Pacific Lighting Systems

What Pacific Lighting Systems does

Pacific Lighting Systems (PLS) is a privately held manufacturer representative network headquartered across two offices in Kent, WA (West team) and Spokane Valley, WA (East team), serving the Pacific Northwest commercial lighting market. The company represents multiple premium lighting fixture and controls manufacturers — including Nuura, Louis Poulsen, and NeO — and earns commissions by providing sales coverage, technical support, quotations, and project management to contractors, electrical distributors, and specification buyers across commercial construction projects.

PLS's core proprietary offering is SimplSubmtl (Simplified Submittal), a documentation platform launched in 2025 that consolidates lighting controls shop drawings, RFIs, exclusions, switch schedules, network maps, and quick-link references onto a small set of standardized, navigable pages. The platform works across manufacturer brands, technologies, and local electrical codes, replacing the traditional dozens-of-pages documentation format with a streamlined alternative designed for users of any technical background. Complementing the platform, PLS delivers professional services spanning design assistance, technical expertise, estimating, project management, and field-service programming and startup.

The business operates on a commission-based manufacturer-rep revenue model, supplemented by professional-services revenue tied to project execution. Go-to-market is driven by two direct field sales teams organized by territory, supported by a centralized quotations function, a dedicated controls-specialist group, and project managers who coordinate from quotation through completion. In 2025, following the unexpected passing of founder Seamas Markey, leadership transitioned to Matt Guilfoyle (President, Principal) and Raylyn Gore (Vice President, Principal), with continuity maintained across the 50+ person organization.

Name

Pacific Lighting Systems

Legal name

Pacific Lighting Systems

Website

https://plswa.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Pacific Lighting Systems is a Pacific Northwest manufacturer representative firm for commercial lighting and controls brands, operating through West and East Washington offices and serving contractors, distributors, and specification buyers with sales, design, and SimplSubmtl documentation services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Commercial Lighting Manufacturing Representation

NAICS

Commercial, Industrial, and Institutional Electric Lighting Fixture Manufacturing (335132)

SIC

Electric Lighting & Wiring Equipment (3640)

akta.pro primary industry

Industrial & Commercial Luminaires (High-bay, Low-bay, Troffers, Downlights) (IMAGAIAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Lighting Design Services (BPAHAKAJ)

Keywords

• Lighting manufacturer representative
• Commercial lighting controls
• Lighting specification services
• Architectural lighting distribution
• Lighting project management

Headquarters

HQ city

Kent

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Manufacturer Representative Commissions: PLS operates as a manufacturer representative firm earning commissions from the lighting and controls manufacturers they represent. They provide sales, technical support, quotations, and project management services to contractors, distributors, and specification buyers in the Pacific Northwest.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Pacific Lighting Systems (PLS) is a manufacturer representative firm for commercial lighting fixtures and controls in the Pacific Northwest. The company represents multiple world-class lighting and controls manufacturers, providing sales, technical support, quotations, design assistance, estimating, and project management services to contractors, distributors, and specification buyers across two territorial divisions (Western and Eastern Washington).

