Solectria Renewables: News - Massachusetts Institute of Technology unveils PV system using Solectria Renewables' technology

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press release

April 7, 2005

Massachusetts Institute of Technology unveils PV system using Solectria Renewables' technology

Cambridge, MA, April 7, 2005 - Solectria Renewables announced today the installation of its solar integrated photovoltaic inverter at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Hayden Memorial Library in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

This is the first 3 phase commercial photovoltaic system and the largest photovoltaic system at MIT. The 12.6 kW solar system uses a Solectria Renewables PVI13KW inverter, which converts the DC energy produced by an array of Schott Solar panels into electricity, feeding it directly into the building's AC electrical system without batteries or maintenance.

"We are thrilled to have this PV installation on the Hayden Library," said Laxmi Rao, Sr. Project Manager, MIT Physical Plant. "The Solectria Renewables team has worked closely with our team of designers, installers & electricians to ensure our program's success by sizing the right inverter for our specific application."

The PVI13KW includes both a DC disconnect and a fused AC disconnect, an AC contactor for zero Watt standby loss, an optional built-in 7-fuse PV combiner, a premium efficiency transformer and filter, and a state-of-the-art DSP-controlled, trench-gate IGBT inverter core. The unit was fully assembled and tested at Solectria Renewables' Lawrence, MA facilities.

"We have worked closely with a tremendous MIT team for almost two years to make this project happen," said James Worden, CEO of Solectria Renewables. "Based on their detailed input and feedback, we delivered the PVI13KW as a single, self-contained plug-and-play unit, that can be deployed in a matter of minutes."

Key members of MIT's design, installation and management team include MIT's Laxmi Rao, overall project manager, RWE/Schott Solar's Jamie Braman, provider of the array and mounting system, Irradiance's Ed Kern, system designer, Paul Lyons of Zapotec, system designer and integrator and MIT electricians and system installers. The MIT Hayden Memorial Library PV system has been in service since 2004.

Solectria Renewables, LLC, of Lawrence, Massachusetts, is a leader in the development and manufacture of a wide range of inverters for renewable power applications. The company's current inverter products for the grid-tied market are the PVI1800 (1800W), PVI2500 (2500W), PVI13KW (13.2 kW) and PVI75KW (75kW), which are cost effective for systems ranging in size from 1.2 kW to 300 kW. They can also be effectively used in parallel to achieve almost any system power level. Solectria Renewables will be expanding its product line over the next year, with a strong commitment to technology innovation, energy efficiency, and reliability.