Jeremy Kerstetter07.01.15
ElectricFilm is leading the way with their practical and efficient application of photovoltaic cell technology. Performing their R&D and manufacturing functions in the same location, ElectricFilm has been working hard to devise, through innovation and collaboration, the best ways to harvest and utilize the light present in nearly any environment through the use of semiconducting, photovoltaic cells.
Founded in 2013, ElectricFilm came into being through the asset acquisition of Renewable Capital. The founders of ElectricFilm wanted to develop new technologies within the energy industry that utilized PV cells capable of low-level light harvesting with a high level of efficiency. With a 10-year history in the dye-sensitized solar cell industry, Renewable Capital’s acquired technology was a huge advantage that helped to propel ElectricFilm to the front of PV applications.
Though ElectricFilm’s staff consists of only 18 full-time employees, key personnel possess an abundance of experience in photovoltaic, light harvesting and portable power applications; product development; and roll-2-roll manufacturing processes. Additionally, ElectricFilm collaborates with various partners to augment their own internal capabilities and capacity ranging from automation, to handling, to cleanliness.
“From the start, we were not afraid to raise our hands, to find those people who could do it better,” noted Stuart Spitzer, Ph. D., president, ElectricFilm.
Doing It Better
In adhering to their company vision – “power from any light, anywhere” – ElectricFilm has developed a niche market for itself in non-utilized areas of commercial, industrial, and residential markets that can benefit from energy generation in low light environments.
At approximately 0.10 g/cm2, less than 0.4mm thick and bendable to 2-inch radius, this thin, lightweight, flexible film utilizes proprietary PV technology that features strips of printed PV cells. Though created to specialize in highly efficient harvesting at low- to medium-level light conditions – approximately 25 to 3,000 lux, these cells can harvest light from nearly any direct, reflected, diffused, or even shaded sources including fluorescent, incandescent, LED, and full sunlight.
When the company began, the team wanted to identify unique applications for their technology, by which they could carve out a niche, according to Dr. Spitzer.
“Our niche ended up being low-light conditions,” he stated. “Very few people have tech allowing indoor light to be harvested at that level. We put in a lot of R&D to maximize the efficiency of collecting the low-level light. Our cells work over the whole spectrum, but we are the most efficient and cost effective in the low through medium levels.”
In addition to possessing a high degree of efficiency, Dr. Spitzer also noted that ElectricFilm is “more mature than most companies that have been around longer,” mainly because of their exclusive implementation of roll-2-roll manufacturing.
“It simplifies things,” he stated. “It requires simpler equipment, less power consumption, a lower room temperature, and in all better cost efficiency.”
By manufacturing long rolls, ElectricFilm is able to cut to length when customers place orders, further adding to simplification and cost savings.
Everyday Applications
At present, ElectricFilm primarily serves in a customized business-to-business role, collaborating with global original equipment manufacturers (OEM), et al, whose products or processes can benefit from the integration of harvested energy, devising the best ways to produce power for those products. Serving the needs of these businesses, ElectricFilm has positioned itself in the midst of three specific market segments.
“Since day one, we’ve rethought this many times,” noted Dr. Spitzer. “It’s not perfect, but it works for us today.”
The first of the three market segments that ElectricFilm is innovating within is the Internet of things, with what they refer to as Single-Cell Modules. Current estimates predict that by 2020 more than 75B sensors will be implemented in everyday use around the world in a broad array of applications, ranging from smoke detectors to light fixtures to indoor climate controls. This plethora of applications will create a sizeable demand for energy-generating light cells throughout homes, as well as commercial and industrial buildings.
The idea behind the modules is simple, hardwiring devices for electric is a tedious and often very expensive process. What ElectricFilm offers is a more efficient and cost effective alternative.
The Single-Cell Modules, installed with a simple “peel and stick” method, produce 7 – 70 uW/cm2 at 200 – 2,000 lux, respectively. Given the low amount of energy that is required for the sensors themselves to run, these modules produce an ideal modification. At approximately 0.5V output, each module can be used alone, connected in series or parallel. Designed for 24/7 collection and battery-storage, this “trickle” charge can supplement a super-capacitor or rechargeable battery system, providing consistent power from low-level light to as many sensors as needed.
