REC QUALITY: BEYOND EXPECTATIONS Ensuring industry-leading standards of solar panel quality
Contents Introduction to REC − A look at who we are and our facilities Exceeding International Standards − How REC‘s internal qualification process compares to international standards Quality in Real World Applications − See where REC‘s test sites are and real world performance results of REC modules Built on Solid Ground − How REC ensures Reliability and Durability through quality controls in manufacturing Third Party Quality Confirmation − A summary of recent Due Dilligence and Bankabilit
Introduction We know you rely on high performance solar panels for the whole of your system‘s lifetime. We want you to trust our products and for you to be sure you are using the best solar panels available on the market. We pride ourselves on the quality of our panels and that’s why at REC, we strive to ensure our manufacturing process are of the highest standard possible.
REC Group – A leading, global solar company Established in Norway 1996 Vertically integrated with full ownership of all parts of the value chain: Polysilicon wafers cells modules systems Strong cost position and balance sheet Present in all key markets and segments Revenues of more than 1,740 billion Euro in 2011 Around 2,400 employees Headquarters Oslo, listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange (ticker: REC) 4 © 2012 REC All rights reserved.
Vertically integrated manufacturing REC is the world’s most integrated solar company. The vertical integration of our organization from silicon, wafers, cells and modules, together with our project development experience, gives us the highest level of quality control throughout the complete manufacturing process.
REC’s competitive advantage – minimum transport REC’s Integrated Manufacturing Facility in Singapore REC Module Plant • 4 Module lines • 8 Operators/line REC Cell Plant • mc-Si cell type • 8 cell lines • 8 operators/line REC Wafer Plant • Wafer size: 156mm x 156mm • Wafer type: p-type multicrystaline • 2 wafer factories Production Capacity Modules: 820 MW 6 © 2012 REC All rights reserved.
EXCEEDING INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS
Product Qualification and Testing Certification is good, but it is not a guarantee of quality. REC considers IEC and UL compliance as a minimum requirement. Strict test criteria beyond these standards must be passed before REC releases products to market. In designing and developing new products, REC works not only to meet international standards, but surpass them.
International standards IEC 61215, IEC 61730 & UL 1703 Hot spots By-pass diodes Thermal cycles Damp heat Fire safety Leakage current Reverse current overload Salt spray Humidity freeze Mechanical load UV test Hail impact International standards are developed to: Identify any design, material and process flaws Assess hazards caused by mechanical and environmental stresses. 9 © 2012 REC All rights reserved.
Certification results above industry standards The performance of REC panels during certification is far higher than the IEC certification threshold. As REC has strict internal qualification test requirements, passing the certification test is straightforward.
Pushing the standards REC is not satisfied with simply passing the standards, so has created its own stringent internal testing procedure.
What is REC’s Combined Cycle Test? On top of standard accelerated tests, REC’s internal quality protocol requires panels to pass a ‘Combined Cycle Test’ at IEC criteria to further ensure product reliability. REC panels are subjected to Flash a series of multiple cycle accelerated tests. Even with this, our panels still perform far in excess of expectations.
Internal qualification results above IEC standards In line with REC’s philosophy of the best quality design and performance, every design change or investigation undergoes an internal qualification process to identify characteristics that do not perform to expectations. This process has more stringent pass criteria than industry standards to ensure a reliable product.
REC goes further - Extended Qualification Major design changes also undergo an Extended Qualification process, where panels are tested to twice the normal industry standards. This extreme testing ensures panels can perform in the most severe environments, ensuring reliability. REC‘s Extended Qualification 14 © 2012 REC All rights reserved.
Extended qualification results double IEC Standards Even at double the IEC test conditions, REC solar panels perform within the industry standard pass criteria. REC Extended Qualification Test Results Legend: TC – Thermal Cycle % Power loss DH – Damp Heat 15 HF – Humidity Freeze maximum average minimum IEC pass criteria (≤ 5%) TC400 DH2000 HF40 -40 to +85°C 85°C 85% hum -40 to +85°C 85% hum © 2012 REC All rights reserved.
How does REC carry out its qualification? REC has its own laboratory equipped with state of the art equipment to test panels and new technologies. The qualification regime is implemented whenever a production or design change is proposed on the wafer, cell or module process to ensure it can withstand the world’s most unforgiving environmental conditions. REC test laboratory facilities Climate chambers Tilt tables Hail impact test 16 © 2012 REC All rights reserved.
REC’s internal laboratory Temperature UV Exposure Thermal Cycling Hot Spot Protection Impact Internal Qualification Humidity Freeze Reverse Current ElectroLuminesence Mechanical Load 17 © 2012 REC All rights reserved.
Other signs of quality Further certifications Further listings IEC 61701 Salt Mist Corrosion CEC California IEC 62716 Ammonia Resistance FSCE Florida MCS UK CSTB France JET Factory Inspection Japan 18 © 2012 REC All rights reserved.
Environmental and Quality Standards REC Wafer (Singapore) – ISO 9001 – ISO 14001 – OHSAS 18001 REC Cells Pte Ltd (Singapore) – ISO 9001 – ISO 14001 – OHSAS 18001 REC Modules Pte Ltd (Singapore) – ISO 9001 – ISO 14001 – OHSAS 18001 – UL Factory inspection ( Quarterly) – TUV Factory inspection ( Yearly ) – JET Factory Inspection ( Yearly ) – MCS Factory inspection ( Yearly ) Third party audit reports – Mott MacDonald – Black and Veatch 19 © 2012 REC All rights reserved.
