Category: press

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Solar Fabric Canopies

Posted on | by Julia Fowler

Flexible solar panels integrated into fabric are giving tenants a new outdoor amenity that generates its own power. Here’s how you can create next-generation amenity spaces with this new solar technology.

Buildings | Janelle Penny

A new solar technology combines flexible solar panels with fabric to create a canopy that generates electricity.

Solar fabric architecture, the result of combining fabric and solar cells, can be used to create canopies and other shaded gathering places where building occupants can relax while they recharge their devices.

“It’s a pretty basic concept – it’s a surface that’s getting hit by the sun all day and previously wasn’t creating electricity. Now it is,” explains Colin Touhey, CEO of Pvilion, a solar fabric manufacturer. “We’re taking areas that get hit by the sun, providing shading and putting solar cells on them to serve a multi-purpose.”

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(Photo: Solar sails are an easy way to create an outdoor sitting area for charging devices, eating lunch, or having outdoor meetings with colleagues. Credit: Pvillion)

How Solar Fabric Works

A solar fabric installation starts with an idea. Facilities professionals who know they want an outdoor hangout space with flexible solar panels will work with manufacturers like Pvilion to customize the project to the conditions on the site. This will account for:

  • Where the site gets the most sun
  • Local code, including wind load requirements
  • How to engineer the structure so that the fabric won’t flap around in a storm

Once the project is designed, thin film solar panels are laminated to sturdy fabric that can handle outdoor conditions. The fabric is then mounted on a frame, pole or other structure. The solar-powered space can be grid-tied or grid-independent and typically generate 10-15W per square foot of panel, Touhey adds. Many structures can be erected in a few hours or less – most of the work is done ahead of time, with just structure-building and basic wiring required on-site.

“We just did a few installations in parks in Atlanta that are basically benches under a beautiful arching canopy that provides shade in the summer and rain protection, and there are USB ports and AC outlets there for you to charge your phone or work on your laptop,” Touhey says. “Outdoor canopies are a hot topic right now. At Google’s headquarters, we did some outdoor juice bars – a café juice bar but in an indoor-outdoor space where you’re protecting it, making it waterproof and providing shading.”

The solar fabric is also ideal for open parking lots that are exposed to the elements all day. Carports can use the flexible fabric or a more rigid panel solution to offset the electrical demand of parking lot lighting or charge electric vehicles.

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(Photo: Capital Cascades Park in Tallahassee, FL, features a solar-powered pedestrian bridge that uses flexible solar fabric. The panels on the fabric power the park’s lighting. Credit: Pvillion)

What to Know About Solar Fabric Architecture

This application of flexible solar panels may be new, but the maintenance is the same as it’s always been. A simple semi-annual cleaning with soap and water will make sure the panels can harvest the maximum amount of energy from the sun. A good rule of thumb is to clean the panels whenever you need to clean the fabric.

“If the white is getting dirty, the panels are as well. They’re just not as visible,” says Touhey. “But the panels are still going to work – you just want them to look nice.”

Solar fabric installations often qualify for investment tax credits, adds Touhey, so any financial discussion around investing in this new solar technology should take incentives into consideration. Pvilion’s clients are typically already interested in adding a solar-powered amenity, but the federal incentives make it easier to justify the upfront cost.

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(Photo: Solar fabric creates a shady spot for cars. The energy it harvests from the sun can power parking lot lighting or even partially charge the cars parked under it. Credit: Pvillion)

“If you’re looking to put a $10,000 architectural trellis on your rooftop, you’re going to write a check for $10,000 to your contractor. If you add a $12,000 solar trellis to your rooftop, you’re immediately eligible for the 30 percent Investment Tax Credit, accelerated depreciation and any state and local incentives,” explains Touhey. “Just by adding a little bit of solar, you’re reducing the installation cost. You’re making the thing you were already going to spend money on cheaper.”

Tenant amenities are rapidly becoming sought-after ways to attract new tenants and retain existing ones. Extras like powered outdoor workspaces and device-charging relaxation stations could be the thing that sets your facility apart from the competition. Investigate this new solar technology and see if a canopy laminated with solar cells is the right investment for you.

