FROM LEFT: Dr. Mark Halton, Senior Research Fellow, Dept of Electronics and Computer Engineering, University of Limerick; Conor McAuliffe, CEO, Ikon Semiconductor;

CORK Ireland, 10 Nov 2011: Ikon Semiconductor Limited ("Ikon"), a Bank of Ireland Seed and Early Stage Equity Fund Portfolio Company, in which the University of Limerick Foundation is an investor, has entered into one of Enterprise Ireland’s ‘Innovation Partnerships’ with the University of Limerick ("UL"). The Dublin-based fabless semiconductor company is developing more efficient and cost effective LED driver solutions for the LED lighting industry, the fastest growing and most efficient source of green energy lighting. This Enterprise Ireland funded innovative research collaboration will accelerate the development of new digitally controlled integrated circuits for next generation LED lighting solutions.

As many governments around the world work to phase out incandescent lighting following the EU ban on the manufacture of 60-watt incandescent light bulbs in September, Ikon is focused on the residential and commercial LED bulb replacement market which is expected to grow exponentially from 80 million units in 2011 to 430 million units by 2013.

Commenting on the announcement, Orla Rimmington, Operations Director, Kernel Capital, said: "Innovation is the key driver for growth and job creation for Bank of Ireland Kernel Capital investee companies. We are very pleased by this new and exciting research collaboration between Ikon Semiconductor and the University of Limerick which is an existing investor in Kernel Capital."

Conor McAuliffe, CEO of Ikon Semiconductor, added: "We are delighted to embark on a collaborative Enterprise Ireland funded ‘Innovation Partnership’ project with the University of Limerick. We see significant benefits in collaborations such as this that will open up valuable commercial opportunities in this rapidly growing global market."

According to Tom Bannon who manages Enterprise Ireland’s Innovation Partnership programme, "Collaboration between companies and the third level sector is internationally recognised as a proven path to successful innovation. Enterprise Ireland’s Innovation Partnerships offers the financial support to enable companies like Ikon to seize the opportunity to work with academic researchers to develop new innovations, which will lead to greater market share and drive up profits."

The Innovation Partnership will see experienced UL post-doctorate researchers dedicated to the research program for the next 18 months. Dr. Mark Halton, Principle Investigator on the project and based at the Dept. of Electronics and Computer Engineering (ECE), University of Limerick said: "This is an excellent example of University-industry collaboration that will result in the commercialisation of research outputs for the benefit of the Irish economy; it is a very exciting development for us."


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For further information please contact:

Orla Rimmington, Operations Director,
Kernel Capital
Tel: +353 21 4928974 / Fax: +353 21 4928977