Solar Industry
in Thuringia
Status 04 /2009
Industry profile
Workforce
SolarInput
Research &
Development
SolarCenter Erfurt
Successful in
Thuringia
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Top location for the solar industry
The sun shines on companies in Thuringia: The state is fast evolving
into the main international hub of the solar industry. From wafers to
solar modules, the entire value chain is covered by local firms. Companies like ersol Solar Energy, SCHOTT Solar and PV Crystalox set the pace
for the rest of the world. Cutting - edge research and entrepreneurial
drive go hand in hand here: After all, the world’s largest crystalline
silicon solar cell was developed in Erfurt, in cooperation with the
SolarCenter.
Thuringia’s industrial location and development policy is successful
and forward - looking. The state is publicly committed to solar energy.
This is why the German Solar Industry Association presented the
”Deutsche Solarindustriepreis”, the industry’s highest honor, to Minister
President Dieter Althaus.
You, too, can benefit from the state government’s commitment.
Harness the competence of cross - industry networks like SolarInput.
Work closely with world - class research institutes who focus on the
latest developments in photovoltaics. Recruit your employees from a
pool of highly trained specialists and motivated top graduates of
universities in Thuringia.
Invest in the future – invest in Thuringia! LEG - State Development
Corporation of Thuringia will help you. As your partner, we will guide
your company from concept to location – discreetly, competently and
conveniently.
Industry profile
Technology triangle Erfurt-JenaIlmenau has become home to
twenty solar companies with
together more than 2,500 employees − assuring the cities of Erfurt,
Jena and Arnstadt a top position
within Germany’s “SolarValley“. No
other German region boasts such a
dense network of solar companies.
The firms are growing steadily and
most of them advancing inexorably
toward global leadership.
In Thuringia, you will find the
entire value chain for photovoltaic
installations, from the production
of ingots, wafers, solar cells and
modules to the development of
advanced control electronics right
up to the design and installation of
solar systems.
Solar thermal applications also benefit from the extensive production
and installation potential.
In every area that holds promise in
the global market, there are companies researching and producing
products in Thuringia.
The focus is on silicon technology.
Firms and institutes in Thuringia
conduct manufacturing and research
in the fields of crystalline and thin
film technology. Both technologies
are center stage in industrial series
production implemented by
WACKER SCHOTT and SCHOTT
Solar in Jena, ersol in Erfurt and
Masdar PV in Arnstadt at
their new production
facilities.
“With our manufacturing
of thin - film solar power modules, we‘ve brought another
future - oriented business to
Jena, and have strengthened
the city in which our company
was founded.“
Dr. Udo Ungeheuer,
Chairman of the Management Board,
SCHOTT AG
SolarInput e. V.
Workforce
People are what counts: Local
staffers put all their creativity and
expertise to work for their employers. Being extremely flexible, they
make it possible to introduce modern forms of work organization in
the Free State.
University education
Over 12,000 college students
enrolled in suitable programs
represent an attractive stream of
potential employees for you.
The Friedrich Schiller University
(FSU) in Jena offers Bachelor‘s and
Master‘s degrees for all the natural
sciences as well as a special concentration in materials science.
The University of Applied
Sciences Jena offers Bachelor
degree programs in electrical and
automation engineering, precision
engineering, laser and optotechnologies, mechanical engineering,
mechatronics, physics engineering
and materials engineering. As of
winter semester 2008 / 2009, Jena
University of Applied Sciences is
offering a bachelor degree in PV
and semiconductor technology.
Financial support for the latter is
provided by means of an endowed
professorship. Bachelor‘s degree
holders can also pursue Master‘s
degrees in mechanical engineering,
mechatronics, laser and opto-technologies as well as materials
engineering.
At the University of Technology
in Ilmenau, Bachelor‘s students can
major in microelectronics and
nanoelectronics, electrical engineering as well as automation and
power engineering. Graduates can
pursue Master‘s degrees in microelectronic and nano - electronic
systems, electrical and materials
engineering, electrical power
engineering, automation and
systems engineering as well as
general and theoretical electrical
engineering. Starting in 2009,
students will be able to pursue a
master degree in photovoltaics, for
which there is also an endowed
professorship.
