Magazine Archive 06-2011

Dear readers, What a fast-paced media world: although the nuclear drama in Fukushima continues, just a few weeks later the death of Osama bin Laden and the arrest of IMF head Dominique Strauss-Kahn have pushed this topic out of the top news. But where do things stand in terms of the political aftershock? Were the […]

Interview: With increasing importance being placed on optical inspection in the bid to raise quality, the systems that are already in the market are offering more. pv magazine spoke with KLA-Tencor ICOS Division’s Senior Marketing Director, Pieter Vandewalle, on what the inspection and metrology tools supplier has on its plate and in the works.

Building integrated PV: Great architecture is usually found on buildings in which money is no object. This also applies for showcase building integrated photovoltaics. But there are also many examples of how ordinary houses can be well designed with BIPV. Among these are two energy-plus buildings.

Ardour Solar Index: M&A activity partially offsets weak 1H11 outlooks. The 1Q11 margin pressure is likely to continue in 2Q11.

PVGU: Pythagoras Solar recently installed, as part of a solar window pilot project, two of the world’s first transparent photovoltaic glass units (PVGUs) on the U.S.’s tallest building. The aim is to evaluate whether photovoltaic glass unit technology can become an established part of the BIPV industry. Following initial feedback, Pythagoras is confident it can be.

Solar glass: Modules should be cost-effective and durable. How difficult it is to achieve this becomes very obvious when taking a look at the requirements that module manufacturers place on their glass manufacturers. Glass manufacturers, on the other hand, also have requests of the module manufacturers.

Burma: SunEnergy Power International or SunEPI as it is known sought to bring energy to communities that are in need worldwide. The non profit public benefit company’s Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer Walt Ratterman saw renewable energy sources as the solution using the bottom-up approach. One of the countries, among more than 30, that saw changes to its communities was Burma. Walt’s daughter Briana Ratterman tells pv magazine more about powering people in the remotest areas with sun energy.

4th General Assembly of VDMA Photovoltaic Equipment: Leading German photovoltaic suppliers discussed the latest trends in the photovoltaic supplier industry. Besides cost aspects for equipment makers and their customers, market development, technology trends and the actual R&D policies were topics of the convention. Florian Wessendorf from VDMA talks about the highlights of the assembly.