Applied Materials Opens Advanced Solar Research and Customer
Demonstration Facility in Xi’an, China
XI’AN, China--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Applied Materials, Inc. the world’s largest supplier of equipment to the
solar photovoltaic industry, today opened an advanced solar research and
demonstration facility in Xi’an, China. Applied Materials’ Solar
Technology Center, the largest non-government solar energy research
facility in the world, is comprised of laboratory and office buildings
covering more than 400,000 square feet and contains an entire Applied
SunFab™ thin film manufacturing line and a complete crystalline silicon
pilot process. These lines are configured to closely simulate customer
fabrication (fab) environments.
“Establishing this
center in China is an integral part of Applied’s global strategy and an
important step toward the industrialization of the global solar
industry.”
“This opening represents a critical breakthrough for the photovoltaic
industry and China and a tremendous benefit to our customers,” said Mike
Splinter, chairman and CEO of Applied Materials. “Establishing this
center in China is an integral part of Applied’s global strategy and an
important step toward the industrialization of the global solar
industry.”
Applied Materials is celebrating its 25th anniversary in
China this year and today has more than 800 employees and 13 offices in
the country, with approximately 300 employees in Xi’an. Applied first
broke ground in Xi’an in 2006 and the total investment in the
multi-phase project is more than $250 million dollars. The completed
facility includes a solar technology center for R&D, engineering,
product demonstration, testing and training for crystalline silicon and
thin film solar module manufacturing equipment and processes. Employees
in the center will work closely with local suppliers to test and qualify
new materials and tools and evaluate potential new cost saving
technologies. The center has the largest solar array in Xi’an, a 56 kW
array on a parking lot structure.
“We believe this technology center will provide important contributions
to driving down the cost of solar around the world,” stated Mark Pinto,
senior vice president, general manager, Energy and Environmental
Solutions and Applied’s chief technology officer. “In addition to
housing Applied’s state-of-the-art research into solar manufacturing
techniques, customers and potential customers from around the world will
be able to work side-by-side with our technologists to reduce their time
to market and improve factory productivity and cell efficiency.”
Xi’an is located in the Shaanxi province in northwest China and is a
growing center of energy technology excellence in China. The local
province boasts more than 40 colleges and universities and Xi’an is
recognized as one of the leading high-technology research areas in the
country. Applied has worked closely with local governments, contributed
to research and awarded 166 university scholarships since 2005 through
an R&D fund with the Xi’an Municipal Science and Technology Commission
and Xi’an High Tech Park.
“As China works to build its renewable power infrastructure we are
pleased to offer such a unique facility. In the laboratories, local
suppliers of systems and materials will be able to work closely with our
engineers to reduce development costs, accelerate the industrialization
of clean energy technology and contribute to decreasing the cost of
solar,” said Charlie Gay, president, Applied Solar. “This is a powerful
benefit we are bringing to our customers and to China, and we look
forward to immediately putting these capabilities to work.”
About Applied Materials
Applied Materials, Inc. (Nasdaq:AMAT) is the global leader in
Nanomanufacturing Technology™ solutions with a broad portfolio of
innovative equipment, service and software products for the fabrication
of semiconductor chips, flat panel displays, solar photovoltaic cells,
flexible electronics and energy efficient glass. At Applied Materials,
we apply Nanomanufacturing Technology to improve the way people live.
Learn more at www.appliedmaterials.com.
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