To read the full original article, click here.

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NYC Rooftop Vineyard Leverages Solar Power for F&B

Posted on | by Julia Fowler

The 15,000-square-foot Rooftop Reds space puts an emphasis on sustainability and social responsibility.

Hospitality Technology | June 29, 2022 | Robert Firpo-Cappiello

The founders of Rooftop Reds are on a mission. 

The pioneering rooftop vineyard, spanning 15,000 square feet at NYC’s Brooklyn Navy Yard, boasts nearly 200 grapevines, colorful seating, decorative lights, and jaw-dropping views of the Manhattan and Brooklyn skylines. And its status as the first rooftop vineyard is just the beginning.

Promoting Sustainability

“We’re developing a new breed of urban agriculture and sustainability practices to help reduce the heat island effect and inspire creative thought regarding city green spaces,” says Rooftop Reds founder Devin Shomaker.

A major component of the vineyard’s sustainability practices is a partnership with fellow Brooklyn-based technology company Pvilion to install solar fabric installations onsite, allowing Rooftop Reds’ food and event programming — including pizza and wine movie nights; wine, chocolate, and oyster tastings; vineyard tours; and locally sourced dinners — to become primarily solar dependent for the height of the summer season.

“We host many food events at Rooftop Reds,” says Shomaker. “With the investment of solar systems, we are living our mission of being a sustainable and forward-thinking business.”

On a day-to-day basis, the solar installation mostly generates energy for the property’s perimeter and vineyard lighting. When Rooftop Reds hosts food events, they often use the stored solar energy to assist with their cookware energy needs. 

“Solar is just another way we can promote and educate sustainability via our food programming,” says Shomaker. “While the economic benefits from solar for our business are quite minor, being able to speak about our values regarding sustainability practices with confidence is very important to both our staff and guests.”

Making Vineyards Accessible

Rooftop Reds’ mission also extends to social responsibility. By bringing the vineyard experience to the city, easily accessible via public transportation such as subway, bus, and ferry, the vineyard allows New Yorkers to enjoy an eco-friendly wine-culture experience close to home, without driving miles to the state’s renowned wine regions like the North Fork of Long Island or the Finger Lakes. 

Shomaker and his partner TJ Provenzano and GM Irina Sargisova also hope to “de-snobify” wine culture by making it approachable, fun, and educational. “We accomplish this lofty goal by focusing on a 100% New York State wine, beer and cider list,” says Shomaker. “We offer a casual environment with beer garden & bistro tables, hammocks, yard games, porch swings, pergolas, and an outdoor movie theater on the rooftop. Wine can and should be fun to enjoy and share!”

Rooftop Reds produces a range of tasty, reasonably priced whites, sparkling wines, rosés, and, yes, reds, in collaboration with Point of the Bluff Vineyards, in Hammondsport, NY.

To read the full original article, click here.

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Pvilion and Atlantic Council Build Solar Powered Resiliency Pod to Serve Miami Community

Posted on | by Julia Fowler

The Floridant |  June 2, 2022

BROOKLYN, N.Y. & MIAMI – Floridant — Pvilion, a Brooklyn-based solar fabric company, has recently provided the Atlantic Council’s Adrienne Arsht-Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Center with solar capabilities for their first ever Community Resiliency Pod. The use of Pvilion’s lightweight solar fabric— rather than traditional solar panels—  has offered an innovative solution that allows for flexible set-up and easy transit. The solar canopies will provide the Pod with upgraded power storage and charging stations for visitors to use while they explore the Pod as it tours different communities throughout Miami.

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Launched in June of 2020, the Miami Community Resilience Pod was created by the Atlantic Council’s Adrienne Arsht-Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Center, to raise climate change awareness and education in resilience. The Pod is also designed to assist in natural disasters and emergency scenarios throughout South Florida. The Resilience Center was originally a shipping container donated by the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) and has since been transformed to a mobile structure that serves many different purposes in the community. The Pod has been transported to different locations such as schools, parks, libraries, and conferences, where locals can engage with climate experts and learn through interactive programming.

