Shareholding of Fraunhofer

Fraunhofer Venture

CFV Solar Test Laboratory, Inc.

The Company

CFV Solar Test Laboratory, Inc. 

To facilitate access for solar panel manufacturers to the North American and international markets, this year in April, a laboratory was established in Albuquerque, New Mexico, providing worldwide certification services.

CFV Solar Test Laboratory, a photovoltaic (PV) test center, is jointly owned by the CSA Group, the VDE Testing and Certification Institute, the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE, and the Fraunhofer USA Center for Sustainable Energy Systems (CSE).

Technology

The CFV Laboratory provides comprehensive certification and non-certification testing of PV technologies no other test center is able to offer at present. This includes the testing of flat panels, thin-film cells and concentrator photovoltaic solutions. The test center will support PV module manufacturers to lower the costs and time required to launch their products on the market as the laboratory is able to certify solar panels for use in several countries simultaneously while adhering to the special standards of each country.

Testing in the 2,300 sqm indoor lab includes climate chambers for thermal cycling and humidity freeze up of panels up to 4m x 2.5m; a large area AAA+ rated solar simulator with temperature controlled enclosure for performance measurements; and access to a 20,000 sqm outdoor testing area with single and two-axis trackers for accelerated light absorption and CPV testing. The joint venture combines Fraunhofer’s technical expertise and extensive research capabilities with CSA Group and VDE’s solar certification proficiency, creating a new center of excellence for PV module testing.