PV Insider talks to Markus Gruber, Sales Director for Solar Technology and New Business at Grenzebach Maschinenbau about the importance of automation within the concentrated photovoltaic industry.
1. Firstly, please give an outline of your products for the CPV market.
Grenzebach supplies turnkey automation lines and systems.We focus on integration of each process into a complete production system including the overall control system as well as the necessary process development. A good example for this is for instance, the development of a joining gripper for the assembly of the receiver and lens plate with the module frame, where we were able to succeed the specified tolerances.
2. What role is automation playing in the development of the CPV industry today?
We believe that automation is one of the major ways to reduce the cost of CPV modules and therefore make this fantastic technology attractive again. In order to describe the impact automation could have on module cost we would like to compare this to polycrystalline pv modules where even today a cost reduction of approximately 20% due to automation is predicted to be possible.
3. How are you utilising your experience of industrialisation from other sectors in the CPV space?
Our experience gained in the supply of automated production lines for the glass, solar and general industry was our base for the solutions we have developed for CPV. Many principles of automation, although applied in a modified way, are more than valid for CPV. As an example, the flow line principle is the state of the art manufacturing way for the glass industry as well as for some of the CPV lines we have built.
4. A noted feature of the CPV industry is that system/module design can be incredibly varied. Does automation (and the development of turnkey systems) run counter to this?
Yes, we are aware of this conflict. However, with a Grenzebach solution, our customers and their projects will not at all be compromised by this hurdle. At Grenzebach we differentiate between hard automation and flexible automation. As hard automation we would describe bespoke designed solutions which are capable of producing one product only. The advantage of such an approach is, that the yield of such systems can be extremely high (think of packaging machines for pills for instance).
Flexible automation would be a system that is able to produce more than one product with the same production equipment. The changes necessary are minimal and in most cases only require a new program. Think for instance of an automotive production line in which you are able to produce a sedan, a station wagon and a convertible with the same equipment. For us, deciding what approach is the right one is critical and an important part of our engineering service. By the way, we have already realized a flexible production line for a major CPV manufacturer.
5. What features differentiate the CPV industry from the other sectors you operate in?
The common denominator for all industries we are active in is that they require automated systems. The systems itself differ due to different products, output requirements and of course technologies necessary for the actual manufacturing. For CPV this is in particular the required accuracy for the assembly of the module and the variation in module design.
6. Which geographical regions have Grenzebach identified for the development of your CPV portfolio in the coming years?
The United States, ASIA and there especially China, the MENA region and there especially Saudi Arabia.
7. What is the company’s goal in the CPV market?
Our aim is to further improve our understanding of the CPV specific requirements in order to develop automation solutions that will improve the quality, yield and competitiveness of our customers and yet remain the flexibility for product improvements. We are convinced, that automation is one key tool to accelerate the CPV industry in achieving their goal of reaching sustainable grid parity. With our experience, installed base and together with our customers and partners, Grenzebach will be the world wide leading automation company for the CPV industry.
Grenzebach will be presenting at the CPV USA 2013 conference (23-24 September, San Jose) and discussing these issues in greater detail. To find out more, visit
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