“We are proud to add solar capabilities to the Pod. With its dedication to resiliency and environmental responses, adding renewable energy is the perfect addition to aid in serving the community. Solar will empower the Pod by allowing for independence and flexibility without harming the local environment,” said Pvilion CEO Colin Touhey. The Pod is constantly on the move throughout Miami and most recently made its debut in Orlando, Florida. It has engaged with over 100,000 visitors, and supplies fruit trees, vegetable garden kits and native plants, in addition to hurricane guides and supplies. The Pod was designed and fabricated by CambridgeSeven and is the first of hopefully many more of its kind.

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Hurricane season is quickly approaching and officially began June 1st and will last until November 30th. Additionally, Miami-Dade County is now officially in its first “heat season” that will run from May 1st until October 31st. As these conditions affect South Florida, the Pod will serve as an asset to community preparedness and relief.

“We are excited to partner with Pvilion as they supply our Community Resilience Pod with solar power. This renewable energy source, designed in a flexible and lightweight fabric, is an essential component of our Pod. The system demonstrates the importance of individual and community resilience. The advantage of an independent power source supports both our ongoing mobile programming and our future disaster response efforts- where our most underserved residents can charge their devices to stay connected,” said Atlantic Council Director of Strategic Partnerships, Rosemary Mann.

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This past April, the Pod was deployed at Zoo Miami, where visitors of the zoo stopped by to explore the Pod and engage with the Arsht Rock team, while learning about the solar installation. In May, the Pod was featured at the inaugural Aspen Ideas: Climate, a global conference on Miami Beach, where the public had an opportunity to learn and interact with others in the community about the realities of climate change. The Pod will continue to move throughout Miami-Dade County all summer long. To tour the Pod, or learn more about their upcoming schedule, please go to: https://onebillionresilient.org/project/community-resilience-pod/

About Pvilion
Pvilion is a solar-based fabrics and tent company, who offers products that range from stand-alone solar canopies to solar military tents, grid-tied long span structures, solar powered charging stations, solar powered curtains, building facades, backpacks, and clothing. They are known for integrating solar cells with fabrics and building fabric products that can generate electricity.

To view the original article, click here.

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Let’s talk integrated photovoltaics

Posted on | by Julia Fowler

GreenBiz |  May 26, 2022  |  By: Heather Clancy

The integrated photovoltaic movement

The idea of integrating photovoltaic technology into stuff — mainly electronics and buildings — isn’t exactly new.

I’ll bet most of you probably had (or have) one of those solar-powered calculators or maybe even a computer keyboard. And the market for solar capacity built into glass and other construction materials, especially roofs, has gotten more attention this year with a high-profile installation at Google’s new campus and a new product line from GAF Energy, a division of North America’s largest roofing company. And a report published in early May projects global sales of $13 billion by 2028 for the building integrated photovoltaics market, up from $4.6 billion in 2021.

Building retrofits are a tough sell, but I’m fascinated by the role that integrated solar could play in smaller, pop-up structures. That’s a market being developed by Pvilion, an 11-year-old company in Brooklyn, New York, that has designed a line of solar-integrated tents, canopies, building facades and so on.

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An example of Pvilion’s pop-up shelter designs. Photo courtesy of Pvilion

For Pvilion, the photovoltaic technology is part of a durable, waterproof, PVC-coated polyester fabric. (We didn’t discuss the chemical makeup of the material.) Co-founder and CEO Colin Touhey, an electrical engineer who started the company with an architect and structural expert, said Pvilion has experienced steady growth in supplying organizations that need mobile command centers or shelters with a power supply that could be used for Wi-Fi or charging and other specific applications. “They are designed to be temporary, but engineered to be permanent,” he told me.  

These structures could be used in places such as parks (Pvilion has a contract with New York City, and several shelters are up and charging in the New York Botanical Gardens and some public libraries) or for mobile missions (the U.S. Air Force is testing 40 of its military tent designs in a wide variety of geographies, including Alaska and New Mexico).

Like with most things, the cost of a Pvilion tent kit varies depending on the features selected and the size, ranging between $7,000 and $10,000 for the frame, solar fabric, energy storage, the ballast to keep the structure secured to the ground and lighting, according to Touhey. 

Hmm, I’m in the market for some shade in my backyard.