Product overview

Pacific Lighting Systems (PLS) operates as a manufacturer representative network for lighting fixtures and controls in the Pacific Northwest, offering a unified portfolio centered around their SimplSubmtl (Simplified Submittal) platform. This core product revolutionizes lighting control documentation by consolidating shop drawings, sequence of operations tables, network maps, and wiring diagrams into streamlined, accessible formats. PLS complements their technology platform with comprehensive services including design assistance, technical expertise, estimating, project management, and field service programming—serving as a trusted resource across both Western (Kent, WA) and Eastern (Spokane Valley, WA) territories for channel partners, contractors, and specifiers seeking lighting and control solutions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• SimplSubmtl (Simplified Submittal) Controls Platform Revolutionary lighting control shop drawing platform that consolidates technical documentation including RFIs, exclusions, project control notes, QR codes, switch schedules, and fixture information onto single, easily navigable pages, making lighting controls accessible to users of any technical background.
• Design Assistance Services Expert design support for lighting and control systems, helping clients find the right product for unique applications, provided to contractors, distributors, and specifiers in the Pacific Northwest.
• Technical Expertise Services Technical consulting services for lighting control systems including installation guidance and troubleshooting support for channel partners across PLS territories.
• Estimating Services Project cost estimation for lighting and control systems, including job costing and pricing negotiations with manufacturers on behalf of contractors and distributors.
• Project Management Services Comprehensive project coordination from quotation through project completion, including pricing issue resolution and coordination with manufacturers for commercial lighting and controls projects.
• Programming and Startup Services Field service for programming and startup of lighting control systems, including remote support, diagnostics, and training for contractors and end-users.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• NuuracoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPLS represents Nuura lighting products in their territories. Nuura is a Scandinavian lighting brand featuring hand-blown glass fixtures designed by artists like Sofie Refer, including the Anoli 13 chandelier collection.
• Louis PoulsencoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPLS represents Louis Poulsen, a renowned Danish lighting manufacturer known for architectural lighting fixtures including the Flindt Bollard product line.
• Great Plains Foundation / Solar MamasminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Markey family and PLS support the Solar Mamas initiative through donations. The Prudential Lighting Agency network funded 368 homes under the Dylan Michael Ellis Memorial Solar Lighting Project in Botswana, Africa. The program trains Solar Mamas to install solar home lighting systems in rural communities.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Signify: Global lighting leader (formerly Philips Lighting) offering Philips, Color Kinetics, and Interact controls. Signify is a major represented-manufacturer counterpart for rep firms like PLS and competes with multi-brand rep strategies through direct and consolidator channels.
• Hubbell Lighting: Hubbell’s lighting brands (Spectra, Litecontrol, Columbia) compete in the same specification and commercial construction channels PLS serves, and Hubbell also uses independent rep networks similar to PLS for regional coverage.
• Lutron Electronics: Dominant lighting-controls manufacturer whose specification-grade products (Athena, Quantum, Vive) are central to commercial controls projects PLS services. Lutron sets the documentation standards SimplSubmtl is competing to simplify.
• Leviton: Major lighting-controls manufacturer whose product lines (Lumina RF, GreenMax, Sapphire) are a candidate for the same kind of controls specialization PLS emphasizes, and whose rep network structure mirrors PLS’s go-to-market model.
• Eaton (Cooper Lighting Solutions): Eaton’s Cooper Lighting business (Halo, Metalux, Greengate, WaveLinx controls) operates in the same commercial lighting and controls specification space PLS addresses, and similarly relies on regional rep firms for project coverage.
• Legrand (Wattstopper): Legrand’s Wattstopper and Finelite lines compete in the commercial lighting-controls and fixtures specification market PLS serves, and similarly rely on independent rep firms for regional project coverage.
• Acuity Brands: One of the largest North American lighting and lighting-controls manufacturers. Acuity’s brand portfolio (Lithonia, Gotham, nLight, Distech) is among the line categories PLS represents, making it a key supplier-side counterparty as well as a potential competitor if Acuity pushes direct rep coverage in the PNW.
• Current Lighting (formerly GE Current): Commercial and industrial lighting/controls manufacturer with a strong rep-driven channel and a controls portfolio (Daintree, NX) that overlaps the specification space where PLS differentiates via SimplSubmtl.

Regional players

• Billows Electric Supply: Mid-Atlantic electrical and lighting distributor serving a similar contractor and distributor customer base. While PLS is a rep rather than a distributor, both compete for influence over the same specification-to-procurement workflow in their respective regions.

Direct peers

• Prudential Lighting Agency: Long-standing lighting manufacturer’s representative agency with a similar multi-line, multi-territory rep model. PLS’s own data references the “Prudential Lighting Agency network’’ in connection with its Solar Mamas charitable initiative, indicating they operate within or adjacent to the same national rep network.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/p/DWPSeigkixp

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Pacific Lighting Systems