The second of the three market segments is motorized window shades.
ElectricFilm’s PFL Series for motorized window shades converts mid-range to bright light into energy to operate the shades without hardwiring or disposable batteries - a definite advantage in renovation, where this process would otherwise be quite costly. In addition, according to ElectricFilm’s website, installation of the PFL Series “can contribute to LEED Certification, outperforming competing solar tech in challenging light conditions.”
The mullion-to-mullion design hides the PV film behind the body of the shades and, according to Dr. Spitzer the best installation makes it look like a part of the window itself.
Due to the variations in window size, ElectricFilm provides options to meet an installer’s precise window measurements. An installer or retailer may purchase either the PFL30, which fits any standard 30-inch window, or the PFL Custom Fabricator Kit, customized to fit any window between 20 and 120 inches. Both PFL Series products offer 12V and 18V output options.
“Nothing is standard in window sizes - all are different, but with our process we have the ability to create custom and semi-custom,” stated Dr. Spitzer.
The third and final market segment that ElectricFilm innovates within is point of purchase - retail displays. According to Dr. Spitzer, it is common for retail displays to “go dark” unexpectedly and it is costly to replace them as they are not hardwired, but rather run on batteries, often requiring the replacement of the entire display itself.
In addition, most displays are expected to last approximately 3 months; whereas ElectricFilm’s PV light panel provides enough dependable energy to keep the displays lit for up to five years. Running solely on the lighting within the store itself, often fluorescent, this enables the displays to be more cost effective, mobile, and dependable - resulting in greater sales potential for the retailer. The panels are available in standard (48 in. x 18 in.) and custom sizes and are strategically designed to sit on the top of the displays, generally standing about 7 feet tall, allowing the aesthetics of the display to be unaltered and uncompromised.
In the Spotlight
In March of this year, ElectricFilm was able to showcase their first commercial, pilot installation of their PFL Series for Powered Shades in the Ver-Tex Shade │ Light Solutions Experience Center in downtown Boston. The purpose of the installation was to exhibit ElectricFilm’s light harvesting technology in challenging circumstances. The location selected, the Experience Center, served the purpose perfectly with its north facing windows and urban canyon environment.
“Installing our light harvesting technology at the Experience Center [was] a valuable opportunity to showcase ElectricFilm’s reliability as a cost-effective sustainable power solution for powered shades,” commented Dr. Spitzer.
Prior to the PFL Series test run, in November of last year, ElectricFilm installed its point of purchase, light-harvesting technology onto a number of retail displays within numerous big-box retailers to provide renewable and consistent power to their retail displays. For the period from Black Friday to Christmas, not one installation went dark.
Both trials have, to this point, supported ElectricFilm’s assertions that they have successfully realized their niche in providing dependable, renewable, low-level light harvesting technology at reasonable cost for businesses.
Market Sensitivity
The photovoltaic industry is still in its early stages of development and, as such, there are relatively few companies that are dabbling in its implementation. Companies like Sharp and Panasonic are working with amorphous silicon, a class of PV, but overall the market is largely untapped.
“This is still very new,” stated Dr. Spitzer. “We are breaking ground in new areas by providing power where there wasn’t power before, but the important factor is that we are playing a niche market, not a commodity market. Rather than competing with the cost of a kW of energy to a consumer at home, we are enabling new functionality of new systems. Our key question is, ‘What is the cost to enable a function?’”
Dr. Spitzer predicts that the year over year growth rate will be enormous for the point of purchase segment because of its untapped potential. Due to its infancy state, however, research firms have not studied this segment to create any forecasts or predictions thereof that can back this prediction up. Regardless, Dr. Spitzer is confident in ElectricFilm’s ability to capture the market.
“We provide power to a system. We are portable power,” he stated. “Our power density (power/unit area) is almost twice that of what the existing tech can do, and we are price competitive – hopefully, considerably more so once production is ramped up.”
In addition to the point of purchase segment, Dr. Spitzer also predicts growth within the motorized window shade segment. Specifically, he sees growth in the hospitality industry, in high-end hotel rooms and resorts. The barrier is that customers do not readily know what they are missing, what they need, until ElectricFilm is able to creatively and convincingly reveal to its customers that need they didn’t before realize they had.