Seriously, though. The appeal of the technologies being developed by both Ambient and Pvilion is undeniable. I believe they represent another example of the power of distributed approaches to generating renewable energy in improving energy access and community resilience.

To view the original article, click here:

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PSDcast – The Basics of Solar Clothing

Posted on | by Julia Fowler

April 19, 2022

About This Episode

One area of renewable energy we haven’t really covered, at least as of yet, is the wearable sort – including and especially solar clothing that generates power while you go about your daily routine. But it’s still a technology with a ton of potential, and here to discuss that is Pvilion CEO Colin Touhey.

To view this podcast on the Power Systems Design website, click here.

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Talking Textiles Podcast: The Magic of Fabric Solar Cells

Posted on | by Julia Fowler

April 15, 2022

About This Episode

What do a Smithsonian exhibit tent, a synthetic leather clutch and renewable energy all have in common? On today’s Talking Textiles, learn this and more from Colin Touhey, founder and CEO of Pvilion, a company whose mission is to integrate solar cells with fabrics and build fabric products that generate electricity. Interviewed by Haskell Beckham of the Colombia Sportswear Company, Colin gives advice for students and how they should push their way into a company they love.

To view this podcast on the IFAI website, click here.

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Anchor & Pvilion partner to provide solar power to tent rental industry

Posted on | by Julia Fowler

InTents Magazine |  February 2, 2022  |  By: IFAI

Anchor Industries has partnered with Pvilion to introduce solar power to the tent world utilizing a heavy duty portable solar canopy and battery. The product was showcased at the IFAI Tent Expo in Daytona, Fla. in January 2022.

Adding solar panels to event tents removes the need for diesel generators.

Founded in 1892, Anchor Industries is a manufacturer of event tents, awnings, canopies, shade and clear span structures.

“Our two teams have done an outstanding job in the last few months collaborating and partnering together to make the tent rental industry green. We think there are tent customers who want to lower their carbon footprint. It’s our job as leaders in the industry to give them the tools to help them do just that.” said Anchor President, Pete Mogavero. “As the price of electricity steadily increases year after year, we are making it our job to provide solar canopy structures that our customers will enjoy. They are lightweight, flexible, easy to install, durable, and energy efficient.” he added.

Pvilion is a Brooklyn-based solar fabric manufacturing company. Their products range from stand-alone solar canopies, solar military tents, grid-tied long span structures, solar-powered charging stations to solar-powered curtains, building facades, backpacks, clothing, and clip-on tent attachments.

“As the world makes the shift away from fossil fuels to more sustainable options and clean energy, the event industry is doing the same,” said Pvilion CEO Colin Touhey. “Adding Pvilion’s solar capabilities to event tents, thereby removing the need for diesel generators, will change the industry forever. We’re pleased to partner with Anchor to help make this monumental transition.”

Anchor and Pvilion will be featuring the product in April at Anchor University.

More information on Anchor Industries and Pvilion can be found at www.anchorinc.com and www.pvilion.com.

To read the full original article, click here.

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TIM BENSON ON COLDPLAY’S MUSIC OF THE SPHERES WORLD TOUR PEOPLE-POWER ENERGY ZONE

Posted on | by Julia Fowler

Access All Areas  |  April 11, 2022 | Christopher Barrett

Live from Mexico in the people-powered Energy Zone of Coldplay’s Music of the Spheres World Tour, Tim Benson, Chair of Powerful Thinking and Energy Consultant on Coldplay’s current tour, updates us on the tech and innovation which allows energy from fans to be converted, via kinetic dance floors and pedal bikes, into power for the show. As well as spotlighting the remarkable clean tech solutions, and the expertise required to maximize system outputs for this stadium-ready portable mini-micro-grid, Tim also celebrates the innovation of the band themselves, who have pushed the boundaries to engage fans in a hitherto untried way.

It’s 16.30 hours at the Foro Sol stadium, Mexico City, as the blistering sun mercifully begins to descend. Suddenly, some 26,000 fans, old and young, sprint into view, vying for the best vantage points to take in the sensory delights of Coldplay’s Music of the Spheres World Tour (MOTS) spectacular. Strangely, though, there’s also a hive of activity downstage midway between the final delay towers, where fans are furiously pedalling on bikes and leaping around on raised platforms.