Training and continuing
education
Future specialists receive solid
theoretical and hands - on training in
Thuringia. Training consortia help
ensure a high - quality education.
Educational providers with several
years of experience in the photovoltaics industry assure that students
receive top of the class training.
Germany’s first competence
center aimed at providing further
education for skilled workers in the
solar industry and the field of
micro- and nanotechnology is
currently being built in Erfurt.
Starting in spring of 2010, the
“Competence Center for High
Technology and Solar Industry”
will have space for approximately
350 trainees.
Close cooperation is one of
the secrets of the Thuringia
solar industry‘s success. Solar
companies, research and educational institutions, solar power
initiatives, companies, local
governments and other public
bodies have joined forces in
SolarInput e. V. in Erfurt.
The association bridges the gap
between research and industry, and works with regional
partners to develop applied research programs. What is more,
SolarInput supports tomorrow‘s
experts with competitions, and
trains its members in workshops
and seminars.
Research and development
In this industry, companies
can count on the support of
Thuringia‘s dynamic research
institutions for basic research
and development work.
Scientists at the universities
and institutes in Erfurt, Jena and
Ilmenau conduct research
in crystalline silicon and
thin - film technology.
The main partners in this
field are:
· Institute for Photonic
Technology (IPHT) in Jena
· Institute of Solid - State Physics
at the Friedrich Schiller
University Jena
· Institute of Physics at the
Technical University of Ilmenau
· SolarCenter at CiS Institute for
Micro Sensors and Photovoltaics
Research in Erfurt
· Thuringia Institute for Textile
and Plastics Research (TITK) in
Rudolstadt
SolarCenter Erfurt
The Technical University of Ilmenau
has been exploring the possibilities
of solar technology since 1997.
Seven institutes and departments at
TU Ilmenau conduct interdisciplinary
research with 40 partners in more
than 20 solar energy projects.
This is complemented by in - house
research and development projects
carried out by companies in
Thuringia.
One of the strengths of Bosch - owned ersol Group, for example, lies
in its profound knowledge of
development and production
technology. ersol augments its own
research and development efforts by
cooperating with renowned
research institutes and companies
such as Schott Solar GmbH, steadily
improving quality and optimizing
the methods for manufacturing
crystalline ingots, wafers and
silicon - based solar cells in the
process.
Already in 2004, ersol Solar
Energy AG signed a cooperation
agreement with the SolarCenter
Erfurt to jointly develop thin,
large - area, highly efficient crystalline silicon solar cells, and to
continuously optimize the production process for crystalline solar
cells.
It also collaborates with leading
European research institutes in
the field of photovoltaics. These
institutes include the Fraunhofer
Institute for Solar Energy
Systems in Freiburg and the
Institute for Photonic Technology in Jena.
PV Crystalox Solar AG also works
closely with research institutions
to develop the next generation of
ultra - thin silicon wafer.
With a view to its own research strategy, SCHOTT Solar Thin Film
GmbH, too, is putting its bets on
working with German research
institutes and other manufacturers.
Leveraging synergies between
microsensors and photovoltaics
for business – this vision inspired
the creation of the SolarCenter
Erfurt at the CiS Institute for
Micro Sensors and Photovoltaics Research. The Institute
has extensive experience with
wafer technology and metrology, and is both a research
transfer network and a center
of excellence.
The SolarCenter’s focus is on
the development of plants and
processes for the individual
production steps employed by
the photovoltaics industry. A
100 - square - meter clean room
facility houses process equipment for manufacturing silicon
solar cells for companies.
Current measurement technology allows for a detailed characterization of wafers, cells and
modules, up to and including
their capability for withstanding
diverse climatic conditions.
The Solar Center Erfurt is
developing a manufacturing
process for ultra - thin
multicrystalline silicon solar
cells, among others. It is also
pursuing the development of
high - efficiency monocrystalline silicon solar cells. In both
areas, its focus is on ensuring
the technology can be applied
in industry. Special attention is
given to enhancing and
adapting the metrology systems
to in - line process control
requirements along the entire
value chain, from the wafer to
the finished photovoltaic
system.
