As solar installers, you would, of course, want your business to succeed. And in order for you to do that, one important thing that you need to do is to secure yourself a reliable and trusted solar manufacturer. This is because solar manufacturers are the ones that make finished solar products, such as panels, batteries and many more, from scratch for you. In other words, you can say that solar manufacturers are the ones that will help you keep your business afloat. That is why choosing a solar manufacturer is incredibly important — it is also going to be your biggest investment yet — and you should make sure that you do it right.
Solar manufacturers can be found all over the world, with a lot of them found in southeast Asia. However, there are solar manufacturers that can be found in the United States as well. So, if you live in this country, there’s no need to worry about where to find a reliable manufacturer.
To help you in your search, here is a list of the top solar manufacturers in the U.S. that you should definitely look upon:
Auxin Solar
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Founded in 2008, Auxin Solar is an American manufacturing company that focuses on solar panels, solar mounting rack systems, and a system developer of solar power plants. Additionally, Auxin Solar also has plug-n-play portable solar panel systems, solar power packs, and solar tracker systems.
Even though the company’s solar panel factory and corporate headquarters are in San Jose, California, Auxin Solar has an international customer base for its products. In fact, it has also even developed turnkey commercial and residential solar systems in Europe, Australia, and America. With all its accomplishments, Auxin Solar is considered to be an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) for numerous Tier 1 companies.
Heliene
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Heliene is the result of an alliance between Helios Energy Europe and a group of leading North American entrepreneurs. This company is simply created to offer a solution to the worldwide problem of climate change. That is why ever since its conception, Heliene has been committed to advancing photovoltaic technologies and does so by investing 5%-8% of annual revenue in applied research and development (R&D). The research is chiefly focused on the areas of product efficiency, cost optimization, and connectivity to smart grids.
Aside from R&D, Heliene also produces high-strength, premium quality solar modules and delivers them to all over the world. As such, Heliene prides itself as being a Tier 1 manufacturer for solar products.
Mission Solar Energy
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Based in San Antonio, Texas, Mission Solar Energy is a photovoltaic solar module company that designs, engineers, and assembles high-quality solar modules. All of their products are BAA compliant and Recovery and Reinvestment Act Compliant. Mission Solar Energy caters to a variety of rooftop and ground applications as well as residential, commercial, government, and utility applications.
Moreover, Mission Solar Energy is also a member of OCI Company Ltd., which is a multi-national company with diversified businesses that provide products and services across the solar value chain.
Seraphim Solar U.S.A.
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Seraphim Solar U.S.A. is a U.S.-owned subsidiary of Seraphim Energy Group, which is based in China. It is headquartered in Houston, Texas, with manufacturing operations in Jackson, Mississippi.
Seraphim U.S.A. manufacturers PV modules that serve the residential, commercial, industrial, utility, government, and military markets. All their products deliver lower installation and BOS costs and a smaller system footprint. As of recently, Seraphim has installed over 6 million modules installed in over 30 countries worldwide, with a total of 1.9 GW manufacturing capacity. Because of all their contributions and efforts, the company prides itself as a world-class solar product manufacturer.
In addition to solar manufacturing, Seraphim also offers services in financing, marketing, design support, and PV policy consultation.
Silfab Solar
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With over 35 years of experience, Silfab Solar designs and develops ultra-high-efficiency, premium-quality 60- and 72-cell monocrystalline PV modules. The company’s experience spans the entire vertical PV value chain, including wafers, ingots, R&D, engineering, and product innovation.
Silfab Solar operates both in Toronto, Canada, and Bellingham, Washington. And for over the past seven years, it has advanced from a commercial, residential with tier 1 OEM PV manufacturer to designing a premium brand of PV modules for installers and distributors through North America. The company takes pride in its modules as they have maximum power density, in addition to their ultra-high efficiency.
Solaria
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Established in 2000, Solaria has over 65 issued and pending patents encompassing materials, processes, applications, products, manufacturing automation, and equipment. Because of this, the company is considered to have created one of the solar industry’s most respected IP Portfolios.
