SOLON SE, one of Europe’s leading photovoltaic manufacturers, Tata Steel Europe and The Sustainable Building Envelope Centre (SBEC), have joined forces to address the growing demand for an intelligent combination of photovoltaic system and metal roof covering. The resulting product, which consists of a photovoltaic system from SOLON and a pre-finished steel roofing product based on Colorcoat Prisma® by Tata Steel, is capable of a durable performance consistent with the life of the photovoltaic system and the demands of the bonded interface during this period. This product is scheduled for release this summer with the attendant performance warranties.
This jointly developed solution combines the SOLON SOLbond photovoltaic system with a trapezoidal twin skin built up system or sandwich roofing component made from Colorcoat Prisma® pre-finished steel. SOLON SOLbond has been specifically developed for metal lightweight industrial roofs. By bonding this frameless module directly to a metal roof, the static load-bearing capacity of the roof can be used for direct support of the PV modules rather than frames or additional sub-structures. This bonding process makes roof penetration completely unnecessary thereby reducing risk of leaks. SOLON SOLbond is especially well suited when roofing new industrial buildings, as the photovoltaic system is included in the design phase of a building and can therefore be optimally integrated.
Conventional photovoltaic systems for metal roofs usually consist of modules that rely on aluminum profiles as a support structure. Installing these kinds of systems increases the load on the roof and makes roof penetration a necessity. Penetrating the roof will typically void the warranty of the roof manufacturer, which can lead to extensive risk for the PV system operator and building owner. Moreover, the service life of a conventional metal roof is often shorter than the projected life cycle of the photovoltaic system.
Pilot project for the new design is a 12 kWp roofsystem on the Sustainable Building Envelope Centre (SBEC) at Tata Steel’s Shotton site in North Wales. The system was installed by a SOLON certified installer team from Lester Fabrications & Cladding, that was especially trained for the installation process. In SBEC, which was recently inaugurated by the First Minister of Wales, Carwyn Jones, the Low Carbon Research Institute, Tata Steel and other partners are investigating how building envelopes can be used for energy generation, storage and management.
Both SOLON and Tata Steel are convinced that their partnership will help meet a real need in the market. “Our collaboration with SBEC opens up a totally new avenue for product development, and with Tata Steel we can develop a commercial channel in the roof market. Our shared focus is on increasing quality and durability,” says Stefan Säuberlich, CEO of SOLON SE. “The premium photovoltaic systems of SOLON and high-quality Colorcoat Prisma® pre-finished steel roofing products complement each other perfectly,” adds Peter Strikwerda, Managing Director at Tata Steel Colors.
