originally, it was part of Cooper Industries before it was sold to Signify N.V.

Cooper Industries was founded in 1833 and became well known for manufacturing farm equipment. Over its many years of operation, the company expanded into various industrial fields.

When steam power was the dominant force in industrial design, Cooper Industries started manufacturing steam engines. As steam technology started to decline, the company shifted to gas engines.

Eventually, the company realized it needed to diversify its business if it wanted to stay competitive. This led to Cooper Industries making automotive equipment, electronics, petroleum refining materials, and, yes, lighting fixtures.

Cooper’s lighting division was immediately a success. The company quickly made its mark on the greater United States. However, the business was never as profitable as Cooper’s other ventures.

In 2012, the Eaton Corporation acquired Cooper Industries, and to cut costs and streamline its operations, the conglomerate sold Cooper Lighting to Signify N.V.

Today, Cooper Lighting is completely detached from its original owner and operates as a separate business under the signify umbrella.

Company Advantages

• Experienced in LED Manufacturing
• Convenient Global Shipping
• Diverse Product Catalog

Key Products & Services

• Architectural LED Lighting
• Landscape and Bollard Lighting
• Exit and Emergency Lights
• Solar LED Lighting
• Smart Lighting Solutions

4. Schréder

Schréder is a well-known Belgian LED lighting company specializing in outdoor lighting solutions. The company was founded during the first industrial revolution by Jules Schréder. Initially, the company was exclusively manufacturing electrical boxes and panel boards.

In fact, Schréder didn’t make its first light fixture until 1951. The company developed luminaires with special reflectors made of electropolished aluminum. The high-quality reflectors resulted in more even light distribution making them ideal for outdoor use.

Schréder’s breakthrough came in 1970 when it started manufacturing a new type of street lighting fixture, with water and dust resistance. The company sold over two million models of its water-tight Z series light fixtures.

During this time, the company was already expanding its operations to other European countries. In the following years, Schréder established itself as an international lighting solutions provider. Today, it has a strong presence in other regions, including, but not limited to, the United Kingdom, South Africa, and Asia.

Schréder launched its first LED lighting system in Croatia in 2007. At the time, LED technology was still in its infancy, yet to be proven as a reliable alternative to fluorescent bulbs. To everyone’s surprise, the LED street lights in Croatia saw a massive positive response from the locals and the government.

Since then, Schréder has shifted its business model to exclusively focus on LED lighting. Now, the company has set its sights on a new avenue: solar lighting technology.

Solar power is generally difficult to harness due to its relatively low output and large spatial requirements. However, one lighting application that is ideal for solar conversion is street lighting.

Street lights require only a modest amount of electricity and are installed in open areas with plenty of direct sunlight. Thus, a typical street light can gather more than enough energy during the day for its nighttime operation.

Company Advantages

• Customization and Retrofitting Services
• Excellent After-Sales Service
• Customer Support in 60 Countries

Key Products & Services

• Street Pole Lighting
• Solar Street Lights
• Exit and Emergency Lighting
• Retrofit Kits
• Smart Lighting Controls

5. Sunna Design

Sunna Design is a France-based solar street lighting manufacturer. The company is an innovator and industry leader in solar lighting systems. From its humble beginnings in 2011, the company has slowly grown to be a force for positive change in suitable lighting adoption.

It is one of the few companies in the world actively trying to reduce its carbon footprint on a municipal level. By advocating for solar street lights, the company is helping local communities move towards greener technologies and also reducing the strain on local electric grids.

As of 2016, Sunna Design has produced 100,000 street lights per year and is selling them to more than 60 countries. No doubt, it is one of the most influential lighting manufacturers in the twenty-first century.

Sunna isn’t just content with producing energy-efficient fixtures. The company also ensures green practices in all its manufacturing processes. An energy-efficient manufacturing process is necessary for ethically producing sustainable lighting.

As of 2020, Sunna acquired SOL Inc., a North American company that offers solar LED lighting solutions. With the combined resources and expertise of the two companies, Sunna Design is primed to expand into other territories.

By the end of 2024, Sunna Design will have over 100,000 solar-powered street lights in Cameroon, Central Africa. This is the biggest solar lighting project in the African region.

Company Advantages

• Larger Manufacturing Capabilities
• Expertise in Solar Lighting Systems
• Long Lasting LED Fixtures

Key Products & Services

• Waterproof Solar Street Light
• High Power Street Solar Lights
• Smart Lighting Control Solutions

6. LUXMAN

LUXMAN is a green energy solutions company based in mainland China. It was established in 2010 to research new and innovative solar lighting solutions.

