SolarWorld will sponsor Las Vegas university team in Solar Decathlon

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SolarWorld, the largest U.S. crystalline silicon solar panel manufacturer for more than 42 years, announced today that it will donate more than 7 kilowatts of high-performance solar panels to sponsor Team Vegas – the team of the University of Nevada at Las Vegas (UNLV) – in the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon.

The manufacturer joins Bombard Renewable Energy, a SolarWorld Platinum Authorized Installer, in sponsoring the university team.  Bombard Renewable, based in Las Vegas, will donate many balance-of-system components as well as installation. Bombard Renewable Energy is a division of Bombard Electric LLC.

In the every-other-year competition, students of engineering, architecture and other fields compete in designing homes that showcase solar power.  This year from Oct. 5 to 15 in Denver, 13 teams will enter their modest-sized, but real-life constructions in 10 categories of competition, such as energy efficiency and housing marketability.

Returning for a second competition, the UNLV team is aiming to construct a sustainable, health-conscious and “age-in-place” home for “active aging citizens of Las Vegas and beyond,” according to the team’s summary on the Solar Decathlon website.  The home design will encompass, among other things, handicapped-accessible features, extra elements to enhance shading and automated lighting and temperature controls.

“As the leading U.S. producer in our field, we believe we owe the industry to do our part to foster the solar-industry interests and drives of young people,” said Shane Messer, U.S. vice president for sales and marketing for SolarWorld.  “The Solar Decathlon is the industry’s main extracurricular activity for today’s youth.”