‘Is he mad?’ I hear you ask. Definitely not, in fact I’m privileged to say that I’m part of creating this unlikely melee of activities.

This is MOTS Energy Zone, an area dedicated to people-power, where the electrical team, under the guidance of Head Electrician Paul Traynor, cunningly harvest energy from the movement of Coldplay fans. The two raised platforms are, in fact, kinetic dancefloors courtesy of Dutch firm Energy Floors. As fans bounce around to the bass lines of House of Pain’s Jump Around, their movement produces energy, which then charges a series of Wattsun battery packs. Similarly, the 12 bikes are fitted to Kinetic Effects’ PedGen bike stands, incorporating DC motors, which can produce hundreds of watts each. The energy generated by the bikes is stored in a SMART Power 50kWh battery system, which in turn inverts and distributes AC power to the ‘C-Stage’, a circular structure where the band play an intimate set surrounded by adoring fans.

If you look closely at the risers surrounding the delay towers and behind the stage, you’ll also see solar canvasses provided by US company Pvilion. These rapid-deploy PV panels charge batteries that feed an inverter providing energy to the LX in the stage underworld. Back of house, you will also find a mini-solar farm that provides a 100% renewable charge station for the Wattsun battery packs & docks. These portable battery solutions are being used for a range of applications, including stage backline, LED lights, video control racks & DMX buffers.

However, the most remarkable thing about the Energy Zone is how it all dovetails: These aren’t plug and play solutions that naturally knit together, they have to be constantly optimised and tweaked to maximise system outputs. Energy and power data has to be captured, relayed to the venue screens and reported back to the band’s sustainability director and team. In many ways, it’s the ultimate renewable energy mix, a portable mini-micro-grid incorporated into a stadium touring set up – no mean feat I would say.

The innovation of Coldplay themselves, and the willingness of their production and touring crews to push the boundaries like they have never been pushed before, is clearly paying off. Not only are they championing remarkable clean tech solutions, but they are also engaging fans in a hitherto untried way – more of this please touring industry!

To read the original article, click here.

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US Air Force Deploys Solar Power For New Self-Assembling Tent

Posted on | by Julia Fowler

CleanTechnica |  April 11, 2022 | By Tina Casey

The Brooklyn Navy Yard was the legendary birthplace of America’s mightiest warships from 1801 to 1966, when it stopped producing warships. Fortunately, the sprawling facility has come roaring back to life as a leading hub of clean tech innovation. That includes solar power, and the Air Force is banking on the Brooklyn-based company Pvilion Solar to help sustain the green fighting force of the future under the new Agile Combat Employment directive.

Solar Power & Tents

For all the technology advances in military systems over the past 1,000 years or so, on-the-go shelter has seen little in the way of foundational change. Expeditionary forces still rely on tents and canopies to keep the elements at bay.

Forces on the move also rely on fuel and water that moves with them, a topic that came to light with all its lethal consequences in the form of bomb-vulnerable supply convoys during the Iraq war, and most recently during Russia’s murderous rampage through Ukraine

During the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the US Marine Corps and the US Army began turning to renewable energy as a solution to the expeditionary energy-water nexus problem, with a focus on solar power.

Aside from avoiding fuel transportation costs, solar power reduces the need for noisy, polluting gas or diesel generators. With solar power in play, warfighters in camp have less exposure to health and safety risks. Reducing the level of noise-induced stress is another plus for combat-readiness.

Solar Power Plus Flexibility

The US Army appears to be the first to express interest in the idea of outfitting its tents and canopies with solar power. By 2010, members of the Kansas Army National Guard were already deploying a PV-enabled tent in Djibuti, in the form of a solar-plus-storage mashup with batteries from a Hawker High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (aka, generically, the humvee).

The US Marine Corps began introducing portable PV panels to the field by 2009, and it was also experimenting with PV-enabled tents by 2011. Not to be one-upped, in 2013 the Army introduced the idea of replacing a flexible, fabric tent with a new system that combines a solar canopy with a structure made with lightweight, energy-efficient walls. The idea is to maximize the overall efficiency of the system by conserving the output from solar canopies.

