In late 2019, Heliatek was announced as one of three winners of the “Japan Energy Challenge 2019”, a competition hosted by Japanese SMAP Energy who drives to identify key technologies for the energy transition of Japan. Now, one year later, Heliatek has realised its first project in Japan in cooperation with Looop Inc. and Ritsumeikan University. The installation was realised on a bus stop of the Biwako-Kusatsu Campus of the University in the Shiga Prefecture (near Kyoto). HeliaSol (prototype) solar films were glued on flat and round shaped metal substructures, which were then mounted on the rooftop of the bus stop.
ARMOR solar power films (ARMOR Group; Nantes, France) has won the German Sustainability Award in the category “Climate”. This prize is seen as a major success for the Franco-German company, which is a European leader in the OPV film market. The ceremony was held in Düsseldorf in the presence of the German Vice Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Development Minister Dr Gerd Müller.
In October 2019, the EU-funded initiative “Switch2Save” (grant agreement No. 869929) was launched to improve the availability and affordability of electrochromic and thermochromic smart glass technologies. About one year later, the first project results show that the use of these technologies in combination with intelligent switching protocols can reduce the primary energy use of extensively glazed buildings by up to 70%. During an online workshop on “Energy Efficient Technologies for Building Envelopes” from 25-27 November 2020, the project members will present the project progress.