“Once people start using it, it will catch on. It will be a luxury,” Dr. Spitzer predicts.
Founded in 2013, ElectricFilm came into being through the asset acquisition of Renewable Capital. The founders of ElectricFilm wanted to develop new technologies within the energy industry that utilized PV cells capable of low-level light harvesting with a high level of efficiency. With a 10-year history in the dye-sensitized solar cell industry, Renewable Capital’s acquired technology was a huge advantage that helped to propel ElectricFilm to the front of PV applications.
Though ElectricFilm’s staff consists of only 18 full-time employees, key personnel possess an abundance of experience in photovoltaic, light harvesting and portable power applications; product development; and roll-2-roll manufacturing processes. Additionally, ElectricFilm collaborates with various partners to augment their own internal capabilities and capacity ranging from automation, to handling, to cleanliness.
“From the start, we were not afraid to raise our hands, to find those people who could do it better,” noted Stuart Spitzer, Ph. D., president, ElectricFilm.
Doing It Better
In adhering to their company vision – “power from any light, anywhere” – ElectricFilm has developed a niche market for itself in non-utilized areas of commercial, industrial, and residential markets that can benefit from energy generation in low light environments.
At approximately 0.10 g/cm2, less than 0.4mm thick and bendable to 2-inch radius, this thin, lightweight, flexible film utilizes proprietary PV technology that features strips of printed PV cells. Though created to specialize in highly efficient harvesting at low- to medium-level light conditions – approximately 25 to 3,000 lux, these cells can harvest light from nearly any direct, reflected, diffused, or even shaded sources including fluorescent, incandescent, LED, and full sunlight.
When the company began, the team wanted to identify unique applications for their technology, by which they could carve out a niche, according to Dr. Spitzer.
“Our niche ended up being low-light conditions,” he stated. “Very few people have tech allowing indoor light to be harvested at that level. We put in a lot of R&D to maximize the efficiency of collecting the low-level light. Our cells work over the whole spectrum, but we are the most efficient and cost effective in the low through medium levels.”
In addition to possessing a high degree of efficiency, Dr. Spitzer also noted that ElectricFilm is “more mature than most companies that have been around longer,” mainly because of their exclusive implementation of roll-2-roll manufacturing.
“It simplifies things,” he stated. “It requires simpler equipment, less power consumption, a lower room temperature, and in all better cost efficiency.”
By manufacturing long rolls, ElectricFilm is able to cut to length when customers place orders, further adding to simplification and cost savings.
Everyday Applications
At present, ElectricFilm primarily serves in a customized business-to-business role, collaborating with global original equipment manufacturers (OEM), et al, whose products or processes can benefit from the integration of harvested energy, devising the best ways to produce power for those products. Serving the needs of these businesses, ElectricFilm has positioned itself in the midst of three specific market segments.
“Since day one, we’ve rethought this many times,” noted Dr. Spitzer. “It’s not perfect, but it works for us today.”
The first of the three market segments that ElectricFilm is innovating within is the Internet of things, with what they refer to as Single-Cell Modules. Current estimates predict that by 2020 more than 75B sensors will be implemented in everyday use around the world in a broad array of applications, ranging from smoke detectors to light fixtures to indoor climate controls. This plethora of applications will create a sizeable demand for energy-generating light cells throughout homes, as well as commercial and industrial buildings.
The idea behind the modules is simple, hardwiring devices for electric is a tedious and often very expensive process. What ElectricFilm offers is a more efficient and cost effective alternative.
The Single-Cell Modules, installed with a simple “peel and stick” method, produce 7 – 70 uW/cm2 at 200 – 2,000 lux, respectively. Given the low amount of energy that is required for the sensors themselves to run, these modules produce an ideal modification. At approximately 0.5V output, each module can be used alone, connected in series or parallel. Designed for 24/7 collection and battery-storage, this “trickle” charge can supplement a super-capacitor or rechargeable battery system, providing consistent power from low-level light to as many sensors as needed.
The second of the three market segments is motorized window shades.