State Development Corporation of
Selected companies
ALTEC Solartechnik,
Crispendorf
ASi Industries GmbH,
Arnstadt
asola Advanced and
Automotive Solar Systems
GmbH, Isseroda / Erfurt
ersol Solar Energy AG, Erfurt
ersol Thin Film GmbH, Erfurt
FEG Fertigungs- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH,
Sömmerda
GSS Gebäude - Solarsysteme
GmbH, Korbußen
JENOPTIK Automatisierungstechnik GmbH, Jena
LPKF SolarQuipment GmbH,
Suhl
PV Crystalox Solar AG, Erfurt
SCHOTT Solar Thin Film GmbH,
Jena
Sunways Production GmbH,
Arnstadt
Thüsolar GmbH, Rudolstadt
Visio-Glas GmbH, Sülzfeld
WACKER SCHOTT Solar GmbH,
Jena
Source of photographs:
CiS Institute for Micro Sensors and
Photovoltaics Research GmbH, ersol
Solar Energy AG, Fotolia / Yuri Arcurs,
LEG / Barbara Neumann, SCHOTT
AG / Alexander Sell
Successful in Thuringia
In Thuringia, the path to global
excellence has been made easy for
companies. The growth conditions
are outstanding; the innovative drive
of its entrepreneurs is boundless.
As a part of the Bosch Group, ersol
Solar Energy AG aims to shore up
its position even more as one of the
world‘s leading makers of premium
silicon solar cells. At its factories in
Erfurt and Arnstadt, ersol currently
produces polycrystalline and mono crystalline high - performance silicon
solar cells. In Erfurt ersol also
manufactures thin - film solar
modules that require only a fraction
of the silicon used in conventional
solar cells. In 2008, the company
has triple its wafer production
capacity to 180 MWp, its solar cell
production to 220 MWp and attain
a total capacity of 40 MWp in its
thin - film manufacturing.
PV Crystalox Solar AG is on of the
world‘s biggest producer of
polycrystalline silicon wafers for
solar cells. Ultra-modern multiwire
saws were the tool of choice in
Erfurt in 2008 when silicon ingots,
made in the company’s own production facilities in Oxford / UK and
weighing up to 275 kilograms, were
sliced into wafers measuring
between 180 μm and 200 μm in
thickness and having a capacity of
230 MWp. Since 1990, this
technology leader has been a major
force in the photovoltaics market.
Premier multinational solar cell
makers benefit from the high quality
of the wafers. For the ThuringiaBritish company, customer satisfaction is a top priority.
Thuringia mbH (LEG)
Department for Investment Promotion,
Following the opening of Sunways
Production GmbH’s manufacturing
plant for high - quality mono- and
multi - crystalline solar cells in
Arnstadt in 2005, the Sunways AG
subsidiary has already been able to
triple its production capacity to 100
MWp in 2008. The cluster around
Erfurt, contacts to ersol, PV
Crystalox and other regional
companies motivated the company
to locate its facility in Arnstadt.
Technology and International Relations
Mainzerhofstrasse 12,
99084 Erfurt, Germany
Contact: Dr. W.- P. Pankau
Phone:
+ 49 (0) 361 5603 - 442
Fax:
+ 49 (0) 361 5603 - 328
E - Mail: invest@leg - thueringen.de
www.invest - in - thuringia.de
The presence of an outstanding
photovoltaics cluster in Thuringia
was what led to a decision by
WACKER and SCHOTT to choose
Jena as the site for a joint venture
named WACKER SCHOTT Solar
GmbH. It is planned that the new
firm’s production capacity for silicon
wafers stands at 1 GWp by the year
2012.
By the end of 2009 Arnstadt will be
the first city in Germany to host a
production facility by an Abu Dhabi
company. Run by Masdar PV
GmbH, the manufacturing plant for
5.7 m² silicon thin film modules will
employ an almost 200 - strong
workforce.
asola Advanced and Automotive
Solar Systems GmbH in Isseroda
near Erfurt develops, sells and
manufactures photovoltaic solar
modules and systems for vehicles as
well as standard modules for roofs
and custom - made special designs.
The company is currently setting up
a new production facility in Erfurt.
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