Solaria has its headquarters in California, but they operate worldwide. The company has made sure that they’ve developed a technology platform that will further unlock the potential of solar energy.
SolarTech Universal
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SolarTech Universal is an American solar panel manufacturing company that is based in Riviera Beach, Florida. This company is known for making use of SmartWire Technology (SWT) in the solar cells instead of the usual busbars, and this technology reduces the shading on the cell, thus allowing greater light penetration. Aside from that, SWT also creates a dense contact grid of 2,660 points, which minimizes the opportunity for electron/hole recombination. The increased number of contact points allows for increased electron collection as well, thus allowing the cells to produce a much greater power output.
In addition to SWT, SolarTech Universal also makes use of high-efficiency monocrystalline passive emitter rear contact (PERC) solar cells. These particular cells generate more open-circuit voltage and current by increasing internal reflectivity. As a result, the cells will be able to achieve an average efficiency of 20.9%.
Long story short, SolarTech Universal produces solar panels that are totally unmatched when it comes to quality.
SunSpark Technology
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SunSpark Technology is technically new to the solar panel manufacturing business, but it’s definitely not new to the solar industry. Its parent company, Yiheng Science and Technology Co. Ltd., is based in Qinhuangdao, China, and it has been in the solar panel manufacturing business for over 20 years now. Thus, despite being relatively new, SunSpark Technology is still considered as a globally recognized brand for solar panel manufacturers.
SunSpark is dedicated to creating American manufacturing jobs. They have strong relationships with their customers and have provided top-quality products to first-tier solar companies worldwide. And they will continue to commit themselves to provide exceptional service, quality products, and on-time delivery.
SolarWorld Americas
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Founded in 1975 as Solar Technology International, SolarWorld Americas is the longest operating solar manufacturer in the Earth’s western hemisphere. Because of the company’s long history, it has achieved a lot of firsts in the solar panel manufacturing business.
To begin with, SolarWorld’s solar panels were the first to meet the premier standard of electrical safety validated by the Underwriters Laboratories (this happened in 1982). Additionally, in 1982 as well, they manufactured the first grid-tied megawatt solar system, and in 1985, they had the first net-zero residential solar development. They have more achievements other than the ones mentioned, but basically, the gist is that SolarWorld is undoubtedly one of the most trusted companies for solar panel manufacturing.
Tesla Energy/Panasonic
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In 2018, Tesla Energy has partnered with Panasonic to manufacture solar panels in the United States. That is why, starting in January 2018, Panasonic has produced solar cells at the Tesla Gigafactory 2 in Buffalo, New York — both for the Tesla solar roof and for Panasonic solar panels.
As of right now, Panasonic isn’t yet able to meet all of Tesla Energy’s needs since the company manufactures most of its panels abroad. But that will all change next year because Panasonic and Tesla aim to increase their production.
CertainTeed Solar
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Founded in 1904 as a General Roofing Manufacturing Company, CertainTeed is one of the leading brands of exterior and interior building products in North America. Some of their products include roofing, siding, fence, decking, railing, trim, insulation, gypsum, and ceilings. CertainTeed is also a subsidiary of Saint-Gobain, which is one of the world’s largest and oldest building products companies. With all of this, CertainTeed is certainly a trusted company for solar panel manufacturing considering it’s been providing service for over 110 years now and it has over 60 manufacturing facilities throughout the U.S. and Canada.
First Solar
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First Solar has developed, financed, engineered, constructed, and operated many of the world’s largest grid-connected PV power plants. The company also invests so much in research and development to advance its technology and rapidly increase its energy yield, lower LCOE, and provide stable grid integration. And most importantly, First Solar makes sure that they deliver an LCOE that is cost-competitive with fossil fuels.
