A German company and a local electric utility partnered with the University this week to create what may be the most sophisticated solar power testing facility in the world, officials said.
The Tempe-based for-profit venture will use the Photovoltaic Testing Laboratory at ASU’s Polytechnic campus to test and certify solar power technology, said Rob Melnick, executive director and chief operating officer of ASU’s Global Institute of Sustainability.
The laboratory, built in 1992, is the only lab in the United States that is accredited for photovoltaic design qualification and type approval. Photovoltaic technology harnesses solar power for energy needs.
TÜV Rheinland, an international testing firm based in Germany, is joining forces with ASU to form a new company, TÜV Rheinland PTL LLC.
“This is a private-sector venture which we are participating in through our technology-transfer arm,” he said.
Although the University cannot legally hold shares directly in the company, ASU can get a stake through Arizona Technology Enterprises, a subsidiary of the ASU Foundation, Melnick said.
“[Arizona Technology Enterprises] operates to enable ASU to take its know-how and intellectual property to commercialize it,” he said.
ASU’s technology-transfer company owns about a 25 percent share of the new company, Melnick said.
The company will begin using ASU’s photovoltaic lab by the end of 2008. Arizona electric utility APS is also providing five acres of outdoor space at one of its research facilities for the venture.
Matthias Heinze, director of technology for the North American branch of TÜV Rheinland, said ASU’s reputation attracted his company to the partnership.
“ASU is one of the premier universities in the United States,” he said. “There was no better possibility to work with ASU and with ASU PTL.”
The lab’s location in the Phoenix metropolitan area and the amount of sun the area receives makes it an ideal location for a solar testing facility, he said.
With more interest in the U.S. eyeing renewable energy for financial and political reasons, Heinze said, TÜV Rheinland hopes to capitalize on the growing demand for solar energy, which requires testing and certification for products to enter the market, he said.
“We are not a producer, we are not a manufacturer, but we help manufacturers obtain access to markets,” he said.
The partnership with ASU will be important for TÜV Rheinland’s goals of increasing its share in the U.S. solar market, Heinze said.
“We are looking forward to a great relationship … with the business community in Arizona and in the United States,” he said.
And the University’s photovoltaic lab will be able to expand its testing capabilities because of the venture, according to an ASU press release.
Reach the reporter at matt.culbertson@asu.edu.
