UL now has a new lab facility for solar testing in North America

Underwriters Laboratories (UL) has completed its photovoltaic testing facility expansion in San Jose, Calif. The new facility with 40% increase in capacity meet the growing global demand for testing of alternative energy systems. The alternative energy systems include solar, wind, LED lighting and large batteries for electric vehicles.

UL has also opened a testing facility in Suzhou, China in early 2009 and has plans to open new facilities in Germany and Japan in year 2010.

"With the global solar market expected to generate 10 percent of the world's total electricity by 2035, we believe, more than ever, safety has to be a priority in its evolution," said Jeff Smidt General Manager of UL's Global Energy Business. "Our San Jose facility expansion and CBTL accreditation are just two examples of our ongoing commitment to the proliferation of safe, reliable renewable energy solutions globally."

This new expansion has a total laboratory space to 32,000-square-feet (2,973-square-meters). The facility now also houses five extra chambers to assess a variety of PV innovations including crystalline and thin-film solar semiconductor technologies, including BIPV and concentrated PV. UL also tests solar related components such as PV connectors and junction boxes.

India's Hyderabad based Solar Semiconductor, which has recently announced plans to establish Solar cell plant in Hyderabad is recently certified by UL as a high-wattage PV modules manufacturer.