The new headquarters of the pharmaceutical company Novartis in New Jersey is reaching new heights by installing the largest transparent solar roof in the US.
The transparent solar cells that will cover the roof will be provided by the German company Sunways, who specialize in building-integrated photovoltaic applications. This is going to be the biggest roof project of this company in the States, designed by the architect Rafael Vinoly.
Sunways use special technology that cuts small square holes in the solar cells so that they are easily integrated into building materials. The company is proud of their huge European market, where this innovative technology is sold to a great number of architects.
In addition, the company offers custom-designed colored solar cells for decoration of building facades, while still maintain their original purpose to generate power. The efficiency of these panels is nearly 15%.
Harold Schafer, head of corporate communications at Sunways, hopes that this new technology will be implemented worldwide, although it is popular only across Europe and it is just pioneering in the US. The increasing energy costs as well as the requirements to reduce emissions will drive more people to turn to these solar cells. According to Schafer, expanding urban regions would be perfectly suited to facilitate this technology.
