Racing to Excellence in PV Manufacturing
Bettina Weiss, Director of SEMI International Standards -- PV Society, 11/1/2008
The global photovoltaics (PV) manufacturing value chain is complex and diverse. Understanding the various factors — governments, markets, regulations, technologies, grid cost, etc. — as well as providing solutions that contribute to better value chain management and sustainability of the overall system are significant tasks that need to be addressed.
If we could envision it, what would the perfect PV industry look like? Would it be able to sustain growth and profitability over 10, 20, even 50 years? Would it be a global industry with open markets and common standards to reduce cost and spur innovation? Would it be an industry that is respected for its environmental, employment, public outreach and other business practices?
With those questions in mind, hundreds of SEMI member companies have taken the first steps to finding the answers, and contribute to the success of the industry. The PV Group, a SEMI-sponsored PV initiative, has become both a community and a platform to collectively address shared concerns, best practices, and lessons learned from semiconductor and flat panel display (FPD) manufacturing by cultivating an environment for collaboration, confluence of experiences and skills, and a desire to leave the planet in better shape than we found it.
At SEMI, we support the PV Group members through various initiatives, programs and events. By extending existing core competencies into the PV arena, SEMI members can leverage information, contacts and global resources necessary for a smooth transition into the solar world. New member companies already in the solar space expand their existing network, expertise and skills by interacting with stakeholders from other disciplines, and regional PV steering committees ensure dialogue on prioritizing activities, give visibility to issues specific to a region, and together build a network for providing guidance, strategic input and hands-on support.
Currently, PV Group companies are pursuing several collective goals, including long-term growth, sustained profitability, sustainable industry development, and global reach in the area of industry standards, for example. The PV industry laments the lack of available global specifications and test methods to help reduce cost and accelerate time to market. Through the SEMI International Standards Program (35 years old this year), volunteer experts leverage existing SEMI standards and safety guidelines as well as identify those areas in the manufacturing process that are truly unique to PV and need to be better understood, investigated and resolved on a global basis, with support from the supplier and customer communities.
Another key area is expositions, and SEMI's member mandate has been clear: No new shows. The association takes this message very seriously. A prime example is the partnership with Intersolar, which debuted in July 2008 through the collocation of SEMICON West and Intersolar North America, and will continue in 2009. This partnership has now been expanded to include a SEMI presence at Intersolar Europe 2009 as well.
In other regions, primarily Asia, SEMI is introducing its SOLARCON exposition. Like Intersolar North America and Intersolar Europe, SOLARCON will be collocated with SEMICON shows, providing a specific and unique PV focus. SOLARCON Korea will be the first of its kind in January 2009.
Environmental, health and safety (EHS) considerations as well as an overall environmental sustainability in the PV industry have gained significant momentum through our PV Group membership. This makes sense, as one of the key factors for success of the PV industry is its "green" agenda and positioning. This critical area requires a collective approach toward best practices, environmental stewardship programs and a shared global vision of the checks and balances that must be established to ensure accidents do not occur. Furthermore, SEMI and the PV Group are working with EHS specialists to investi-gate critical issues like worker safety and health, proper handling of specialty gases and chemicals and their delivery systems, as well as broader facility issues and risk management.
The PV Group is also becoming a major voice in the public policy arena, especially in the United States where the extension of the Incentive Tax Credit (ITC) for solar has faced numerous obstacles in the Senate and House of Representatives. Because of this, it is crucial for SEMI/PV Group members and their customers to unite and provide one collective voice on important policy issues that impact their businesses.
The bottom line is that all PV industry stakeholders need to engage. Shared challenges have to be addressed collectively on a global scale to improve business and technology environments. Shared values and best practices have to be communicated and implemented for the benefit of all.
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Is the PV group supportive of the augmentation of the current electrical grid infrastructure to support all forms of electrical generation? Where do they see special issues linking to the grid for various PV solutions? Any ideas for car-top PV films for trickle charging in addition to engine charging when running?
Mike Clayton - 11-15-2008 2:50:00 CST
