A recent  U.S. Solar Industry Monitor finds that professionals within the solar industry value chain predict strong growth for their U.S. businesses in 2010 and 2011.
•    Respondents indicate that more favorable legislation and heightened marketing will be keys to the expansion of their businesses.

Nearly 100 professionals representing key areas of the solar business value chain participated in the poll. Highlights of the findings include:
•    The majority of participants forecasted growth for their U.S. businesses in 2010 (92.6 percent) and 2011 (95.1 percent). Many expected to register a growth rate of more than 25 percent in 2010 (37.3 percent) and 2011 (55.0 percent).
•    The majority (64.9 percent) indicated the recession has not had a crushing impact on the U.S. solar industry, which has dealt with economic challenges in a positive manner.
•    Respondents identified the main obstacles to growth as the lack of financing (81.8 percent), little support from utilities (62.9 percent), lack of customer knowledge (61.3 percent), and insufficient level of incentives (59.1 percent).
•    Awareness and differentiation are important in the nascent solar industry. To create demand in the coming year, 82.9 percent report that sales and marketing communications will be stepped up.
“The U.S. solar industry is positioning itself for a sales upswing in 2010 that could pave the way for aggressive expansion in the years beyond,” said Sebastian Goeres, a renewable energy specialist with Droege & Comp. “Competition is fierce, and players compete mainly via cost. We see the need for leading companies to improve their operational costs and to put more emphasis on their strategic plans.”
In anticipation of strong demand and harsh competition in 2010 and 2011, 60.2 percent of respondents said they will boost their U.S. supply. Approximately half of those polled will increase their assembly/production, while 38.6 percent will go about expanding market share via transactions, such as joint ventures, mergers or acquisitions.
Increased communication was also cited as a strategic priority, and references were made to a wide array of traditional, digital and social media techniques and platforms.
“Solar businesses regard their sales and marketing efforts as critical to revving up the U.S. growth engine,” stated Brian Hall, managing supervisor – advanced manufacturing and energy practice, Gibbs & Soell. “However, respondents said they favor more indirect methods to gain visibility, including search engine optimization that unlocks value from existing content, as well as media coverage earned from outreach to professional journalists and industry bloggers. A next step is to strategically integrate digital media tools such as corporate blogs and social networking into the mix, which can help companies establish clear voices and engage in more interactive conversations with their audiences.”

New Green Resolutions

Joy Adams  The Green X-Ray HouseSouth San Francisco

Check out job opportunities Here

LISTEN Leslie & Alden Adkins interview with QuestPoint n The Mix on going green.

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Hollywood Goes Solar?

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From spaced based solar power plants

to making your own solar panels for under $100, the effects of the “green economy” are making it’s way into all aspects of our world. PG & E has just inked a deal with Solaren, a Southern California start-up to launch components for a solar power plant into orbit and sell the electricity it generates to Pacific Gas and Electric. The deal was approved by the California Public Utilities Commission. The project is supposed to be turned on in 2016.

Solaren, founded by veterans of Hughes Aircraft, Boeing and Lockheed, plans to deploy a free-floating inflatable Mylar mirror over half a mile in diameter. This will collect and concentrate sunlight on a smaller mirror, that in turn will focus the rays on photovoltaic modules.
California regulators approved a utility contract for the first space-based solar power plant in the U.S. The 200-megawatt orbiting solar farm would convert solar energy collected in space into radio frequency waves, which would be beamed to a ground station near Fresno, in California’s central valley. These radio waves would then be transformed into electricity to be fed into the power grid.

Cows go green

Never underestimate the human spirit, just as big energy power players are beginning to show just how much juice they have; right back here on earth; Home Made Energy and others are offering “how to kits” that show you how to go green and build your own solar panels for under $100. The race is on. Seems everything is going green. Including… well see for yourself! Do the green thing!

Green Thing is a not-for-profit public service that inspires people to lead a greener life. With the help of brilliant videos and inspiring stories from creative people and community members around the world.

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A Quick Recipe for a Successful Copenhagen

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Listen in on Kevin Hopkins’s interview with QuestPoint N the Mix. Kevin is an author of ECO INSTITUTION‘s Certified Green Consultant online training course.

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Here’s the story, solar is hot….

green is in. It is exciting!  Attendance at the 2009 Solar Power International show in Anaheim was estimated at 25,000. The number of exhibitors doubled from last year. Consumers, businesses and interested parties are in learn mode. A couple of developments that  confirm an earlier article I wrote called, (listen here) – Transformers. In it I discuss the potential drama to come as the “status quo” faces off against new energy sources.

