Respect for human rights: Companies are bearing responsibility

There are 50 million people worldwide living in modern slavery – that is 10 million more than five years ago. This shocking statistic was published by human rights organization “Walk Free” just recently. The organization lays part of the blame on companies in industrialized countries, which benefit from forced labor through supply chains. This is a topic that Jessica Mannocchi and Erik Siems, appointed by the Managing Board as SMA’s human rights officers, care deeply about.

Life tests increase the reliability of PV inverters

Wolfram Dege destroys inverters for a living – and helps to make them better in the process. To do so, he puts the devices under high stress and induces artificial aging. He really puts the inverters through the wringer, using cold, heat, moisture and high currents and voltages – ideally all at once. This gives him valuable information about service life. Read on to find out more about his life-prolonging work and his favorite test.

81 Inverters for 10 MW: SMA equips Australia`s largest PV rooftop solar system

If the energy transition is to succeed and climate change is to be halted, renewable generation must be significantly expanded. To achieve this, large spaces in particular must also be used for solar power production. Like the rooftop of the Australian Panel Products’ (APP) particleboard production and distribution facility - there, earthconnect has built Australia`s largest rooftop solar system under the most challenging conditions.

PV mini-grids provide electricity to 300 villages in Senegal

Senegal wants to give its population permanent access to electricity by 2025. However, half of the country’s approximately 17 million residents live in rural areas, sometimes a long way from the national utility grid. The government is therefore looking to decentralized and environmentally friendly energy solutions. The government’s ASER300 project is bringing electricity to 300 villages all around the country with mini-grids, which include PV modules, inverters, batteries, and cooling systems.

Erik Klüglingby Erik Klügling (guest post), , 4 Comments

Raising the profile of fathers in companies

No longer is finding the right balance between family and work to be an issue for women alone, because many men today are also seeking this balance. They want to contribute more, take responsibility as fathers and ensure that parental duties are distributed more fairly. So it’s all the more important that companies pay heed to these wishes.

Jason talks about his new leadership role at SMA UK & Ireland

A warm SMA welcome to Jason Devonshire-Mander, who joined us as Head of Sales and Service for the UK and Ireland in December. Jason brings with him a wealth of experience, having worked within the energy storage industry on and off for almost three decades and has developed a track record of achieving revenue and business growth in competitive markets.

Kate Scorerby Kate Scorer (guest post), , 0 Comments

Agrivoltaics: Blue-green model for the future

Agrivoltaics is a blue-green glimmer of hope in an era of climate change. It refers to the simultaneous use of an area for agricultural production and the generation of electricity from photovoltaics. Until now, agricultural land and ground-based PV systems have mostly existed separately. Anyone who purposefully combines the two forms of land use can benefit from positive effects.

Birgit Scheuch by Birgit Scheuch (guest post), , 2 Comments