Global Solar Energy
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Founded in 1996, Global Solar Energy has evolved into a leading manufacturer of thin-film Copper Indium Gallium diSelenide (CIGS) solar solutions. GSE’s solar modules are flexible and thin-film, thus making them incredibly easy to integrate into commercial, residential, off-grid, and mobile applications across the world.
Aside from manufacturing solar modules, GSE is also known for contributing solutions for the Building Applied Photovoltaic (BAPV) and the transportation markets. The company also partners with other industry leaders to create more innovative, efficient, and effective products.
As of right now, GSE operates in Tucson, Arizona, and its thin-film production capacity is 50 MW per year. They also ship their products internationally.
GreenBrilliance
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GreenBrilliance is a vertically integrated, end-to-end alternate energy services provider. They are primarily dedicated to making solar energy affordable for the grassroots level consumer. They aim to achieve this by tightly securing, owning, and managing the supply chain, thus accumulating cost savings to pass on to their customers.
Headquartered in Virginia, U.S.A., GreenBrilliance provides turnkey solar EPC, distribute and install solar modules, and serve their customer’s other needs.
JinkoSolar
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JinkoSolar is one of the world’s largest solar module manufacturers. The company distributes its solar products and sells its solutions and services to a wide array of countries. Some of the countries where they have a strong customer base are in China, the United States, Japan, Germany, the United Kingdom, Chile, South Africa, India, Mexico, Brazil, United Arab Emirates, Italy, Spain, France, Belgium, and many more. In a lot of these countries, JinkoSolar also has overseas subsidiaries and production facilities.
JinkoSolar has built a vertically integrated solar product value chain. And as of December 31, 2019, they have an integrated annual capacity of 9.7 GW for silicon wafers, 7 GW for solar cells, and 10.8 GW for solar modules.
LG Solar U.S.A.
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LG manufactures and sells a wide variety of electronic products, and as of right now, they have started to manufacture and sell solar panels as well. They take pride in their all-weather solar panels that are efficient, environmentally friendly, and reliable — even during days when there is little to no sun. This is because their solar panels are integrated with superior heat coefficient and industry-leading efficiencies, thus allowing the panels to capture more energy more of the time. As a result, they benefit the environment as well as their clients’ finances.
Additionally, LG also controls every step of the manufacturing process. That is why they can offer the best warranties available, including product, performance, and labour.
Lumos Solar
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Founded in 2006, Lumos Solar is committed to facilitating the widespread adoption of solar energy as they believe that this is the way to ensure the future health of our planet. Lumos also believes in integrating art into solar, and as a result, their solar products are both functional and aesthetically pleasing. They want to change the idea of solar into a functional design element instead of just being an unattractive electrical appliance.
Aside from functionality and visual appeal, Lumos solar panels are also designed for long-term durability. In other words, with all these elements that they put into their solar products, Lumos Solar is one solar manufacturing company that you shouldn’t miss.
MiaSolé
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MiaSolé is a producer of lightweight, flexible, and powerful solar cells and cell manufacturing equipment. All of their solar cells are based on the highest efficiency of thin-film technology. Plus, their flexible cell architecture makes it ideal for a variety of solutions, such as commercial roofing solar panels and portable mobile devices.
Prism Solar
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Prism Solar has been in the solar manufacturing business since 2005, and so, their experience has certainly led them to improvements. To begin with, their solar modules are known to be bifacial, which allows them to harvest sunlight on both faces. This feature allows the modules to generate significantly more energy per watt (kWh) of power than traditional modules.
Additionally, Prism Solar makes use of highly efficient N-type silicon solar cells with an unprecedented warrantied near equal backside efficiency. They also use tempered glass-on-glass design and hermetical seating to protect the PV cells inside the module from any external damage. In other words, Prism Solar’s products are built to outlast their competition.
Solar Electric America
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Solar Electric America is a solar manufacturing company that is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. The company’s specialties lie in its ability to manufacture 12V and 24V solar panels. Their 12V solar panels work perfectly with DC water pumps to meet the needs of rural and remote off-grid locations for homes, cabins, irrigation, and agriculture and wildlife watering. They are also a perfect choice for battery charging as well as for municipality street lighting, road signs, tractors, RV’s boats, and all other emergency preparedness needs.