ElectricFilm’s PFL Series for motorized window shades converts mid-range to bright light into energy to operate the shades without hardwiring or disposable batteries - a definite advantage in renovation, where this process would otherwise be quite costly. In addition, according to ElectricFilm’s website, installation of the PFL Series “can contribute to LEED Certification, outperforming competing solar tech in challenging light conditions.”
The mullion-to-mullion design hides the PV film behind the body of the shades and, according to Dr. Spitzer the best installation makes it look like a part of the window itself.
Due to the variations in window size, ElectricFilm provides options to meet an installer’s precise window measurements. An installer or retailer may purchase either the PFL30, which fits any standard 30-inch window, or the PFL Custom Fabricator Kit, customized to fit any window between 20 and 120 inches. Both PFL Series products offer 12V and 18V output options.
“Nothing is standard in window sizes - all are different, but with our process we have the ability to create custom and semi-custom,” stated Dr. Spitzer.
The third and final market segment that ElectricFilm innovates within is point of purchase - retail displays. According to Dr. Spitzer, it is common for retail displays to “go dark” unexpectedly and it is costly to replace them as they are not hardwired, but rather run on batteries, often requiring the replacement of the entire display itself.
In addition, most displays are expected to last approximately 3 months; whereas ElectricFilm’s PV light panel provides enough dependable energy to keep the displays lit for up to five years. Running solely on the lighting within the store itself, often fluorescent, this enables the displays to be more cost effective, mobile, and dependable - resulting in greater sales potential for the retailer. The panels are available in standard (48 in. x 18 in.) and custom sizes and are strategically designed to sit on the top of the displays, generally standing about 7 feet tall, allowing the aesthetics of the display to be unaltered and uncompromised.
In the Spotlight
In March of this year, ElectricFilm was able to showcase their first commercial, pilot installation of their PFL Series for Powered Shades in the Ver-Tex Shade │ Light Solutions Experience Center in downtown Boston. The purpose of the installation was to exhibit ElectricFilm’s light harvesting technology in challenging circumstances. The location selected, the Experience Center, served the purpose perfectly with its north facing windows and urban canyon environment.
“Installing our light harvesting technology at the Experience Center [was] a valuable opportunity to showcase ElectricFilm’s reliability as a cost-effective sustainable power solution for powered shades,” commented Dr. Spitzer.
Prior to the PFL Series test run, in November of last year, ElectricFilm installed its point of purchase, light-harvesting technology onto a number of retail displays within numerous big-box retailers to provide renewable and consistent power to their retail displays. For the period from Black Friday to Christmas, not one installation went dark.
Both trials have, to this point, supported ElectricFilm’s assertions that they have successfully realized their niche in providing dependable, renewable, low-level light harvesting technology at reasonable cost for businesses.
Market Sensitivity
The photovoltaic industry is still in its early stages of development and, as such, there are relatively few companies that are dabbling in its implementation. Companies like Sharp and Panasonic are working with amorphous silicon, a class of PV, but overall the market is largely untapped.
“This is still very new,” stated Dr. Spitzer. “We are breaking ground in new areas by providing power where there wasn’t power before, but the important factor is that we are playing a niche market, not a commodity market. Rather than competing with the cost of a kW of energy to a consumer at home, we are enabling new functionality of new systems. Our key question is, ‘What is the cost to enable a function?’”
Dr. Spitzer predicts that the year over year growth rate will be enormous for the point of purchase segment because of its untapped potential. Due to its infancy state, however, research firms have not studied this segment to create any forecasts or predictions thereof that can back this prediction up. Regardless, Dr. Spitzer is confident in ElectricFilm’s ability to capture the market.
“We provide power to a system. We are portable power,” he stated. “Our power density (power/unit area) is almost twice that of what the existing tech can do, and we are price competitive – hopefully, considerably more so once production is ramped up.”
In addition to the point of purchase segment, Dr. Spitzer also predicts growth within the motorized window shade segment. Specifically, he sees growth in the hospitality industry, in high-end hotel rooms and resorts. The barrier is that customers do not readily know what they are missing, what they need, until ElectricFilm is able to creatively and convincingly reveal to its customers that need they didn’t before realize they had.
“Once people start using it, it will catch on. It will be a luxury,” Dr. Spitzer predicts.