Following $8 Million in venture capital funding from NEA, HelioVolt is scaling up its efficient copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) thin-film manufacturing process for incorporating photovoltaics directly into building materials.
“With our market strategy focused on building-integrated products, HelioVolt’s technology and business model mark a shift from solar industry convention, which is dominated by the production of relatively bulky silicon-based solar panels,” said Dr. BJ Stanbery, HelioVolt’s CEO. “With their experience in technology company growth and the realities of the building industry respectively, Sandell and Costello offer our growing Board of Directors invaluable insight. Matched with Drs. Vanderlick and Sites who both bring pertinent technological expertise to our advisory panel, these four additions will play a key role in translating HelioVolt’s photovoltaic product from proven technology into commercial success.”
“According to Clean Edge research, the market for solar photovoltaics will grow to a $39.2 billion industry by 2014,” said Sandell. “HelioVolt’s proficiency in new photovoltaic materials, efficient proprietary manufacturing systems, and an innovative path to market will place the company in a strong position to become a leader in this market.”
Scott Sandell joins HelioVolt’s Board of Directors as a General Partner at NEA where he has focused on investments in emerging energy and information technology since 1996. During his tenure at NEA, Sandell has successfully sponsored investments in IT frontrunners like NetIQ, Salesforce.com and WebEx. Sandell holds an MBA from
Tim Costello is CEO of Builder Homesite, Inc., a consortium of more than 36 leading American homebuilders representing more than 275,000 new homes and $60 billion in revenue. BHI was founded to provide affordable and scalable technology solutions for homebuilders. Costello also co-founded Greenlight LLC, a service provider that enables builders to easily adopt and implement green building practices including solar systems installation. Prior to BHI, Tim worked for Applied Materials (AMAT), the world’s leading manufacturer of semiconductor capital equipment as vice president of global operations. In this role, he was responsible for analyzing the global manufacturing value stream and the strategic direction of technical programs aimed at driving efficiencies in Applied Materials’ global operations. Costello received his Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from
Dr. Jim Sites and Dr. Kyle Vanderlick have joined HelioVolt’s Technical Advisory Panel. Dr. Sites is Professor of Physics at
Sandell and Costello will be joining current members HelioVolt founder Dr. BJ Stanbery and NEA Venture Partner Jimmy Treybig on the Board of Directors. Drs. Sites and Vanderlick join Nobel Laureate Dr. Arno Penzias on HelioVolt’s Technical Advisory Panel.
HelioVolt Corporation was founded in 2001 in order to develop and market new technology for applying thin-film photovoltaic coatings to conventional construction materials. The company’s proprietary FASST™ process, based on rapid semiconductor printing, was invented by HelioVolt founder Dr. Billy J. Stanbery, an eminent expert within the international PV community in the materials science of CIS and related compound semiconductors. FASST™ is a low-cost, flexible manufacturing process for CIGS synthesis and is protected by eight issued US patents with three additional applications pending, and two issued foreign patents with one accepted patent application and nine additional applications pending. For additional information, visit www.heliovolt.com.
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Media contact:
Caroline Venza, Antenna Group for HelioVolt
[email protected], 415-977-1939