In addition to its high-quality solar panels, Solar Electric America also offers a competitive price for all of its products. Because of this, they have proven themselves as one of the most reliable solar manufacturing companies out there.
Takeaway
As solar installers, it is highly important for you to find a solar manufacturing company that is reliable and trustworthy. After all, much of your business’s success relies heavily on your chosen manufacturer. So, it’s not an understatement to say that choosing your manufacturer is a make-or-break moment.
Luckily, there are quite a ton of solar manufacturing companies out there. A lot of them are usually found in Asia, particularly in the southeast region, but there are others in other countries as well. In the United States, in particular, there are a number of solar manufacturers that you can find there. So, if you live in the U.S., then you don’t need to worry about going outside the country just to find a great manufacturer. You already have a lot to choose from in your own country.
The 20 solar manufacturing companies mentioned are only some of the most renowned ones in the U.S. There are still others floating out there. That is why, when it comes to choosing your manufacturer, you have to do extensive research first. So, look up every one of the companies mentioned, read through their websites thoroughly, and narrow them down to the ones that you like. You can also choose to look for more companies out there.
Whatever you do, just make sure you’ve done a lot of research before making a decision. Your solar installation business is only as good as your solar manufacturer, so you better make sure that you get this one right.
Related article: Top 15 Solar Energy Trade Shows in America
Archived news
Abound, Takes On RIval First Solar (FSLR)
Abound, a small, privately held US start-up, is taking on industrygiant First Solar. What’s more, they think they can win. Like FirstSolar, Abound makes cadmium telluride solar panels. First Solar hasmanaged to reduce the cost of its solar power to 98 cents per watt.According to Reuters, Abound thinks it can do better:
We think we have a slight technological advantage over First Solar,”Chief Executive Pascal Noronha said in an interview. “And by the way Ithink very highly of First Solar.”
Abound’s manufacturing process, Noronha said, is completelyautomated and continuous, allowing the company to convert sheets ofglass into solar panels in less than two hours without human labor.
Abound believes it will equal First Solar in terms of cost-per-wattwithin three months, and then expects to do even better. We’ll have tosee if they can live up to their promises, and if First Solar can keepup!
Start-Up Abound Throws Down The Gauntlet For First Solar (FSLR)
Top 8 Reasons You Need A Solar Swimming Pool Heater
Who wants to think about return on investment of heating yourswimming pool when swimming laps in the morning or afternoon? No one, if you think about it, but with the current state of the American economy, how can you not think about it? Guess what. Want the biggest ROI? Asolar swimming pool heater is the best option for ensuring your pool is ready for you whenever you want to use it.
Not convinced? Consider the following:
- The system relies on the sun to warm the water in your swimmingpool. And since the sun isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, you’ll have a heated pool year round.
- Using the sun to heat your pool will extend the warm-water swimmingseason. Considering that a solar heating system can increase thetemperature of the water in your swimming pool by around 15 degrees,your pool may be the your greatest escape when the weather outside turns cold.
- A solar heating system doesn’t just heat your pool. It can also keep your pool cool in the summer by running the water in your pool throughthe solar panels at night.
- You’ll be making the environmentally friendly choice. You won’t beusing any resources other than the natural resources inherent insunshine. No muss. No fuss. Harness the sun’s power, or use panels toharness the sun’s power, and there’s no clean up and no byproducts.
- Solar is a cost-effective means of heating your pool. Say goodbye to spending money on electricity or gas to heat your pool, which have been the ways most people have heated their swimming pools.
- Consider the re-sale value of your home. Offering a swimming poolthat does not cost a lot to heat may be why someone decides to buy yourhome instead of someone else’s home.
- A solar heating system requires little maintenance and upkeep, which is great in terms of costs associated with maintaining other systems,but also means you’ll have few (if any) days when your pool is out ofcommission.
