Munich, May 27, 2013 – For the sixth year running, the world’s largest exhibition for the solar industry, Intersolar Europe, is using the Intersolar AWARD to pay tribute to the industry’s innovative strength. The prize is awarded in the categories of Photovoltaics, Solar Thermal Technologies and Solar Projects in Europe. Exhibitors at Intersolar Europe as well as those attending the Intersolar North America and Intersolar India exhibitions were invited to put forward their pioneering products and services for the competition. Up to ten finalists in each individual category have now been selected with the winners being announced during an official ceremony at Intersolar Europe’s Innovation Exchange in hall B2, booth B2.450 at 4:30pm on June 19, 2013.
Since 2008, the Intersolar AWARD has been honoring outstanding services and products that impress thanks to the particular benefits they offer to society and the environment and the way in which they combine technical innovation with high rates of profitability. In cooperation with the German Solar Industry Association (BSW-Solar), the organizers of Intersolar Europe, Solar Promotion GmbH, Pforzheim, and Freiburg Wirtschaft Touristik und Messe GmbH & Co. KG (FWTM), want to use the prize to highlight the solar industry’s great innovative strength. In total, this year saw more than 100 companies applying for the renowned solar industry innovation prize.
Trends in the categories of Photovoltaics and Solar Thermal Technologies
Plunging feed-in tariffs for solar power are one of the principle driving forces behind innovation in the area of photovoltaics. In light of this climate, solutions for on-site consumption are becoming increasingly attractive. As a result, many of the entries for the Intersolar AWARD include energy storage solutions with a variety of technical concepts and storage capacities, ranging from inexpensive lead-acid gel batteries to products incorporating modern lithium-ion technology and from power storage systems for domestic installations to commercial battery systems as large as a shipping container. In addition to storage systems, many entries focus on control and regulation engineering, which aims to ensure that the next generation of inverters achieve even greater rates of efficiency than is the case today. Furthermore, modern control and regulation systems should help optimize on-site consumption.
A significant number of entries also cover the area of plant optimization. New cost-effective substructures for rooftop and ground-mounted PV plants are being designed as lightweight constructions that can be assembled quickly and without the need for any tools thanks to “click-in-place” solutions. Many of this year’s entries also incorporate plant services, ranging from cleaning robots for large-scale PV plants to theft protection and monitoring systems.
Plant optimization has emerged as an important trend in the area of solar thermal technologies. Against this backdrop, solutions for improving the concentration of solar radiation, precise tracking systems and innovative substructures have been submitted. There are also indications that efficiency is set to improve in the area of assembling installations. For example, “plug and heat” energy managers and individual modules that are sold with a higher degree of preassembly are expected to make starting up plants easier in the future.
Solar Projects in Europe
This year saw exhibitors being invited for the first time to make submissions in the category of Solar Projects in Europe. This area honors projects from the three topics of Photovoltaics and Energy Storage, PV Applications (Industrial and Commercial Use) and Solar Thermal Applications that have set a particularly inspiring example in driving forward the energy transition. The Intersolar AWARD in the area of Solar Projects was already presented in 2012 at Intersolar North America for the category of Solar Projects in North America and at Intersolar India for that of Solar Projects in India. This year’s entries range from large ground-mounted PV installations and solutions integrated into new buildings through to commercial plants optimized for on-site consumption and off-grid systems.
Evaluation criteria
The Intersolar AWARD 2013 was open to all exhibitors of the global Intersolar events taking place in 2013 as well as exhibitors from Intersolar India 2012. Both newly developed solutions and technologies as well as refinements to products and solutions previously presented could be submitted. Entries must have undergone industrial trials or already be in industrial use and projects that had already been realized were not permitted to be any more than two years old. The Intersolar AWARD in the category of PV Production Technologies, which has to date been presented at Intersolar Europe, is this year being awarded during Intersolar North America on July 9, 2013.
The finalists in the Photovoltaics category
The finalists for the Intersolar AWARD in the Photovoltaics category are: BELECTRIC Solarkraftwerke GmbH (Germany), DynoRaxx Inc. (USA), LG Electronics Deutschland GmbH (Germany), PanelClaw Inc. (USA), QSOLAR Limited (Canada), Schletter GmbH (Germany), SMA Solar Technology AG (Germany), Solar SpeedRack LLC (USA), SolarEdge Technologies Inc. (Israel), U.I. Lapp GmbH (Germany).
The finalists in the Solar Thermal Technologies category
The following companies have been selected as finalists for the Intersolar AWARD in the Solar Thermal Technologies category: Clique Solar (India), Eisenbeiß Solar AG (Germany), Ezinc Metal San. Tic. A.S. (Turkey), HelioFocus Ltd. (Israel), PSE AG (Germany), Siko Solar GmbH (Austria), SOLAR EASY GmbH (Germany).
The finalists in the Solar Projects in Europe category
The following companies have been selected as finalists in the Solar Projects in Europe category: Apricus Solar Co Ltd (USA), BELECTRIC Trading GmbH (Germany), Conergy AG (Germany), Galaxy Energy GmbH (Germany), GILDEMEISTER energy solutions (Germany), Goldbeck Solar GmbH (Germany), Outback Power (USA), skytron energy GmbH (Germany), SolarEdge Technologies Inc. (Israel), Soltigua – Laterizi Gambettola S.r.l (Italy).
Intersolar Europe 2013 takes place from June 19-21 at Messe München.
Further information on Intersolar Europe can be found at www.intersolar.de
Partners of Intersolar Europe
Intersolar Europe is supported by the leading solar industry associations: the German Solar Industry Association (BSW-Solar) as an exclusive partner, the German Solar Energy Society (DGS), the European Solar Thermal Industry Federation (ESTIF), the International Solar Energy Society (ISES), the SEMI PV Group, and VDMA-PV, the platform for photovoltaic production equipment within the German Engineering Association. With the support of the European Photovoltaic Industry Association (EPIA).
About Intersolar
With over 3,000 exhibitors and 100,000 visitors spanning four continents, Intersolar is the world’s leading exhibition series for the solar industry and its partners. It unites people and companies from around the world with the aim of increasing the share of solar power in our energy supply.
Intersolar Europe takes place annually at Messe München. It is the world’s largest exhibition for the solar industry and its partners. In 2012, 1,909 international exhibitors and 66,000 trade visitors were welcomed to Intersolar Europe. The exhibition focuses on the areas of photovoltaics, PV production technologies, energy storage and solar thermal technologies. Since its founding, it has become the most important industry platform for manufacturers, suppliers, wholesalers, service providers and partners of the solar industry. The accompanying Intersolar Europe Conference consolidates the topics of the exhibition. In 2012, more than 400 speakers and around 2,000 attendees discussed current industry topics and shed light on the background of technological, market and political developments.
Intersolar’s storied history of international exhibitions and conferences spans more than 20 years. In 2008, Intersolar North America in San Francisco became the second exhibition after Intersolar Europe. This was followed by Intersolar India in Mumbai, Intersolar China in Beijing and Intersolar South America in São Paulo.
Intersolar Europe is organized by Solar Promotion GmbH, Pforzheim and Freiburg Wirtschaft Touristik und Messe GmbH & Co. KG.
