A group of semiconductor technologists and executives recently launched Signet Solar Inc., a Palo Alto, Calif.-based manufacturer of thin film silicon photovoltaic (PV) modules.
Signet Solar will design and produce PV modules for applications such as farms, large commercial installations and remote habitation. Its customers will include PV system integrators and installers, the company says.
Signet Solar is currently establishing its first production line and research and development facility near Dresden, Germany. In addition, Signet Solar will use Santa Clara, Calif.-based Applied Materials' nanomanufacturing technology to produce its modules.
‘The real driver for the $10 billion solar PV industry is cost-per-watt,’ says Rajeeva Lahri, Signet Solar's cofounder, president and chief executive officer. ‘We will combine U.S. technology and German engineering to achieve a benchmark PV module manufacturing cost structure with world-class quality and reliability.’