Since 1995, Prediktor has delivered advanced industrial IT tools and solutions to a wide range of industries, including the PV sector. As CEO Steinar Sælid explains, the company’s solutions are based on deep process knowledge and insights into customers’ processes and operations. PES: When you were formulating your Manufacturing Execution System (MES) solution back in… Read more »
In October last year, Hans-Joachim Bender was awarded a German Enterprise Medal (“Wirtschaftsmedaille”) in recognition of his corporate merits and achievements as the managing partner of Robert Bürkle GmbH. The Black Forest plant manufacturer is bucking the recent economic trend by introducing new products and innovations and has aggressively opened up the photovoltaic market as… Read more »
China-based Upsolar is a global company, specialising in the design and manufacture of PV modules. It has always maintained that its strength lies in the development of strict quality control in the manufacturing process, to provide worldwide customers with reliable, excellent products. Here, PES talks to the company’s Jerry Li, Supply Chain & Manufacturing Director…. Read more »
Bottero Group is a global player for the glass industry, with a focus on the design, production and installation of glass technologies and equipment that stretches back over more than 50 years. With the expertise of their 1200 people, seven Research and Development centres in Europe, production facilities in Italy and China, and a service… Read more »
With the acquisition of the solar company STANGL Semiconductor Equipment AG in 2007, a foundation was laid to establish SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES in the growing photovoltaics market. Numerous new products were developed and made marketable at SINGULUS and STANGL, and as from 2010 SINGULUS will pursue an expansion strategy in the solar segment. In the future… Read more »
A year ago, the future of the PV industry in Greece was looking very bright indeed. After what seemed to be a long time in the mid-table of European renewable energy output, lagging behind the rather less sunny Ireland and Great Britain, it seemed there was a new effort to capture the country’s greatest natural… Read more »
As the world becomes ever more conscious of the need to conserve fossil fuels and move towards greener methods of energy production, the EC’s Joint Research Centre remains at the centre of efforts to spread the word. Here the group gives PES an overview of the current state of play and looks into its crystal… Read more »
PES talks exclusively to Adel El Gammal, Secretary General of the European Photovoltaic Industry Association, to hear his views on PV market perspectives and challenges, and how can solar PV become a mainstream energy supplier in Europe by 2020. PES: Welcome. It’s good to have the EPIA back in the magazine again, how has the… Read more »
Just over 60 years ago, on March 26, 1949, the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft was founded in the large conference hall of the Bavarian Ministry of the Economy. At the time, the idea was to develop new structures for research after the war’s destruction, and to spur reconstruction of the economy. Today, the globally-respected institute analyses current macro… Read more »
Grid parity for solar power – competitiveness with electricity prices – has for some years been known as the ‘Holy Grail’ of the PV industry, with many speculating on when and where it is likely to be achieved. PES investigates. Obviously, much depends on the amount of sunshine in the skies above. The west coast… Read more »
California-based Paula Mints is widely recognised as one of the foremost experts in the PV industry. For many years she has provided clients with objective, comprehensive industry analysis based on extensive primary research, including her forward-looking understanding of market and technology trends. Her strong background in primary research qualifies her to provide insight into the… Read more »
The quest for grid parity has been a long one, but it seems as if the new solar dawn is finally arriving in many European nations. But then, it all depends who you ask… “Basically everything (in the industry) is bound to grow still further. Growing further means less cost. Less cost means grid parity…. Read more »
With cost cutting in mind, the photovoltaics industry increasingly relies on automation, expecting it to bring about sustained high product quality and increased productivity. PES explains all. Industrial robots feed and discharge solar cell production lines and sort the finished components by pick-and-place processes. They handle glass panes, cut films and foils and assemble frames… Read more »
PES takes a look at three state-of the-art modes of transport which could help facilitate an energy-efficient future and help conserve the increasingly limited natural resources of the planet. SkiesSome 110 years after the much-celebrated Wright Brothers designed and flew their first aircraft, the age of solar fight has finally arrived. The ghosts of Wilbur… Read more »
BrightView Systems, a leading provider of in-line metrology-based process control and optimization tools for thin-film solar cell manufacturing, hosted the Prime Minister Mathias Platzeck of Brandenburg, the Minister of Economic and European Affairs Ralf Christoffers, Klaus-Dieter Licht of ILB (State Investment Bank), and Hinrich Soehlke Director from the Brandenburg Economic Development Board at their facilities in Israel. Germany capital region,… Read more »
Dow Jones & Company plans to construct a large-scale solar-power installation to generate clean energy for its corporate offices in central New Jersey. At 4.1 megawatts, the system is expected to be one of the largest installations for solar power at a single commercial site in the U.S. “Investing in solar power confirms our commitment… Read more »
A solar refrigeration container is one of the particular highlights presented at Phaesun GmbH’s fair booth. It has been designed by ILK Dresden for the use in hospitals, medical supply depots and food storage centres in regions with insecure, or unavailable energy supply. The system has a modular structure, including integrated solar modules with a… Read more »
The Spanish company PROINSO- specialized in the distribution of modules, inverters, trackers and fixed structures for photovoltaic systems, has been awarded the supply of various solar photovoltaic farms in Greece that will all together amount to more than 7.54 MW of installed capacity. The agreements include the supply of 2.65 MW of 2-axis trackers from… Read more »
