“Sure about Solar” is not only our motto when it comes to producing state of the art PV test equipment. Eternal Sun also focuses on helping PV plant owners, projectowners, EPC’s, installers and wholesalers to be sure about the PV modules they buy in China, India and South-East Asia. We have our own local team of supervisors that can audit PV manufacturers, perform independent testing and even supervise during production.
As shown clearly in the picture below, a factory inspection will bring a number of benefits during the life cycle of your PV modules. Not only will the Pmax of your PV modules increase directly, you will also benefit from a longer lifespan and a much lower degradation rate. Although the spending on factory inspections might seem expensive, the payback time for your company can be as short as 1 year.
A factory inspection consists of a number of possible components. For each component a choice can be made whether or not to use it. First, there is the possibility to perform an audit of the PV factory. During this audit the production readiness of the plant will be examined and possible weak points will be revealed. It is also possible to have a complete inspection carried out during the production of the PV modules destined for you. Risks will be identified (red flagged) and the PV modules will be tested using EL images. It is also possible to have the PV modules tested by a third party lab. Another part of the factory inspection can consist of performing a pre-shipment test in order to detect micro cracks and soldering problems. Finally, it is also possible to perform an import test at the European ports of Rotterdam and Valencia (see below).
A final step that can be part of a PV factory inspection is an import test in the ports of Rotterdam or Valencia. Here it is possible to inspect PV modules using visual inspections, EL testing and Flash testing. An advantage can also be that these import tests can be done before the solar modules have passed Dutch customs.
