New photovoltaics project: Bosch’s first facade system

WoREA Editorial Team

15 years ago

Joint project between Bosch Solar Energy and Johanna Solar Technology.

· Attractive facade design with CIS thin-film modules

· Solar power system will save around 12.4 tones of carbon dioxide per year

Erfurt/Holzminden. The aim of this first joint project between Bosch Solar Energy AG and Bosch subsidiary Johanna Solar Technology GmbH was to integrate high-capacity photovoltaic modules into a building facade in a visually and architecturally sophisticated way. Bosch’s first facade system has started feeding into the electric grid after the completion of the facade-integrated solar power system on the Schwager department store in the centre of Holzminden, Lower Saxony, Germany. Bosch Solar Energy’s range of project solutions now includes the planning and construction of such facade systems.

The photovoltaic system featuring an output of 21 kWp was installed as a part of a facade remodeling project. The facade was also fitted with a thermal insulation composite system. Built in the 1970s, the old curtain wall on the Holzminden department store was in urgent need of renovation and had almost no thermal insulation. The newly installed Johanna Solar Technology CIS solar modules generate around 19,000 kWh of electricity a year across the 300 square meters of the department store’s south facade. The system thus saves 12 tones of carbon dioxide per year, which is equivalent to the emissions from a medium-sized vehicle which has travelled 60,000 kilometers (37,000 miles).

Johanna Solar Technology’s CIS solar modules stand out due to their elegant design, attractive yields and high-grade processing. They are highly suitable for an architecturally challenging facade design. The modules slope ten degrees towards the sun and are thus able to achieve a greater output. The gaps between the modules are covered with perforated coated aluminum plates, which provide rear ventilation for the facade. The facade also has an aluminum frame structure, which adds to its high-standard external appearance.

Johanna Solar Technology
A subsidiary of the Bosch Group since December 2009, Johanna Solar Technology develops and manufactures innovative thin-film solar modules based on CIS technology. This technology does not use silicon as a semi-conductor, but instead features a chemical compound containing copper, indium, gallium, sulfur, and selenium.

Johanna Solar Technology GmbH is a developer and manufacturer of thin film solar modules of the latest generation. These high performance modules convert the sun’s energy directly into electricity. They are based on copper, indium, gallium, sulphur and selenium – also known as CIS or CIGSSe. In the first expanansion stage, the nominal capacity of the production plant in Brandeburg an der Havel is 30 MW. Johanna Solar Technology started its production in 2008 and the company currently employs about 130 people. Since December 2009, Johanna Solar Technology is part of the Bosch Group. Further information on the company is available at www.johanna-solar.com.

Bosch Solar Energy AG, together with its subsidiaries, is a leading provider of resource-saving photovoltaic products. Bosch Solar Energy offers its customers high-efficiency crystalline and thin-film products. Currently, Bosch Solar Energy AG and its subsidiaries employ over 1,500 workers.

For more information please visit www.bosch-solarenergy.de.

The Bosch Group is a leading global supplier of technology and services. In the areas of automotive and industrial technology, consumer goods, and building technology, some 275,000 associates generated sales of 38.2 billion euros in fiscal 2009. The Bosch Group comprises Robert Bosch GmbH and its more than 300 subsidiaries and regional companies in over 60 countries. If its sales and service partners are included, then Bosch is represented in roughly 150 countries. This worldwide development, manufacturing, and sales network is the foundation for growth. Each year, Bosch spends more than 3.5 billion euros for research and development, and applies for some 3,800 patents worldwide. With all its products and services, Bosch enhances the quality of life by providing solutions which are both innovative and beneficial.

The company was set up in Stuttgart in 1886 by Robert Bosch (1861-1942) as “Workshop for Precision Mechanics and Electrical Engineering.” The special ownership structure of Robert Bosch GmbH guarantees the entrepreneurial freedom of the Bosch Group, making it possible for the company to plan over the long term and to undertake significant up-front investments in the safeguarding of its future. Ninety-two percent of the share capital of Robert Bosch GmbH is held by Robert Bosch Stiftung GmbH, a charitable foundation. The majority of voting rights are held by Robert Bosch Industrietreuhand KG, an industrial trust. The entrepreneurial ownership functions are carried out by the trust. The remaining shares are held by the Bosch family and by Robert Bosch GmbH.

Additional information can be accessed at www.bosch.com.

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