The French subsidiary of the Swiss manufacturer of inverters for photovoltaic systems Sputnik Engineering AG is moving today from Paris to Saint Priest near Lyon . “In the south-east of France there are the largest number of solar plants, especially in the Rhône-Alpes region. Lyon has also become a magnet for the solar industry. Roughly… Read more »
Singapore based Phoenix Solar Pte Ltd, a subsidiary of TecDAX listed Phoenix Solar AG, Germany, has completed Singapore’s largest photovoltaic plant built with thin-film modules with a peak output of 380 kilowatts (kWp) on the new company building of Applied Materials Inc. in Singapore. The thin-film modules used in construction are the world’s largest, with a surface area of 5.7… Read more »
In the hot desert kingdom of Saudi Arabia, finding fresh drinking water has always been a great challenge. For decades now, the state has been providing clean water by converting millions of gallons of seawater via desalination plants that remove salts and minerals from the water. Now the country plans to use one of its… Read more »
For the first time, Merck KGaA will be presenting its photovoltaics product portfolio under the heading “Working with SunshineTM” at PHOTON’s 6th Photovoltaic Technology Show 2010 Europe (Stuttgart, April 27-29). The main focus of Merck’s presentation will be the eco-friendly isishape® range of printable etching pastes. These highly efficient products are designed for smart and… Read more »
As a leading global supplier of high quality solar cells, Ningbo Solar has reinforced its commitment to driving business growth with the purchase of a further 50MW worth of photovoltaic metallization lines from DEK Solar. The announcement comes just months after Ningbo Solar’s purchase of eight metallization lines from the mass imaging leader. Following an… Read more »
Advanced processes for the drying and firing of solar cell metallization will be center stage at Rehm Thermal Systems’ booth at the SNEC International Photovoltaic Power Generation conference and Exhibition in Shanghai May 5-7. Key members of the Rehm team will be on hand at Booth 5021/2 and will explain to visitors ways in which… Read more »
BlueChip EnergyTM, a provider of complete solar power solutions for residential, commercial, government and utility applications, today announced a power purchase agreement (PPA) to supply Progress Energy Florida with renewable solar photovoltaic (PV) power from the Rinehart Solar Farm, a 10 MW utility-scale solar PV facility the company is developing in Central Florida. The Rinehart… Read more »
Etching paste isishape SolarEtch® offers a lower cost per watt alternative for edge isolation of silicon wafers Schiller and Merck present fully automated SE lab line for mass production The partnership announced last September between Merck KGaA and Schiller Automation GmbH & Co. KG has led to a new concept for edge isolation. Schiller Automation… Read more »
Acro Energy Technologies Corp. (CA:ART 0.35, 0.00, 0.00%) , a leading US solar integrator, announced that it achieved record revenues for the first quarter ended March 31, 2010. During the quarter ended March 31, 2010, Acro Energy generated gross revenue of approximately $3,700,000. The Company is pleased with the first full quarter of operations for… Read more »
Enphase Energy, the leader in solar microinverter systems, today launched its multimillion dollar ‘Full Throttle’ sales promotion, which provides cash awards up to $5,000 to solar installers using Enphase Microinverter Systems. The promotion applies to systems installed between April 1, 2010 and July 31, 2010. “In 2009, we were thrilled with the level of demand… Read more »
Following the independent testing results of the German magazine Öko-Test (April 2010), China based Upsolar was rated “very good” among 15 international solar photovoltaic suppliers. Only 4 companies obtained a “very good” rating, and Upsolar was the only one of 7 Chinese companies to achieve this. This is major achievement for Upsolar and reflects the… Read more »
Applied Materials, Inc., the global leader in Nanomanufacturing TechnologyTM solutions for the semiconductor, flat panel display and photovoltaic (PV) solar industries, today held an analyst meeting to outline its plans for growing revenue and profitability over the next several years. Applied’s executive team shared the company’s goals of capitalizing on an expected multi-year expansion in… Read more »
The Australian marine biologist Lloyd Godson is going to start a spectacular attempt to set a new world record in the Bavarian LEGOLAND® theme park in Germany today. For a fortnight, the adventurer will stay in a 4m² under water home without coming up to surface. With 2.500 watt hours, Godson will try to generate… Read more »
Enphase Energy, the leader in solar microinverter systems, today announced that it has secured $40 million in funding, with Bay Partners leading the equity financing. This round of financing also includes participation from Horizon Technology Finance, Bridge Bank (NASDAQ: BBNK) and existing investors Third Point Ventures, RockPort Capital Partners, Madrone Capital Partners and Applied Ventures… Read more »
Spanish solar energy producer T-Solar said on Monday it was considering listing its shares on Spain’s small and mid-cap index in the next few months to fund the building of more plants abroad. The announcement comes after travel booking firm Amadeus said March 23 it would carry out an initial public offering in the first… Read more »
As previously announced, Applied Materials, Inc. will hold its 2010 Analyst Meeting on Tuesday, March 30, 2010 in New York, NY. Presentations by Applied’s management team will begin at 1:00 p.m. ET (10:00 a.m. PT) and conclude by approximately 4:30 p.m. ET (1:30 p.m. PT). The presentations will include discussions of Applied’s products, business environment,… Read more »
Global Solar Energy, Inc., a leading manufacturer of high-efficiency Copper Indium Gallium diSelenide (CIGS) solar material and the only company in large scale production of CIGS on a flexible substrate, today announced Jean-Noel Poirier as the company’s new vice president of marketing and business development. Mr. Poirier will lead Global Solar’s sales, marketing, business development… Read more »
Solar Energy Initiatives, Inc. (SNRY 0.21, -0.01, -2.38%) , with businesses in solar project development, distribution and workforce training, today provided a reminder that the Company will host a conference call on Wednesday, March 24, 2010 at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time to discuss the Company’s Second Quarter 2010 Financial Results. Conference Call Details Date:… Read more »