The Pvilion Solar Tent Solution

Pvilion Solar has been making PV-enabled solar tents, canopies, and sails for more than 20 years. It first flapped across the CleanTechnica radar just a few years ago, in 2017, so we have some catching up to do.

Back in 2020 the US Air Force Rapid Sustainment Office tasked Pvilion to develop and deliver a self-deploying tent with solar power, called HEXT for Hands-Off Expeditionary Tent.

Personnel at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska deployed the HEXT system at its flight line during the “Polar Force 22-4” exercise on March 31, which focused on the new Agile Combat Employment directive. They gave the technology a big thumbs-up.

The HEXT system appears to build on the structure-plus-canopy idea, to achieve maximum energy efficiency.

“The tents…have a 42-inch by-42 inch footprint when they’re packed up and on a pallet. Airmen can offload them, plug them into a battery bank, press a button, and almost walk away; in three minutes, the tent has put itself up into a 20 foot by 20 foot shelter with windows and doors, 11 feet tall,” enthused JBER public affairs officer Chris McCann in an article posted by the base last week.

The solar angle comes in the form of Pvilion’s Solar Powered Integrated Structure, which is a solar canopy that can be mounted on the same frame as the tent. Alternatively, the SPIS canopy can be spread over any available surface, including other structures, vehicles, and the bare ground.

“The panels power rugged battery packs that almost snap together — a modular system. The first Airmen arriving at the location can bring one or two batteries, with follow-on troops bringing more as needed. When the mission’s over, the majority can be taken out, leaving only one or two for the last bits of power needed,” McCann added.

Reliable Solar Power For The US Air Force

Reliability being the key driver for military-purposed energy-on-the-go, the SPIS kit sports a conventional generator to back up its batteries when needed. The generator and the batteries carry on a running conversation and can switch seamlessly from one to the other.

As for the output, McCann noted that the SIPS kit can deliver up to 12,000 watts, which is the same wattage need to run an entire home including extras such as tools and computers, as well as an HVAC system and other large appliances.

JBER provides the Air Force with an opportunity to test the efficiency of the solar canopy in cold weather. We’re assuming it did okay, based on McCann’s commentary and the performance of other cold-weather PV systems. The system is also being tested elsewhere around the US for a range of temperatures and weather conditions.

Solar Power & The Energy-Water Nexus

Another site testing the system is Spangdahlem Air Base in Germany, which also hosting another Air Force project that features Pvilion’s solar technology, under the name Project Arcwater.

Project Arcwater was birthed through the Air Force’s 2022 “Spark Tank” innovation competition. Created by Senior Master Sgt. Brent Kenney and Tech Sgt. Matthew Connelly of the 52nd Fighter Wing at Spangdahlem AB, it combines moisture-capturing technology with solar power.

“Water and power are nonnegotiable when standing up a forward operating location. But it’s not to get fuel and water on location. What if we could generate from thin air? Project Arcwater is an agile combat employment system that aims to significantly decrease the logistics of transporting water and energy needs at off-the-grid locations through solar panels, a water harvester, and AC/heating tool, creating 26 gallons of potable water out of thin air,” the Air Force explains.

“Project Arcwater is an Agile Combat Employment initiative that addresses the logistics challenges associated with moving large quantities of water and fuel to forward operating locations. The project aims to provide an off-the-grid power using solar energy and atmospheric water harvesting. The solution is designed to be independent of local infrastructure, easy to move, easy to set-up, and easy to operate,” its creators add.

Check out the Project Arcwater video for more details, and if you’re wondering what Agile Combat Employment is, that’s a good question. The ACE doctrine is a recent development that grew out of Air Force challenges in the Pacific. It was adopted throughout the Air Force last December.

The ACE doctrine includes a logistics element that emphasizes local sourcing, transportable systems and quick set-up. Considering that the Air Force also came up with the vision of a carbon-negative future for the whole Department of Defense, it’s a safe bet that solar power and other renewables will feature front and center as the ACE doctrine unspools.

Click here to view the original article.