By: centraljersey.com
Applied Photovoltaics is in the process of securing funding to bring 25 or more manufacturing jobs to the Central Jersey area with its solar consulting, applications, design and fabrication business.
U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu and Congressman Rush Holt toured the Reed Road, Pennington, firm to see how an America Recovery and Reinvestment Act-funded $1.1 million clean energy manufacturing tax credit is helping Applied Photovoltaics to begin to manufacture solar energy modules for use in building-integrated applications.
Building-integrated photovoltaics use solar panels as an integrated part of a building, such as windows, glass balconies, curtain walls or roofs. They are custom-designed and custom-built to order at Applied Photovoltaics. The glass for solar panels is coated with thin-film silicon, which is thinner than a human hair, to convert sunlight into energy.
"It’s helping deploy the technology in creative ways, and it’s something we really should be thinking about," Mr. Chu said. "What are the price points and how do you get architects to think that this is a natural building material? This is applying a technology in a new way to make it a natural product you think about integrating into a building."
He added, "The problem with solar is it takes a lot of area. But we do have a lot of area on roofs and sides of buildings and things of that nature so this is part of how you get it in there in our natural structures."
Applied Photovoltaics is ahead of the trend with its integrated solutions, Mr. Holt said.
"If we’re going to get to a sustainable energy economy in the United States, we’ll have a lot more than big fields of solar collectors or large arrays of wind turbines. It has to be integrated into everything we do," he said. "In all of our construction, all of our transportation, we build energy efficiency and energy generation into it, and that’s the sort of thing this company is doing."
This is the only New Jersey company to get the ARRA 48C tax credit for advanced energy manufacturing facilities, which allows a tax credit for up to one-third of equipment costs, or about $1 million, said Robert Lyndall, one of the company’s founders.
"The tax credit’s value to us is visibility and creditability" because the process for qualifying is endorsed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory of the Department of the Energy, he said.
New Jersey has the largest installation of solar power after California, Mr. Holt said.
"We’ve got a lot of rooftops, but we have not had indigenous industry, and it’s a market that’s crying out to be filled," he said.
A new 40,000-square-foot manufacturing plant would be established further down the road from its current location on Reed Road once $3.3 million in funding is secured through loans and tax credits.
"The equipment costs are low because my husband knows how to put it together," said Genevieve Carlton, marketing consultant for Applied Photovoltaics and the wife of Mr. Lyndall.
Mr. Lyndall has an engineering degree and a manufacturing background.
During its first year in business in 2007, it sold more than $1 million in solar equipment to China, she said. Applied Photovoltaics also manufactures equipment and machines that are used to make solar panels.
The new manufacturing jobs will call for skilled labor to create the high-tech integrated panels that convert sunlight to energy.
"You can’t just grab someone off the street," Mr. Lyndall said.
According to Department of Labor statistics, manufacturing jobs have been in steady decline for years.
"We’re not just manufacturing, we’re going to have an R&D component" for next generation solar technology, said Jeff Szczepanski, co-founder and partner. "What we want to do now is set up our own line to use our equipment to manufacture our own solar panels that are a very custom product for architectural installations."
Designs can be etched into the low-emissivity (low-E) glass so it is a way for companies to further brand their building.
"We’re using a laser to define patterns," Mr. Szczepanski said.
Real savings for businesses come when solar is integrated into the building design from the beginning, although some buildings may be able to be retrofit. One of Applied Photovoltaics specialties is consulting for good application and better uses of solar.
Solar installation can cost the same, if not less than other products, from $60 to $100 per square foot. The panels last more than 30 years and are quality tested for hail, humidity and freezing temperatures.
After funding, the manufacturing mode would be up and running within nine months, Mr. Szczepanski said. The manufacture of products and solar panels could take from one day to a week to several months because of the customization process.
Mr. Lyndall and Mr. Szczepanski are looking to the Small Business Administration and the Economic Development Authority of New Jersey for funding instead.
"We haven’t looked at the venture capital route, Mr. Szczepanski said. "We don’t need a lot of money to get going. We are in it for the long haul. I’ve believed in this for my whole professional career. If we get outside money, we would want somebody to come in as a partner as opposed to someone who would come in and then sell out."
He added, "Our goal is to build a solar empire in central New Jersey."

