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Companies Facts

cesses. This achievement delivers the first true mono c-Si kerf-free wafering for the PV industry.

The introduction of the PolyMax high volume manuf- acturing system brings the industry one step closer to replacing wire saw processes with a lower cost waste- free wafering solution. A key strength of the PolyMax system is its ability to produce wafers thinner than is achievable with wire saw technology, allowing the industry to produce cells with higher conversion effi- ciencies and lower cost.

“We believe the benefit of using kerf-free wafers will allow the PV industry to reach unsubsidized grid pa- rity. The start up of our high volume manufacturing system is a key step towards achieving this goal,” said Francois Henley, CEO of SiGen. http://www.sigen.com

S

pire Corporation (NASDAQ: SPIR) announced the introduction of its SPI-Line™ 20 megawatt

(MW) per year Module Assembly Line at the 25th European PV Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition (EU PVSEC) in Valencia, Spain at the Feria Valencia, located at Level 2, Hall 4, Booth 15.

The SPI-Line 20MW PV Module Assembly Line offers new entrants into the PV market a greater than 30% reduction in normalized capital expenditure (CAPEX), expanding customers‘ capability and cost reduction per watt of module production. The line incorporates Spire‘s advanced SPI-AssemblerTM 7000, SPI-Sun Simulator™ 4600SLP, the SPI-Laminator™ 1837, other essential manufacturing and testing equipment, as well as Spire‘s process technology and support services. Spire Semiconductor, LLC, a wholly ow- ned subsidiary of Spire Corporation, has produced a

world record efficiency concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) solar cell. The 0.97cm2

(0.1503in2

10-09 :: September 2010

) in cell was

measured by the U.S. Department of Energy‘s Nati- onal Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to have a peak efficiency of 42.3% at 406 suns AM1.5D, 25C (42.2% at 500 suns). http://www.spireCorp.com

V

eeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ: VECO) announced that Tsinghua Tongfang Company,

a Beijing-based, publicly listed division of the Tsin- ghua Holdings Company Limited, has selected Veeco as its primary supplier of Metal Organic Chemical Vapor Deposition (MOCVD) systems for their new light-emitting diode (LED) factory. Veeco booked the initial systems from a large multi-tool purchase order earlier this month. Tsinghua Tongfang Company Limited (SSE: 600100) is part of Tsinghua Holdings Company Limited and is a state-owned enterprise headquartered in Beijing, China. The Company was established in 1997 and listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange that same year, and is engaged in informa- tion technology, energy and environment industries.

Wang Lianghai, Vice President of Tsinghua Tonfang commented, “After thorough evaluation of available MOCVD systems at our Beijing LED R&D site, we selected Veeco as our primary supplier for our new production facility in NanTong which is scheduled to be completed by the end of this year. The Turbo- Disc®

K465i MOCVD systems were the clear winner

in terms of cost of ownership and productivity. We have an aggressive plan to ramp production of LEDs primarily to address backlighting demand for TVs, and Veeco’s technology, tool performance and cu- stomer support best matched our needs.”