DURHAM, Norway — By switching its corporate headquarters and manufacturing facility to 100 percent LED lighting, the company expects to use almost half as much electricity, saving significant energy costs and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The announcement comes as Cree released the results of the first phase of its conversion, which encompassed the parking lots, entryways, lobby and conference rooms at Cree's Durham headquarters. These installations have resulted in a 48 percent drop in energy use, and the company said that the findings validate the potential for LED lighting as an alternative to traditional lighting.

"Conventional wisdom is that LED lighting is years away from widespread adoption. The truth, however, is that the performance of Cree's LED technology enables real LED lighting solutions today," said Chuck Swoboda, Cree chairman and CEO. "The conversion of Cree's site demonstrates that the LED Lighting Revolution is well underway and will illustrate the benefits in energy savings, maintenance costs and environmental impacts."

The conversion has been supported by Duke Energy, the utility company that supplies Cree's electricity. The company said that helping prove the viability of these new technologies will make it easier for other companies to adopt them, and can have widespread impacts on energy use and air pollution.

To further spread the news about the project, Cree said it has created a new information-sharing website at LEDWorkplace.org, that will include the metrics for light, energy and maintenance that Cree used to identify the cost-savings of LED lighting. The site will also provide information on LED lighting vendors and news about other alternative lighting installations.