• Meter Data Management Market Heats Up

    Colorado Springs Utilities Inks Deal with Ecologic Analytics as Part of Home Energy Management Plan

    Meter Data Management Market Heats Up

    Last week, Meter Data Management player Ecologic Analytics added another major customer to its roster when it announced that it won a deal to manage the data coming from 535,000 gas, electric and water meters for Colorado Springs Utilities .  The Ecologic Analytics MDM is already being used by PG&E in one of the largest smart meter rollouts in North America.  The latest deal adds Springs Utilities to a client roster that also includes Indiana… Read More ›

  • Optimism, Incremental Changes Reign at PV Sec

    The mood in solar is certainly better than last year, according to conference attendees.

    Optimism, Incremental Changes Reign at PV Sec

    Thank heaven for the little things.

    The European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference, also known as PV Sec, is underway this week in Valencia, Spain, and some of the early buzz is around the materials and components that can make slight differences in efficiency or cost.

    "There is a lot being spent on incremental efficiency improvements," said Alain Harrus, a partner at Crosslink Capital who is in Spain at the moment.

    Honeywell, for instance,… Read More ›

  • Smart Grid AMI Networking: Phase II

    Cisco, Arch Rock, Itron, Silver Spring Networks, and the next steps for AMI networking.

    Smart Grid AMI Networking: Phase II

    I was in a meeting discussing the smart grid market with a few partners and associates at Foundation Capital just under a year ago. In no uncertain terms, they laid out their opinion that the door was closed to any new entrants in the smart grid AMI networking space, that Silver Spring had it "sewn up." Granted, it was a bullish and self-serving opinion, given their backing of Silver Spring Networks, the player that everyone seems to be chasing.… Read More ›

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  • Oerlikon Solar Continues Driving Amorphous Silicon

    Evolutionary changes in a-Si production yield big claims in efficiency and cost. 

    Oerlikon Solar Continues Driving Amorphous Silicon

    Oerlikon Solar remains committed to amorphous silicon (a-Si) solar technology and, to that end, is promising improved efficiency trends and improved cost numbers.

    Despite the demise of Applied Materials' SunFab a-Si business, Oerlikon clearly believes there's a future for the oft pilloried a-Si photovoltaic technology -- and the firm continues to make aggressive cost and performance claims.

    Today, at the Valencia Spain solar show, Oerlikon Solar… Read More ›

  • A Nervous System for Renewable Energy Projects

    How do you know if your wind turbine is running? Sensors and networking.

    A Nervous System for Renewable Energy Projects

    When you look at the towering turbines and churning blades of a wind farm, you're missing a critical detail: the electronics inside.

    National Instruments (NI) calls its real-time sensor networks, wireless sensor networks, and reconfigurable hardware "engineering tools." NI's guiding principle is the engineering maxim that if it can be measured, it can be made more efficient. The company's tools are just beginning to find acceptance as renewable… Read More ›

  • SoloPower’s Flexible CIGS PV Panels Move Closer to Market

    SoloPower gets UL approval for flexible CIGS.  But IEC approval is the more important certification.

    SoloPower’s Flexible CIGS PV Panels Move Closer to Market

    There's a solar show in Valencia, Spain (the European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference) this week and solar companies have to announce something.  SoloPower, a San Jose, California based CIGS photovoltaics vendor announced "a watershed breakthrough" in a breathless press release for their flexible CIGS PV panels in what they called "a first-ever achievement for the PV solar industry" that makes the firm the "first ever to receive UL… Read More ›

  • Japanese Firm Equips Public Bus With PV Panels

    Ryobi Group, which runs a bus transportation business in Japan, developed a future-oriented bus to commemorate the 100th anniversary of its foundation.

    Japanese Firm Equips Public Bus With PV Panels

    The bus, which the company calls "Solarve," is equipped with photovoltaic (PV) panels, LED lamps, and a system for viewing the surroundings of the vehicle.

    "This is the world's first public bus that is equipped with solar panels," said a representative of Sanyo Electric Co Ltd, which supplied the PV panels.

    The PV panels are mounted on the roof of the bus. They are made with Sanyo's crystalline silicon PV cells (HIT: heterojunction with… Read More ›

  • Observations on Eco-Industrial Engineering

    One word: plastics.

    Observations on Eco-Industrial Engineering

    "When Henry Ford recently unveiled his plastic car, the result of 12 years of research, he gave the world a glimpse of the automobile of tomorrow, its tough panels molded under hydraulic pressure of 1,500 pounds per square inch (psi). The only steel in the car is its tubular welded frame. The plastic car weighs a ton, 1,000 pounds lighter than a comparable steel car. Manufacturers are already talking of a low-priced plastic car to test the… Read More ›

  • Execs Depart Silver Spring While World Awaits IPO

    Judy Lin, the bigwig Silver Spring lured from Cisco last year, is gone. So is business development EVP John O’Farrell.

    Execs Depart Silver Spring While World Awaits IPO

    It's musical chairs time at Silver Spring Networks.

    Judy Lin, who had been serving as the chief product officer at the company, and John O'Farrell, who was executive vice president for business development, have both left the company. O'Farrell has joined Andreessen Horowitz, a venture capital firm. Lin is on vacation and couldn't be reached. The departures were amiable, according to Silver Spring.

    Lin came to Silver Spring last year from Cisco,… Read More ›

  • Nine Ideas for Changing Behavior, Incentives In Energy

    Game theory helped revolutionize telecom. Here are some suggestions for altering the human/kilowatt equation.

    Nine Ideas for Changing Behavior, Incentives In Energy

    Oh, behave!

    That could actually serve as the informal motto of the energy industry. Getting individuals and businesses to change the way they interact with their thermostat has become one of the primary goals of utilities, regulators and energy startups. To spur adoption of renewables, incentives have to be properly calibrated.

    But what works? One of the most successful companies so far in bringing behavioral dynamics to energy is OPower. It… Read More ›

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  • Interview with the CEO of Solar Power Partners

    Interview with the CEO of Solar Power Partners
  • Intersolar 2010: Day Three

    Intersolar 2010: Day Three
  • Intersolar 2010: Day Two

    Intersolar 2010: Day Two
Event

The Networked EV: Smart Grids and Electric Vehicles

November 9, 2010 San Francisco, CA
Webinar

The United States PV Market: Policy, Demand, and Opportunity

Thursday, September 9, 2010 2:00 pm EST/11:00 am PST

Perspectives ›

Smart Grid AMI Networking: Phase II

Smart Grid AMI Networking: Phase II

Cisco, Arch Rock, Itron, Silver Spring Networks, and the next steps for AMI networking.

Read More ›

Company Profile

Solexant’s CdTe Solar Ramping to 100MW

Solexant’s CdTe Solar Ramping to 100MW

If you're a photovoltaic module startup that has received venture capital funding in the last few years -- it's time to start showing results.
Read More ›