- The U.S. Department of Energy suggests swimming pool owners go solar to heat their pools, as such a system is a cost-effective way to reduce energy consumption. Also, according to the Department of Energy, asolar heating system is the best investment a swimming pool owner canmake.
Original Article on: POCO Solar Energy Blog
Nipton, California Goes Big on Solar
A small California town is dead-set on getting the bulk of itselectricity from solar energy.
Located on the northern edge of the Mojave National Preserve, the town of Nipton(population: 38) will tomorrow dedicate a brand-new, 80-kilowatt solarpower installation that’s expected to meet 85 percent of the town’selectricity demand.
The installation is comprised of high gain solar (HGS) arrays fromSkyline Solar, a Mountain View, California-based manufacturer and solarpower installation firm. According to the press release, the company’s HGS arrays generate up to ten times as much energy perunit of silicon compared to conventional, silicon-based solar panels.Skyline makes use of troughs and reflectors to increase the amount of sunlight hitting the solar panels.
Wonky details aside, it’s great to see a town taking this kind ofinitiative. Nipton is a great candidate for solar power: it gets tons of sunshine and has relatively modest electricity demand. And, given thetown’s proximity to protected lands, there’s of course that wholesustainability thing…
“As the gateway community to the Mojave Desert, Niptonseeks to be a good steward of the environment. Sustainability isparamount to this endeavor,” said Gerald Freeman, PrincipalAdministrator for Nipton. “It is with this in mind that we are extremely pleased to be utilizing the HGS 1000 as our primary source of energy.And the HGS upgradability is a very attractive option.”
Provided Nipton can keep a lid on energy demand — and its population — it’s likely the town will retain its claim to being the “most solartown in America” for quite some time. (As for being the most solar townin the world, however, Nipton may have some competition.)
Source: Small California Town Goes Big on Solar
DOE Awards First Solar $4.5B in Loan Guarantees $FSLR
The Department of Energy announced that it will support three First Solar Inc. (Nasdaq: FSLR) photovoltaic (PV) solar installations in California with a combined US$4.5 billion in loan guarantees.
The DOE has offered a conditional loan guarantees to the following First Solar sponsored solar projects:
- Antelope Valley Solar Ranch 1 project has been awarded US$680million . Located just outside of Los Angeles, the 230 MW solarinstallation is expected to generate enough electricity to power 54,000homes.
- Desert Sunlight project has been awarded a partial loan guarantee of US1.88 billion. Located on public land in Riverside County, the 550 MWproject will be built in two phases. Phase I will have a generatingcapacity of 300 MW and Phase II will generate 250 MW. When fullyoperational the project will produce electricity equivalent to powering110,000 homes.
- Topaz Solar project has been awarded a partial loan guarantee ofUS$1.93 billion. Like the Desert Sunlight project, the 550 MW TopazSolar installation project, located in San Luis Obispo County, willgenerate enough electricity to power 110,000 homes.
Based out of Arizona, First Solar will provide all three projectswith Cd-Te thin film solar PV modules some of which will be manufactured at a brand new facility being constructed in Ohio. With the exceptionof Desert Sunlight Phase II, the three solar farms will deliver theelectricity they generate to Pacific Gas & Electric through longterm power purchase agreements. Energy generated from Desert SunlightPhase II will be sold to Southern California Edison.
Already one of the world’s leading manufacturer of PV solar modules,First Solar continues to grow its installed solar generating capacity.This financial backing represents support for over 1.3 GW of solarenergy generation — just over half of the 2.4 GW portfolio the companyanticipates to have installed by the end 2011.
“These projects will bring immediate jobs to California in additionto hundreds more across the supply chain,” said Energy Secretary StevenChu.
He added, “Together the projects will power hundreds of thousands ofhomes with clean, renewable power and increase our globalcompetitiveness in the clean energy economy.”
Image Credit: First Solar