QUALITY IN REAL WORLD APPLICATIONS
Ensuring quality in the field REC has developed a field inspection method and tracks systems across the world in different locations to ensure data collection on module performance and ensure understanding of actual module performance in different environmental conditions and climate exposures.
REC’s test systems 22 © 2012 REC All rights reserved.
Proven performance in India Pandit Deendayal Petroleum University in Gujarat, India (2.5% above expectations) 23 © 2012 REC All rights reserved.
Proven performance in Singapore 100kW REC Factory Rooftop, Tuas, Singapore 24 © 2012 REC All rights reserved.
Proven performance in Europe REC Systems’ Performance Ratio* Examples (%) 84.0 81.9 83.7 85.7 Yield report Actual France 5MW Italy 5.7MW Freiburg 582kW * The performance ratio (PR) describes the relationship between the actual and theoretical energy outputs of the PV plant. The low conversion losses of REC panels (glass reflection, temperature losses, transformer losses ...) are leading to a high PR. 25 © 2012 REC All rights reserved.
Reliability and Durability Model (RAD) RAD Accelerated Tests New Bill of Materials New Test Standards Environment (Temp, RH) New product design • Laboratory testing • Failure analysis • Failure replication • Physics of degradation Prediction Modeling • Product performance simulation • Degradation modeling (Prediction) Field Data • Customer feedbacks • Module performance measurement • System monitoring • Gap Analysis • Learning integration Output: 26 © 2012 REC All rights reserved.
Predicting and analysing degradation using models Statistical models show failure rates based on customer feedback and monitoring data to predict future claim levels. A physical model based on a technical understanding of the failure mechanism is used to predict effects on panels.
BUILT ON SOLID GROUND
Foundations for quality REC panels are designed to: – Meet the highest quality standards – Provide stable power output over the product’s lifetime Our solar panels offer a 25 year performance warranty – they need to be robust and durable. There is a wide variance in the methods of panel production among competitors and therefore varying degrees of product quality.
RBS and RPDM supporting quality and predictability RBS is the Standard Operating System for improving and sustaining safety, quality and productivity at REC. Our quality assurance system and technology development processes are critical elements of RBS. The RPDM decision process ensures all products are tested and validated prior to acceptance and that ongoing checks are implemented to maintain quality.
RBS controls quality through all key inputs Driving Force TPM – Autonomous Maintenance Systematic & Standardization Computer Integrated Manufacturing / Process Automated Inspection System Scientific Methods: ICCM SPC MSA SPS Machine Method World Class Operation RBS Model Man Competency Development Certification Programs People engagement Programs: TPM, SFM 31 © 2012 REC All rights reserved.
A highly automated manufacturing process REC has the highest level of automated manufacturing in the industry, meaning our manufacturing has increased repeatability and reliability. Automated Assembly Process Incoming Quality Control (IQC) Manual Visual Inspection Auto Vision Inspection System In-process Quality Control (IPQC) In-process Quality Control (IPQC) ISO 9001 QMS 32 © 2012 REC All rights reserved.
In-process automated checks Wafer Cell Panel Module Camera systems At cell, string, matrix and laminate levels Cell Inspect all cells for cracks & chipped edges Infra-red cameras Inclusions and cracks Sawmark detection system Sawmarks can lead to weaker wafers or cause shunts Camera systems Chips & edge defects may lead to breakages in cell or module lines Camera systems Inspect geometry, wafer breakages, cell print defects Colour camera system Thickness of anti-reflection layer I-V forward and r
THIRD PARTY QUALITY CONFIRMATION
Third party bankability audits Third party findings confirm superior REC quality.
Black & Veatch conclusions “BV finds the design for the Modules to be similar or superior to the designs of other crystalline silicon PV modules.“ “The materials and components come from suppliers with long track records.“ “The module assembly facility is highly automated and the capital equipment appears to be state of the art.“ “BV believes that the cell placement and busbar soldering operations are superior to widely accepted industry practices.
Mott MacDonald conclusions “MM has formed a very positive opinion of the facility due to the clean, organised and well-managed cell and module production lines.“ “The rate of automation of REC facilities provides important benefits and advantages against less automated factories.
Summary of report findings* Black & Veatch Mott MacDonald Specific items of mention (e.g. Best Practice/Industry Leading) Specific items of mention (e.g.
BACKING UP OUR QUALITY
The REC warranty REC‘s comprehensive product testing protocol enables us to offer an industryleading warranty. This is our trust in the quality we produce. A 10-year product warranty covers defects in materials and workmanship. REC’s linear power output warranty REC’s linear power output warranty Standard warranty 0 to +5W positive sorting tolerance on all REC modules A 25-year Power Output Warranty covers the module‘s performance . Starting from 97% of nameplate power Maximum degression of 0.
REC’s low customer claims level is evidence of quality Reduced panel power or plant downtime will adversely affect the performance of a PV plant. Faults can occur at different times for many different reasons. One bad panel can affect the performance of an entire string of sub-array. REC Warranty Claims (ppm) 250 200 150 100 50 0 41 © 2012 REC All rights reserved.
REC takes warranty claims seriously REC panels have a very low claims rate (ppm). Power Output claims are extremely rare – backed up by feedback from customers on the higher than expected yields of REC panels. REC averages less than 100 claims per million modules – a world class figure. REC targets a resolution of all customer claims within 14 days. REC claims are dealt with by a dedicated team of people across the globe.
Summary Quality throughout is the highest priority at REC. Quality is built into our business practice and culture. Our products are tested under significantly more demanding conditions than what is required by international standards. The highly automated manufacturing process gives reliability and repeatability. Our reputation for quality is supported by our field performance, low claims rate and third party audits. 43 © 2012 REC All rights reserved.
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