From laboratory to factory: Heliatek’s photovoltaic film

Why not cover roofs and building facades with supple and light adhesive film which is as easy to fit as a carpet rather than install heavy, opaque, solar panels which are only available in pre-formatted, restrictive sizes? Could this same film also cover cars, telephones and computers, making each one a source of electricity but with a small carbon footprint? Heliatek is making this dream a reality. Heliatek is a spin-off jointly created by the universities of Dresden and Ulm. It has been able to convince companies such as ENGIE and BASF to invest in the development of its key technology for the energy transition. Heliatek has had to evolve from producing a prototype in a university laboratory to large-scale manufacturing, simultaneously with expanding its business from an entity similar to a start-up to a rigorous and disciplined organisation. Its development benefitted from an ideal German ecosystem in Saxony, which has had the means to support disruptive technologies over the long-term.