Kees van den Bos, Director of Hukseflux Thermal Sensors, dropped in to PES to tell us about the latest developments in solar radiation sensors and the quest to take measurement to the next level. We started off by talking about how it all started…
PES: Welcome to PES Solar/PV magazine. It’s great to talk with you. Would you like to begin by explaining a little about the background of your organisation and how you currently serve the solar/PV industry?
Kees van den Bos: Hukseflux Thermal Sensors is a leading manufacturer of solar radiation sensors. We have one core purpose: to take measurement to the next level. Hukseflux was founded in 1993. It started with the idea that there is a need for sensor specialists. The founder Eric Hoeksema is an industrial designer and I have a background in physics. We started off making heat flux sensors for meteorology and building physics. The company organically grew in terms of both products and personnel. We now employ around 40 people.
KvdB: In 2007 we came out with a relatively simple solar radiation sensor, a pyranometer, aiming for the meteorological market. Soon parties from the PV industry started to approach us; this took us somewhat by surprise and we didn’t then have the high-grade instruments necessary for good PV system performance monitoring. Since 2010 the PV market has dominated our R&D efforts. Now we are the technology leader in pyranometers and the fastest growing company in this market. Most of our pyranometers end up in monitoring systems, in PV power plants bigger than 1 MW.
