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.

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.

2. features and a passionate attitude. Vacon Spain also collabo-
rated with a third party to supply other components that were
needed (such as a transformer) to fulfill the scope of the re-
quested solution.
For Vacon Spain the Himiesa project was a major step for-
ward in the solar energy business. “Our team at Vacon Spain
is very excited about the tremendous growth opportunities
the solar energy business has to offer,” says Santiago Mar-
tin, Managing Director, Vacon Spain. “We are also very happy
about the excellent cooperation we had with our parent com-
pany in Finland during the completion of the Himiesa project.
Vacon’s highly experienced professionals were a valuable as-
set in the commissioning phase,” he concludes.
In detail
Himiesa is one of the leading companies in the Spanish textile
yarn market. Its yarns are used in a large variety of home
textiles, including upholstery and knitwear.
Electroaldesa, founded in 1997 and located in Pinoso, Alican-
te, specializes in the installation of low- and medium-voltage
Vacon’s Multimaster concept allows 1-8 connected invert-
power lines (both aerial and underground) and transformer
er modules to operate together sequentially, depending
assembly solutions. Electroaldesa has recently opened up a
on the intensity of the sun’s radiation. This puts the VA-
business division dedicated to offering services to the solar
CON 8000 Solar inverter in a strong position among large
energy market.
modular, centralized inverters. In installations with many
inverters, instead of running them as individual units, the
Photovoltaics (PV) is the field of technology and research
Multimaster concept runs the inverters as a single, com-
related to the devices that directly convert sunlight into
plete system, resulting in improved efficiency, reliability
electricity. The solar cell is the elementary building block of
and functionality.
photovoltaic technology. Solar cells are made of semiconduc-
tor materials, such as silicon. One of the properties of semi-
Photos © iStockphoto.com/Gubcio and Vacon.
conductors that makes them most useful is that it is easy to
modify their conductivity by introducing impurities into their
crystal lattice.
Thin-film technologies belong to the second- and third-gen-
eration photovoltaic cells. Thin-film technologies are being
developed as a means of substantially reducing the cost of
photovoltaic (PV) systems. Thin-film modules are cheaper to
manufacture owing to their lower material, energy, handling
and capital costs. This is especially true in the use of printed
electronics (roll-to-roll) processes.
Vacon Drives Ibérica S.A.
C/ Colom, 406-C
Pol. Ind. Santa Margarida
08223 Terrassa, Spain
RS000160A
Tel. +34 938 774 506
Fax. +34 937 837 588
E-mail vacon.spain@vacon.com
Web http://www.vacon.es