Swiss solar project manager, Felix & Co Windgate, added 109 kW of building integrated PV (BIPV) capacity to the facade of a property owned by Swiss retailer Lehner Versand, part of a larger renovation project that increased the building height by 12 meters.
The addition provided 866 m2 of screen-printed colored glass modules supplied by Ertex Solar, an Austrian module manufacturer. The new active solar facade has a sequins-like appearance enabled by the curtain wall sub-structure and the colored glass-glass panels. “By incorporating varying inclinations in the façade elements, the building's envelope is elegantly designed. This also creates an aesthetic play of light, giving the structure a natural vibrancy and rich coloration,” a spokesperson for Windgate told pv magazine.
The building already had a rooftop plant with conventional silicon solar panels, which combined with the new installation now provides 114,560 kWh annually, providng 24.5% of the building’s needs, according to a statement by the 2024 Schweizer Solarpreis.
There are practical benefits for this type of installation that features modules installed on the south, east, and west-facing facades, especially in winter, according to Windgate's spokesperson. “Generally, the energy yield from facade systems is lower than that of rooftop installations due to the less favorable angle of sunlight incidence compared to the PV modules on the roof. However, there is a significant advantage: the shallower sunlight angles during winter are utilized more effectively, enhancing energy supply reliability in winter and increasing self-consumption,” they said.
The project team achieved the sequins effect by varying the inclination direction of the modules installed on the curtain wall sub-structure. It was a solution developed, engineered, and manufactured by Ecolite, a Swiss building material company. The brackets, which support the panels at four different angles, were delivered as pre-assembled sub-structures and fixed to steel spans on site.
“Our task was to adapt an existing suspension system to the requirements of the Lehner Versand project in such a way that the large spans between the vertical steel girders of the extension could be spanned and then the suspension for the tilted PV modules could be mounted on it correctly in terms of dilatation and statics,” Samuel Bregenzer, founder and manager of Ecolite, told pv magazine.
The project was recently recognized by the 2024 Schweizer Solarpreis in the building renovation category.
This content is protected by copyright and may not be reused. If you want to cooperate with us and would like to reuse some of our content, please contact: editors@pv-magazine.com.
By submitting this form you agree to pv magazine using your data for the purposes of publishing your comment.
Your personal data will only be disclosed or otherwise transmitted to third parties for the purposes of spam filtering or if this is necessary for technical maintenance of the website. Any other transfer to third parties will not take place unless this is justified on the basis of applicable data protection regulations or if pv magazine is legally obliged to do so.
You may revoke this consent at any time with effect for the future, in which case your personal data will be deleted immediately. Otherwise, your data will be deleted if pv magazine has processed your request or the purpose of data storage is fulfilled.
Further information on data privacy can be found in our Data Protection Policy.