Tagged Articles ‘solar’

Amtech making the transition to solar

While the semiconductor industry is having a hard time for a while due to the economic slowdown, Amtech Systems has managed to hedge their capabilities. Amtech Systems,Inc. (NASDAQ:ASYS), a global supplier of production, silicon wafers and automation systems decided to move into the growing field of solar cells. A few months ago they announced that Amtech Systems had booked over $100 million in orders for its solar and semiconductor products in fiscal 2008 ended September 30th, with solar orders approximating 70% of total bookings.  J.S. Whang, President and Chief Executive Officer of Amtech, commented, “With the $9.0 million in follow-on solar orders we announced on September 15th, we have [...]  Meer...

PV nears maturity threshold as last years showed a 30% cost reduction

The roll-out of grid-connected solar photovoltaic (PV) systems has increased. A report by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory summarized trends in the installed cost of grid-connected PV systems in the United States from 1998 through 2008. Key findings of the analysis are as follows: • The capacity-weighted average installed cost of systems completed in 2008 – in terms of real 2008 dollars per installed watt (DC-STC)4 and prior to receipt of any direct financial incentives or tax credits – was $7.5/Watt, a decline from $7.8/W in 2007 following several years (2005-2007) during which installed costs remained relatively flat. From 1998 to 2008, installed costs declined by about 3.6% (or $0.3/W) per [...]  Meer...

The solarpur business model

Sustainable technology often needs a sustainable businessmodel to realize a braod market breakthrough. Learn from this Solarpur case. Comfort Inn From the outside, the Comfort Inn La Estancia near San Diego looks like your garden variety mainstream hotel, complete with free parking for truckers and RV’s.  But soon it will share something sustainable that many boutique “green” hotels boast, 100% solar power for its electricity usage. The greening of Comfort Inn is thanks to a partnership with Pursol Solar Systems, which will install an 83 kilowatt photovoltaic system under its Solarize financing program, basically guaranteeing the hotel a 20% savings on its electricity bill without any up-front costs. Solarpur’s [...]  Meer...