Jane Palmieri, managing director of Dow’s Solar Solutions unit,
said the Powerhouse thin-film shingle slashes installation costs
because it can be installed by a roofer who is already building
or retrofitting a roof. “As a roofer is nailing asphalt shingle
on roof, wherever the array needs to be installed he just
switches to solar shingle,” said Ms. Palmieri, who said the
solar singles are similarly attached to the roof with nails.
“You don’t have to have a solar installation crew do the work or
have an electrician on site,” she added. “The solar shingle can
be handled like any other shingle – it can be palletized,
dropped from a roof, walked on.” An electrician is still needed
to connect the completed array to an inverter and to a home’s
electrical system, but unlike conventional solar panels that
must be wired together, the solar shingles plug into each other
to form the array. Dow plans to begin test-marketing the solar
shingle in mid-2010, initially targeting new-home construction.
Ms. Palmieri said the m