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Quality "Made in Germany"
"Made in Germany" - a high-class seal on many products produced in Germany
Already at the end of the 19th century one began in Great Britain to protect against alleged inferior imitation products with the marking of imported products. This marking for German products was represented by the name "Made in Germany" (Merchandise of Marks Act from the 23rd of August, 1887). This has been a result, among the rest, from goods coming from Chemnitz which were displayed on the London exhibition in 1862. On this occasion the English domain of the mechanical engineering was broken for the first time. Since the world exhibition in Philadelphia in 1876 many manufacturers took the advice of the German judge to mark the products with the tag "competition by quality".
With the introduction of the above-mentioned trademark law and due to the label which names the production country, English families found out that many of their everyday commodities are coming from Germany: Tools, clothes, dolls, porcelain, water conduits, even pencils. All this is "Made in Germany". And thus the seal misses the intended effect: Instead of refraining from purchasing German products, people all over the world consciously buy German goods.
The marking was also maintained after both world wars. During the economic miracle in the fifties the brand accompanied the economic rise of the Federal Republic of Germany.
Heckert Solar brand modules – "Made in Germany"
The Heckert Solar AG is one of only few remaining German manufacturers of solar modules which produce exclusively in Germany. With a nominal capacity of 140 MWp per year (2010), Heckert Solar produces highly efficient modules characterized by outstanding quality in the tradition rich city Chemnitz, Germany.
The assembly of PV modules is exceedingly demanding. To maintain the high product quality, Heckert Solar uses automated production lines. First of all, a suitable glass is cleaned and laid out – Heckert Solar uses 4-mm ESG solar glass. Above this glass is put the first so-called embedding foil (EVA-Foil). The highly efficient solar cells, which we purchase mainly from suppliers located in Germany or the Hightech country Taiwan, are assembled to one string by a small solder ribbon before they were placed upon the embedding foil and the glass. The following step is the cross soldering which interconnects the strings. Afterwards the strings are taken to the solar box. On top of this is laid a second embedding foil and the back side foil – Heckert Solar uses only foils produced in Europe. The following production step is the most critical one: the module is laminated at a temperature of approx. 150°C. During this process originates the three-dimensional, permanently linked up and infusible plastic layer in which the cells are embedded and which is firmly connected with the ESG solar glass and the back side foil. As the delamination destroys the module, the durability as well as the long-term capacity of the modules depend on the quality of the lamination and the utilized material. Therefore, Heckert Solar pays especially huge attention to this process. After the lamination, overlaying foil is being removed and the solar box is fixed. The solar box by Heckert Solar is an in-house development with protective class IP 55 and non-combustibility level V-0. In case of breakdown caused e.g. by lightning the diodes of the solar box can easily be exchanged. Now the module gets its frame, which consists of a 38mm extruded profile of aluminum. Finally the module is being flashed, classified and packed according to its technical data.
The quality of all module components and the modules itself are monitored continuously and with the utmost care before, during and after several manufacturing steps. The continuous, quality management tested by the TÜV in the course of the manufacturing site inspection uses standardized processes with a comprehensive internal testing equipment. Thus the strict optical and acoustic check of every single solar cell (!) guarantees the flawless, uniform appearance of the finished module. Different testing stations - from the receipt of the components up to the packaging of the goods – assure the extraordinary product quality of the modules made by Heckert Solar.
The automation and the testing equipment is checked regularly by Heckert Solar at defined intervals and is adjusted if necessary. The automated production lines are partly in-house developments. Thanks to the outstanding competence of our production engineers existing soldering and production processes can be improved constantly. At Heckert Solar all production employees attend regular trainings to guarantee enduring quality "Made in Germany".
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Training of Employees |
