Solar Power International 2017: A Platform for Innovation
Solar Power International 2017 was a huge success. The unveiling of Yaskawa Solectria Solar’s newest products, the XGI 1000V Commercial String inverter and XGI 1500V Utility-Scale inverter made for a memorable show this year. The release marks the first Solectria products manufactured at the Yaskawa facility in Buffalo Grove, IL.
Our team had great customer meetings and presented in many different forums. Senior Applications Engineer, Michael Nieman presented two educational posters, “Rule 21 Advanced Inverter Functions Have Finally Arrived” and “Simple and Cost Effective Rapid Shutdown Solutions.” He also presented an Installer NABCEP Training on “Designing Commercial Projects with New String Inverters.” Product Manager, Eric Every spoke about energy storage at the Technical Symposium with the presentation titled “Making the Choice of AC or DC Coupled Energy Storage.” We also co-hosted a Power Hour featuring the XGI 1000 with our distribution partner, CED Greentech where customers fueled up on power foods and eight lucky winners won solar powered backpacks.
The main attraction at our booth was the newly announced XGI line of inverters designed, tested and engineered in the USA. Straight from Yaskawa America, Inc’s manufacturing facility in Buffalo Grove, IL, XGI inverters are held to Yaskawa’s award-winning quality standards. The XGI 1000 and 1500 are equipped with an LED display that allows you to see in one glance the status of your inverter. The XGI line also provides an all new interactive user interface that allows users to check the status of the inverter from a handheld device and facilitate troubleshooting and array maintenance.
The solar industry went all out this year and showcased the latest innovations in solar technology. Some cool products that stood out at this year’s show include
- Hellerman Tyton displayed a 20-year life non-metallic cable tie developed specifically for PV. A rather utilitarian item, but it shows how every industry that serves the PV market continues to advance their products.
- LG showed off a 410 Watt 72-cell module from their NeON2 series, which may be the highest power 72-cell module in the world.
We had a great time in Las Vegas and learned a great deal from our solar peers. Over 20,000 attended this year’s show and we hope that number grows as the industry continues to mature. We are looking forward to seeing how storage will play a bigger role in future shows. See everyone in Anaheim at Solar Power International 2018!