Evergreen Solar has determined that their Devens Massachusetts manufacturing plant is not producing the revenue needed to sustain operations. Solar panel selling prices are under pressure from lower cost manufacturing regions around the world, most notably China. As many as 800 of Evergreen's workers will be laid off by the end of the first quarter of 2011.
Evergreen's CEO Michael El-Hillow says the continued price pressure on panels is forcing the Devens closure. They still operate a filament plant in Midland, MI and a wafer plant in Wuhan, China. Their String Ribbon wafers will be manufactured in Wuhan and an additional 10 prototype furnaces will be added to that plant.
More at Xconomy.
Evergreen Solar.
* Most Arizona Solar Companies OK With Training Workers on The Job
A survey done by Arizona State Scientist sustainability Professor Pasqualetti reveals Arizona solar power companies aren't necessarily going after employees with solar power industry backgrounds right now. They're looking for people with broad-based bachelor's degrees and strong verbal, written, business and team building skills. You don't have to be a solar power savant to get a job with these Arizona companies.
Broad-based skills are the hot commodity for these companies as of right now. As the industry matures they say they'll be looking for people who have focused skills and experience.
Details at The Arizona Republic.
* Apple Filing Patents to Incorporate Solar Technology in Their Products
Apple has filed yet another patent to incorporate solar power as a secondary energy source for their devices. US Patent Number 7868582 has been filed for their invention of a "battery charging manager" that can handle power from several sources including solar.
They want their portable devices such as cell phones, tablet computer, image processing device, media player, etc. to have to have the solar charging option. Apple has been looking into integrating solar into it's devices for years and no doubt will continue to pursue this as their technology and solar tech advances.
Even more at Apple Insider.
No comments:
Post a Comment