Solar modules produced by the Norwegian company Innotech Solar (ITS) have been free from hot spots since production began three years ago. These localized increases in temperatures can damage solar modules and result in a drastic reduction in the yield of photovoltaic systems.
In rare cases, such hot spots can cause the module to ignite in flames.“Innotech Solar is one of only a handful of known cell manufacturers that perform hot spot tests,” explains Dr. Paul Grunow, Chairman of PI Photovoltaik-Institut Berlin.
Innotech Solar has specialized in testing and optimizing solar cells and is the only photovoltaic company to generate two thermal images of each cell. Areas at risk are identified at an early stage and isolated using a laser.
“Aside from hot spot tests, we subject our modules to other stringent tests,” says Dr. Thomas Hillig, Director of Sales & Marketing EMEA at Innotech Solar. In addition to long-term and isolation tests, Innotech Solar also measures the performance of modules in poor light, the extent of their degradation and the electroluminescence. ITS modules are IEC, MCS and UL-certified and have passed ammonia and salt-mist resistance. “Our customers value the European quality of the modules. We are winning over an increasing number of customers who have had bad experiences with Chinese solar modules in the past.”
Innotech Solar has grown to become a globally active module producer with an annual sales increase in excess of 50 percent. The company was established in 2008 by managers from the pioneering Norwegian company REC Solar. To begin with, the Norwegians concentrated solely on optimizing various kinds of solar cells; a year later they turned the refined cells into modules.
In 2009, the Norwegian company opened the first assembly line to mass-produce optimised solar cells in Narvik. In 2011, a second plant was opened in Halle an der Saale. Furthermore, ITS acquired REC’s module plant, located in Glava, Sweden, with a capacity of 100 megawatts (MW). In the same year, the company entered the markets in Spain, Italy, France, Greece, the UK and the USA. Today, southern Europe is the most important sales market for Innotech Solar after Germany.
Innotech Solar is an international supplier of PV modules. Innotech Solar is specialized in the production of very environmentally friendly modules with optimized solar cells and makes use of innovative processes developed by in-house research teams.
The two cell optimization plants in Narvik, Norway and Halle, Germany, are powered by hydroelectricity and a dedicated PV system. Solar modules are sold in Munich, California and Shanghai through local offices.
