The entire Arzon Solar team is really excited to finally be unveiling the uModule CPV platform.  We wanted to take a few moments to discuss exactly why we feel the uModule is unlike any other commercial CPV product ever offered and why we think it is the future of CPV.

A single uModule under test at Arzon Solar headquarters in California

Flexibility – Historically, CPV companies have developed products aimed at the utility-scale segment of the solar market, and only the utility-scale segment.  uModule is designed to empower products in every market segment of solar, including industrial, commercial, off grid, remote, mobile, utility and as an alternative to rooftop.  It is offered as a stand alone product for third party developers / integrators or as part of Arzon Solar offered systems, such as the uM2 or the uM6.

Simplicity – The uModule design was guided by DFM and value engineering principles from the beginning.  It is an elegantly simple design through and through.  It is the reflection of the engineering and design effort from what is likely the most experienced group of CPV experts ever assembled.

Performance – At 30% aperture efficiency, uModule is the highest performance commercially available CPV module on the market.  Period.

Competitiveness – Thanks to the simplicity of uModule design and engineering of uModule assembly processes, the uModule will be competitive on an LCOE basis, or energy adjusted $/W basis, with conventional Si PV even at modest initial production volumes.  If you’d like to know how competitive, please tell us about your use case through the Product Inquiry page.

Service and Upgrade – No other solar module in the world offers the degree of “O&M” friendly features that come standard on the uModule.  The lenses and plates of the uModule are easily removable and serviceable if ever needed.  If part of a uModule is damaged due to unforseen events, there is no need to replace the entire module, just damaged components through simple steps with non-specialized tooling.  Easy-service design also means easy-upgrade potential.  As the solar cells and optics for CPV continue to improve, uModule systems can be “re-powered” with the latest product upgrades to fully amortized structure, tracker and BOS as dictated by a customer’s future economics.

Manufacturing Strategy – Arzon Solar already has all capital equipment needed to move the uModule into full production, which allows us to start uModule production in Q3, 2015.  Because of the uModule simplicity, the capital needed for manufacturing expansion is a tiny percentage (5-10%) of that needed for traditional Si PV or micro-cell CPV on a $/W basis.  This allows the business to grow rapidly without uncomfortable capital commitments.

So, by now you know our uModule platform is beautifully engineered for a variety of applications, but perhaps you’re still wondering if this is the product for you.  So lets take a short look at the raw Competitive Advantages of the uModule platform and Arzon Solar CPV.  The biggest competitive advantage of uModule systems is the amount of energy (kWh) generated in a given amount of land.  Because uModules are 2x as efficient at conventional Si PV modules, uModule systems provide the greatest amount of PV energy density commercially available.  But don’t take our word for it, the NREL Land Use Report of June 2013 crunches the numbers to show Arzon Solar CPV as the most kWh per acre for small (<20 MW) and large (>20 MW) US solar power plants.

uModule systems are also incredibly land sensitive, providing large amounts of solar power with minimal land scarring, minimum disturbance to local flora and fauna and no permanent shading.  This makes uModule perfect for land-sensitive applications as well as remote applications where ground interfacing is a challenge.  uModule systems also require no water for nominal operation.

Be sure to stay tuned to the website and the blog for more updates on uModule-enabled products and Arzon Solar news.  Lastly, our team always looks forward to hearing your thoughts and interest concerning the new uModule platform, so please don’t be shy!