While there are many organisations looking after the interests of the solar industry in the US, none are dedicated to the solar engineering/manufacturing base. To resolve this gap, the Solar Engineering and Manufacturing Association (SEMA) was established earlier this summer to promote innovation and educate members and the general public.
“The existing associations are geared towards companies rather than professionals working in the industry. They do a good job, but during our meeting in Milpitas the group identified a real need for education and training, the exchange of ideas, networking, and a technology forum for the engineering and manufacturing professional,” said SEMA’s President, Matt Holzmann, in a recent interview with EMSNow, information provider for the electronics manufacturing sector.
“We have scheduled our first local chapter meetings and are planning our first conference in February. SEMA is now up and running. Response from the industry has been excellent and we are excited about recruiting additional members,” says Holzmann.
SEMA is a member-driven educational, technical and professional association serving the solar manufacturing and related industries as an indispensable resource for key stakeholders in research, manufacturing, academia and government. The association is a forum for like-minded professionals to network, debate and exchange technical information for the advancement of solar technology.
SEMA will hold a meeting on 22 September in Milpitas (California) featuring internationally recognised consultant Paula Mints, who will discuss the global photovoltaic technology outlook. The presentation will cover PV supply and demand, price and technology, and forecasts for the next 5 years. It will also cover opportunities and potential obstacles for the North American PV market as well as applications and forecasts to 2019.
SEMA's first Annual Conference will be held in February 2011 in San Jose (California).
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