AVA Solar plans to move initial large-scale production facility from Fort Collins to an existing facility in Northern Colorado
AVA Solar plans to move initial large-scale production facility from Fort Collins to an existing facility in Northern Colorado; Accelerates production plans in Fort Collins
Fort Collins, Colorado - March 6, 2008 - AVA Solar, Inc., a manufacturer of advanced, low-cost, cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin film photovoltaic modules, announced that it has decided to shift its initial large-scale manufacturing facility from a new site to be developed at the southwest corner of I-25 and Prospect in Fort Collins, CO, to an existing facility located in Northern Colorado.
In addition, the company announced that it intends to begin pilot production in its existing Fort Collins facility in the second half of 2008.
"Several factors came together in the past two months that caused us to rethink our ramp-up strategy," explained Dave Halter, Vice President of AVA Solar. "First, we were able to lease the building next door to us in Fort Collins, giving us the space necessary to get into production earlier than we thought. Second, it became clear that building a new facility from scratch would take longer than we could afford given existing market conditions. Third, we identified an existing building perfect for our needs that could start receiving production equipment arriving in April of this year."
"We are very happy with our initial pre-production runs and have decided to move up production plans on our existing manufacturing line," said Pascal Noronha, President and CEO of AVA Solar. "Although this will be relatively limited production, we intend to accelerate our production learning curve and get our products into the market faster than we thought possible last year."
AVA Solar reiterated its commitment to Fort Collins and Northern Colorado. "Although we have decided to move the location of our initial production facility, very little has changed from our perspective," explained Pascal Noronha. "We will go into large-scale production in Northern Colorado; we will keep our headquarters here; and we see our local headcount growing as has been previously announced. We currently estimate over 150 employees in Fort Collins by the end of this year and up to 500 in the region by the end of 2009."
AVA Solar had been working with WW Reynolds Company and Neenan Archistruction to develop its initial manufacturing facility. "We have enjoyed working with AVA Solar, and while we are pleased they have found an interim solution, we hope to work with them in Fort Collins in the future," said Bill Reynolds of WW Reynolds Company.
About AVA Solar
AVA Solar, Inc. was founded in 2007 to commercialize an advanced process for manufacturing cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin-film photovoltaic modules. Built upon 15 years of development at Colorado State University's Material Engineering Laboratory, AVA Solar has perfected a robust, industrial-scale, continuous process for producing solar PV modules at an industry-leading cost per watt. For additional information, visit www.avasolar.com.
AVA Solar plans to move initial large-scale production facility from Fort Collins to an existing facility in Northern Colorado; Accelerates production plans in Fort Collins
Fort Collins, Colorado - March 6, 2008 - AVA Solar, Inc., a manufacturer of advanced, low-cost, cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin film photovoltaic modules, announced that it has decided to shift its initial large-scale manufacturing facility from a new site to be developed at the southwest corner of I-25 and Prospect in Fort Collins, CO, to an existing facility located in Northern Colorado.
In addition, the company announced that it intends to begin pilot production in its existing Fort Collins facility in the second half of 2008.
"Several factors came together in the past two months that caused us to rethink our ramp-up strategy," explained Dave Halter, Vice President of AVA Solar. "First, we were able to lease the building next door to us in Fort Collins, giving us the space necessary to get into production earlier than we thought. Second, it became clear that building a new facility from scratch would take longer than we could afford given existing market conditions. Third, we identified an existing building perfect for our needs that could start receiving production equipment arriving in April of this year."
"We are very happy with our initial pre-production runs and have decided to move up production plans on our existing manufacturing line," said Pascal Noronha, President and CEO of AVA Solar. "Although this will be relatively limited production, we intend to accelerate our production learning curve and get our products into the market faster than we thought possible last year."
AVA Solar reiterated its commitment to Fort Collins and Northern Colorado. "Although we have decided to move the location of our initial production facility, very little has changed from our perspective," explained Pascal Noronha. "We will go into large-scale production in Northern Colorado; we will keep our headquarters here; and we see our local headcount growing as has been previously announced. We currently estimate over 150 employees in Fort Collins by the end of this year and up to 500 in the region by the end of 2009."
AVA Solar had been working with WW Reynolds Company and Neenan Archistruction to develop its initial manufacturing facility. "We have enjoyed working with AVA Solar, and while we are pleased they have found an interim solution, we hope to work with them in Fort Collins in the future," said Bill Reynolds of WW Reynolds Company.
About AVA Solar
AVA Solar, Inc. was founded in 2007 to commercialize an advanced process for manufacturing cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin-film photovoltaic modules. Built upon 15 years of development at Colorado State University's Material Engineering Laboratory, AVA Solar has perfected a robust, industrial-scale, continuous process for producing solar PV modules at an industry-leading cost per watt. For additional information, visit www.avasolar.com.