Located in sunny Alicante, Spain, Himiesa has succeeded in combining tradition and innovation in its manufacturing of textile yarns. A determination to reduce CO2 emissions and energy costs has caused Himiesa to adopt photovoltaic solar energy (more precisely, thin-film solar cell technology) wholeheartedly. VACON 8000 Solar inverters and the VACON®
Multimaster concept were selected for the project.
New voith paper machine rolling smoothly at Mondi Štetí
Vacon solar installation in a yarn factory
1. Reference Story
solar installation in a yarn factory
VACON® 8000 Solar in a thin-film solar installation in Alicante
Located in sunny Alicante, Spain, Himiesa has succeeded in “We were looking for a reliable company with broad experi-
combining tradition and innovation in its manufacturing of ence in high power systems, and working with Vacon brought
textile yarns. A determination to reduce CO2 emissions and us confidence,” says José Luís Albert, Electroaldesa.
energy costs has caused Himiesa to adopt photovoltaic so-
lar energy (more precisely, thin-film solar cell technology)
Unique Multimaster technology guarantees improved
wholeheartedly. VACON 8000 Solar inverters and the VACON®
efficiency
Multimaster concept were selected for the project.
To ensure that the solar cells are able to produce maximum
Photovoltaics refers to the field of technology and research power at any particular moment, the inverters at Himiesa’s
relating to devices that convert sunlight into electrical en- factory utilize Vacon’s unique Multimaster concept. In an in-
ergy. Himiesa appointed Electroaldesa, a major system inte- stallation with several inverters, instead of running them as
grator in Spain, to be the main contractor for creating a pho- individual units, the Multimaster controls the inverters so that
tovoltaic power plant on the rooftop of their Alicante factory. only the number required at any given time is used, depend-
The choice of inverter supplier was an easy one to make from ing on the intensity of the sun’s radiation. This cutting-edge
the start: “This project had to be carried out with an estab- technology improves efficiency, reliability and functionality.
lished company that has a strong local presence and provides An incoming DC section is a standard feature, and an outgoing
round-the-clock service support. With this in mind, Vacon AC section is available as an optional extra.
was the perfect choice,” says Jorge Pascual, Himiesa.
Growth opportunities for Vacon Spain
For its photovoltaic operations, Himiesa chose cutting edge
thin film solar cells (TFSC). Thin-film modules with a nomi- For the Spanish customer, local, extensive support was one of
nal power of 1,200 kW were installed on the roof of Himiesa’s the decisive factors in selecting Vacon as the inverter suppli-
factory, and two 600 kW VACON 8000 Solar inverters feed all er. Vacon Drives Ibérica, Vacon’s subsidiary in Spain founded
the available solar energy into the grid. This is a unique proj- in 1998, was involved in every stage of the project, adapting
ect for Vacon, as it is the first time VACON 8000 Solar invert- and reacting to changes and requirements as they arose. Va-
ers have been installed in a photovoltaic solar energy project con’s other strengths include a wide range of products and
based on thin-film technology.