So on the table now, The Solar Rights Manifesto being championed by Barry Cinnamon, CEO of Akeena Solar seeks to eliminate the bottleneck of  building inspections and paperwork that faces new solar panel owners who are purchasing systems under 10 kilowatts. The elimination of this mountain of forms would drive costs down even further and as a result bring a solar system within closer reach of even more consumers. The proposal was well received at the convention, let’s see where it goes from here.

The Solar Rights Manifesto

Solar Energy Industries Association CEO Rhone Resch, announced a Solar Bill of Rights, which I encourage you to read here.

SOLAR BILL OF RIGHTS.

Please take some time to watch and listen to the Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. keynote speech in the INSIGHT section.

Green Gold Rush:
A vision for Energy Independence, Jobs and National Wealth

Vice President Joe Biden joined via satellite – California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu and Chris Gronet, Solyndra’s CEO along with other dignitaries to break ground in Fremont CA on a $700 million plus solar panel manufacturing plant. This was great news  given that NUMMI (Toyota), had just announced it was closing it’s automobile plant there last week. It will mean thousands of jobs for the region and further establish the Bay Area as mecca for the clean tech industry.

The US solar industry has had an oversupply of low cost photovoltiac panels. Increased global factory output of silicon; a key ingredient in making solar panels and a sharp drop in demand for panels in Europe had the effect of flooding the market. This is good for consumers who can buy now in spite of an otherwise stagnant U.S. economy. Solyndra services large commercial rooftop customers.

Still solar career seekers and employers are thirsty for technical and non technical training, education and innovation! One of the big issues facing the industry according to Solar Tech, an industry Consortium, is the matter of workforce training.They have indicated  that within the next decade 10,000 new employees will be needed in the solar industry in Silicon Valley.

Meeting this demand, City College of San Francisco announced it’s Green Technology program in February of this year. It will provide hands-on training that will lead to employment opportunities in solar, wind, energy efficiency and geothermal fields. Then there’s the Presidio Graduate School which offers an MBA in Sustainable Management. It has seen enrollment rise for next fall. There are some forward thinking individuals who are investing in their own solar education; and educational skills trainers are springing up having recognized the need for massive solar education. Further there is $500 million in Stimulus job training dollars that’s beginning to hit the market, a large portion that’s targeted to deal with solar training.

These are some early inroads to the big issues of technical training, education, and development surrounding the solar field.

INCREASE your GREEN KNOWLEDGE  visit > THE SOLAR WALL

As one of the world’s top travel destinations it seems appropriate that San Francisco played host to InterSolar North Americas’ second annual U. S. convention at Moscone Center July 14 -16, 2009. InterSolar is a platform for visitors to get the latest information about photovoltaic and solar thermal products, equipment, materials and services from 500 exhibitors representing more than 20 countries.

The people of San Francisco and the Bay Area in general have again found themselves leading the way, this time in solar technology development a renewable source for energy.  As the founder of the QuestPoint Group it’s been many years now that  I have been active in the executive search, recruiting and consulting field; and It strikes me that I am not just a witness to, but a participant in an industry that will change the world.

Strong ideas! But just recognize, there was San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom opening the session highlighting the fact that San Francisco has produced more energy per capita through solar generation than any other California city, and that’s happened in just one year! Consider the words of Professor Eicker  Weber of the Fraunhofer – Institute for Solar Energy (the largest solar energy research institute in Europe) who points out that we have the opportunity in the US through incentives; that anyone producing renewable energy should have the opportunity to sell it at a price that makes it profitable. And then there were the manufacturers from far and wide bringing innovation to a market that’s set for massive growth.

So what’s all this mean for you and me? It means new opportunities for careers, entrepreneurs, investors and more. Somewhere on the trade show floor, in between a panel discussion, or written on a napkin at a bar after one too many a new idea may have been hatched and who knows where it will lead. Yes we will have to educate and re-educate ourselves to the technology and it to us – to meet our needs. At this point we know the benefits of solar and renewable energy – less dependence on oil and coal…clean air! For all the tech talk, carbon reduction, the insider language, the profits yet to be made – are we trying to make this world a better place? The solar industry is poised to help do that because it harnesses the source humankind has turned to for strength repeatedly throughout  all recorded history – the Sun!

Please check out some of the highlights from the InterSolar North America conference by clicking on Intersolar TV . Contact me to see how we can partner for success.

Richard Andrews

Founder

QuestPointGroup