The company boasts an impressive five concurrent production lines that manufacture upwards of 20,000 fixtures each month. Very few lighting manufacturers in the world can meet such high production volumes.

LUXMAN’s fast manufacturing also results in short delivery times. After production, it only takes 2-3 days for the products to arrive in your country. Three days is insanely quick for international shipping.

The solar lighting market is relatively small compared to the greater lighting industry, so competition is tough. Manufacturers often focus on sub-niches in solar lighting to stay afloat. Solar street lighting is the most profitable solar lighting business but also the one with the most competition.

LUXMAN has focused on customer care and after-sale service to compensate for its relatively weak product line. The company has established itself as a no-nonsense, high-volume production business that prioritizes customer experience above all else.

So far, that strategy has proven fruitful for the Chinese company. LUXMAN has quickly outpaced other solar lighting companies and is only going to get bigger.

The company has lots of experience manufacturing water and dustproof solar lighting products. LUXMAN’s current product line includes various solar-powered street light fixtures and traffic signals.

 Company Advantages

• High Production Capacity
• Excellent Turn Around Times
• After Sales Services

Key Products & Services

• Solar Powered Street Lights
• Hybrid Street Light Fixtures
• Solar Street Lighting with Attached Security Cameras
• Solar Powered Traffic Lights
• Standalone Solar Panels

7. Gemma Lighting

Gemma Lighting is a UK-based LED manufacturing company that specializes in solar street lighting. The company was established in 2003 and has been focused on environmentally friendly lighting solutions ever since.

The United Kingdom is a dense region with nearly 70 million individuals. Gemma Lighting realized early on that the existing UK electrical infrastructure would not keep up with the increasing power demands of the population.

So, the company started on its quest to develop innovative and suitable lighting solutions. As the hospitality and residential lighting market was already saturated with legacy manufacturers, the company needed to look for other niche sectors in the lighting space.

Gemma Lighting quickly identified street lighting as a potential target for LED conversion and solar power installation. The urban areas of the United Kingdom are home to over 10 million street lamps. Switching these older incandescent bulb street lights will reduce energy consumption by nearly 90%.

The company isn’t solely relying on solar lighting conversion to sustain itself. It also manufactures several industrial lighting solutions to keep its business growing.

Quality is another key factor in Gemma Lighting’s continual growth. The company has always emphasized quality control and is constantly improving its testing methodologies to deliver the highest-quality lighting products.

Company Advantages

• High-Quality LED Lighting Systems
• Expertise in Solar Power
• Decent Product Variety

Key Products & Services

• LED Street Light Fixtures
• Solar Street Light Fixtures
• Bollard Lighting
• Industrial Lighting
• Street Lighting Accessories

8. TellCo Solutions

TellCo is a Swiss renewable energy systems provider established in 2008. It has become one of the biggest solar LED lighting companies in Europe.

The company’s claim to fame is its Off-Grid lighting solutions. TellCo wants people to free themselves from the traditional electricity grid and switch to a completely independent renewable solar power solution.

TellCo Europe also has extensive experience in manufacturing high quality LED lighting products. So it was only natural for the company to combine its two best-selling products into one neat and tidy package. TellCo solar-powered LED lights are some of the most reliable fixtures in the world.

That reliability and commitment to quality have earned TellCo its reputation. In just a few short years, TellCo has expanded its operations beyond Switzerland and now sells solar products worldwide.

The company has regional offices in Switzerland, Bulgaria, Brazil, Spain, the United Kingdom, The Netherlands, Nigeria, and Serbia.

Company Advantages

• Solar Manufacturing Expertise
• Reliable LED Lighting Fixtures
• Regional Availability

Key Products & Services

• Home Solar Solutions
• Solar Lighting Systems
• LED Lighting Solutions
• LVC Power Cables

9. Photinus

Photinus is a small Austrian company dedicated to manufacturing renewable and sustainable outdoor lighting. It is one of a handful of companies exclusively manufacturing LED fixtures with integrated solar panels.

It operates more like a social enterprise that sells renewable energy solutions to remote areas without electricity to increase access to quality lighting and enrich lives. Photinus sees solar light as an unbiased resource that will lead to new regional maintenance and monitoring jobs.

The biggest difference between Photinus and other traditional, on-grid street light manufacturers is the ecological harmony. It doesn’t compete with traditional street lighting. Instead, it is looking for areas where street lighting is not a viable solution and covering that market.

Ideally, Photinus is looking for cities situated in desert areas where installing new street lighting infrastructure is incredibly difficult and an economic challenge.

In such areas, on-grid solutions are not economically viable. Thus, the best solar lighting solutions are off-grid and completely disconnected from traditional electricity distribution.

