Heraeus Partners With Ulbrich Solar For SCR

• Ulbrich Solar Technologies and Heraeus Photovoltaics have entered into a joint manufacturing and sales partnership agreement for the latter's Selectively Quoted Ribbons (SCR)
• A 'plug and play solution, according to Hereaus, Ulbrich will manufacture and market SCR aiming at module manufacturers
• Heraeus says the SCR can lead to power gain of up to 2.2 watts on module level, and that it is compatible with conventional module designs as well as with modules made with half-cut cells and bifacial modules
• Key customers will get to sample the product manufactured by Ulbrich in September 2018
• Initially, the product will be sold in the markets of Europe, Russia, Turkey, the Middle East, Mexico and the US

Germany's Heraeus Photovoltaics and PV ribbon manufacturer Ulbrich Solar Technologies have signed a joint manufacturing and sales partnership agreement. Ulbrich will manufacture and market Heraeus's new line of patented advanced Selectively Coated Ribbons (SCR). Heraeus defines this product line as a 'plug and play' solution for module manufacturers that can easily be integrated into their existing manufacturing process.

The main work of a PV ribbon is to interconnect the cells to a string in a module. Heraeus says its SCR solution is unlike conventional PV ribbons that come with a solder coating on them. Its SCR is a tabbing ribbon designed with stripes of highly-reflective white coating running across its edges, with the solder coating in the middle. This, it claims, leads to power gain of up to 2.2 W on module level and is compatible with conventional module designs as well as those made with half-cut cells and bifacial modules.

The initial plan is for Ulbrich to sell the SCR in Europe, Russia, Turkey, the Middle East, Mexico and the United States. Key customers will get to sample the product in September 2018. Commercial products will be available in early 2019. Heraeus hopes to support 'several hundred megawatts of module manufacturing' with the SCR in 2019.

"Solutions like our Selectively Coated Ribbons are another example of why we invest so heavily into R&D. This partnership with Ulbrich will help us bring this innovation to market quickly so the industry can continue to make solar the most efficient and important renewable energy source," said Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of Heraeus Photovoltaics, Dr Weiming Zhang.

In an interview with TaiyangNews for the TaiyangNews Market Survey on Metallization Pastes 2018 earlier during the year 2018, Zhang explained that SCR is part of the company's 'beyond silver pastes campaign' strategy in its quest to be known as a solution provider that offers several bundles to save time and money of its customers (see Beyond Silver Supply Strategy). The TaiyangNews Market Survey on Metallization Pastes 2018 can be downloaded for free on our website.