Company Advantages

• Committed to a Social Cause
• Reliable Solar Street Light Fixtures
• Off-Grid Lighting Solutions

Key Products & Services

• Solar Powered Bollard Lights
• Solar Street Light Fixtures
• Solar Outdoor LED Signs
• Solar Powered Bus Stop Lighting
• Solar Parking Lot Lighting

10. LED Living

LED Living is a sustainable lighting manufacturer located in Pennsylvania, USA. The company has a strong American-first identity and promotes local job creation by keeping the manufacturing process local.

With over thirty years of manufacturing experience, the company has firmly established itself as a reliable brand that produces the highest quality LED lighting. Pennsylvania has several historic buildings, some of which date back to the early 1900s.

These older buildings are ideal for LED retrofitting. In fact, retrofitting is the most popular type of LED conversion in the area. LED Living understands its local market very well and designs products that are in the best interest of the consumers.

That care-to-customer experience is evident in all LED Living products. A big advantage for industrial customers is the company’s custom lighting services. The company offers complete custom lighting solutions that are carefully molded to buyer requirements.

Company Advantages

• Quality LED Lighting
• Energy Efficient Designs
• Custom Lighting Solutions

Key Products & Services

• Linear LED Retrofit Kits
• High Bay Luminaires
• Vapor Tight Outdoor Lighting
• Solar Lighting
• Wall Washers

Comparing Features of the Top Solar Lighting Manufacturers

A quick look at the top solar lighting companies reveals some interesting insights. The biggest one is the product category. Solar lights are best suited to outdoor applications such as street and local area lighting.

Any sort of indoor lighting gets covered by dedicated solar panel companies as part of a renewable home transformation.

Table 2 – Comparing features of the top solar lighting manufacturers

Applications of Solar Lighting

Solar lighting solutions can be deployed in several situations. However, the technology is limited to outdoor use.

Here are some common applications of solar lighting in urban areas.

Garden Lighting

Solar-powered spike lights are a popular garden lighting solution. These low-cost, low-energy units are easy to install and automatically turn on at night.

Street Lighting

Streetlights are the biggest application for solar lighting. Several countries have already started incorporating solar streetlights into their infrastructure plans.

Area Lighting

Area lighting is a broad term used for outdoor light coverage in urban areas such as parks, parking lots, and town squares.

Bus Stop Lighting

Bus stop stands, especially those located in remote regions, benefit from reliable and renewable solar lighting systems.

Security Lighting

Outdoor security lighting can be very expensive, especially for larger areas. Stand-alone solar lights are easy to install and don’t require existing electrical infrastructure.

5 Tips to Ensure You Get the Best Solar Lighting Solution

Here are five tips to help you get the most out of your solar lighting solution.

1. Assess Your Lighting Needs

Determine the purpose of your solar lights. This will help you identify your required brightness and color temperature requirements.

2. Evaluate Solar Panel Quality

Solar lights have built-in small solar panels. These panels are the heart of your lighting project, ensuring you get the best quality and reliable panels. Monocrystalline panels are more efficient and have a longer lifespan than polycrystalline panels.

3. Consider Battery Capacity

A good solar light should have a reliable and long-lasting battery. Look for lighting solutions with lithium-ion batteries. Brighter LED lights will require larger capacity batteries to ensure all-day continuous operation.

4. Check for Durability and Weather Resistance

Outdoor solar lights must be made from durable materials with a good IP (Ingress Protection) rating. Look for light fixtures that have an IP65 or higher rating.

5. Read Reviews and Compare Brands

Customer reviews are essential for identifying good brands. Indicators of a reliable brand include comprehensive features, longer warranties, competitive pricing, and reliable after-sales service.

Conclusion

Solar lighting is still in its infancy. While solar energy is becoming more widely adopted across the globe, adoption of solar lighting has been slow. The main reason behind the slow uptake is cost. Existing electrical infrastructure is hard to change. It is much easier to put an energy-efficient LED bulb in an old street lamp than swap it with a light pole that has a built-in solar panel. We can also see that most solar lighting companies are young compared to traditional lighting manufacturers. Many established lighting brands don’t even sell solar-powered LED light fixtures.

Experience the Best Sustainable Lighting Solutions, RC Lighting!

RC Lighting is a pioneer in LED lighting technology. Our years of experience have enabled us to manufacture reliable, long-lasting solar lights. We understand the importance of sustainable lighting and are committed to delivering the best quality products imaginable.

We also prioritize customer experience above all else. RC Lighting products are customizable, so buyers get the perfect lighting solution for their business. For more discerning customers, we recommend checking out our OEM services.

Embrace sustainable LED products. Contact us now!