CSA Group, a global leading organization in standards development, testing and certification today announced that it has chosen Kunshan in Jiangsu province to open a state-of-the-art solar photovoltaic laboratory – the organization’s first PV laboratory in China. Located in the Kunshan New & Hi-tech Industrial Development Zone in Kunshan city, the new laboratory will accelerate CSA’s localized testing and certification service delivery to PV component makers, enabling them to explore international markets.

“CSA is devoted to providing customers with highly efficient and convenient testing and certification services and to working closely with partners to create beneficial results,” says Ash Sahi, President and CEO of CSA Group. “The opening of this first China-based solar PV lab is strong evidence of CSA Group’s commitment to China and our efforts to strengthen development in this market. Kunshan, together with surrounding cities like Suzhou and Changzhou, are at the center of China’s PV industry and testing and certification services play an integral role in getting these products to foreign markets. With the continued development of the PV industry in this area, and great support from Kunshan municipal government, we have full confidence in ability of this lab to meet our local manufacturing clients growing solar PV testing and certification needs.”

Occupying an area of 1,000 sq m, the new laboratory will primarily test and certify PV modules, grid-connected inverters and components to North America and IEC standards. The new lab will be equipped to test 100 KW PV grid-connected inverters and is able to complete IEEE 1547 and IEEE 1547.1 testing. Moreover, the lab will hire experienced and professional testing engineers and bring in cutting-edge equipment, including a 6A-level 3m X 3m instant light source simulator and a BBA-level 2.2m x 2.6m stable light source simulator. The lab is also aiming to provide performance testing for PV modules and inverters in the coming three to five year.

With the rapid growth of the global new energy industry, China’s solar PV market emerged as an exporting giant with over 90 per cent of its PV products exported to key markets such as North America and Europe. Jiangsu province is a significant contributor to PV production in China with more than 600 PV manufacturers in the province. In 2010, the provincial PV industry generated gross industrial output value of RMB 198.8 billion, taking up about two thirds of the total domestic value. The New & Hi-tech Industrial Development Zone is an important platform for Kunshan and even Jiangsu to implement independent innovation, accelerate agglomerational development of hi-tech industry, and promote the alteration of economy development methods.

“CSA Group is a famous standard developing organization in North America and is one of the most authoritative testing and certification organizations in global market. It has very good reputation in the certification industry,” says Huang Jian, standing member of municipal party committee of Kunshan City, vice party secretary of party working committee of Kunshan New and Hi-tech Industrial Development Zone, vice director of administration committee of Kunshan New and Hi-tech Industrial Development Zone. “We feel very honored that CSA Group chooses Kunshan New & Hi-tech Industrial Development Zone to open its first PV lab in China. We firmly believe that the opening of this laboratory will not only greatly promote China’s new energy industry, especially PV standard development and product testing and certification, but also bring more convenient testing and certification services to domestic PV product manufacturers.”

CSA possesses advanced expertise in testing and certifying PV products. In 2007, CSA entered this business by testing inverters and further expanded to include PV modules in 2008. In 2009, CSA officially opened a state-of-the-art laboratory for the testing and certification of solar panels and equipment in Vancouver. In April 2011, CSA joined with VDE, Fraunhofer ISE and Fraunhofer CSE to open a CFV laboratory in Albuquerque of New Mexico. In China, CSA can test photovoltaic panels, control panels, inverters, tracking device equipment and PV strings combiner box to UL and IEC standards.

About CSA Group

CSA Group is an independent, not-for-profit member-based association dedicated to advancing safety, sustainability and social good. We are an internationally-accredited standards development and testing & certification organization. We also provide consumer product evaluation and education & training services. Our broad range of knowledge and expertise includes: industrial equipment, plumbing & construction, electro-medical & healthcare, appliances & gas, alternative energy, lighting and sustainability. The CSA mark appears on billions of products around the world.

About New & Hi-tech Industrial Development Zone

Kunshan New & Hi-tech Industrial Development Zone (KSND) is an important platform for Kunshan to implement independent innovative programs, accelerate agglomerational development of hi-tech industry, and promote the alteration of economy development methods. Since it was established, it has been actively developing towards the goal of becoming the first-level hi-tech development zone in China and also an advanced zone across the world. The three main industry clusters of this zone are: precision machinery industry like mould, renewable energy industry like solar energy and wind energy, as well as electronic information industry like new flat-panel displays. In 2010, the zone generated gross regional product and gross industrial output value of RMB44.5 billion and RMB155 billion respectively, with hi-tech industries taking up about 58%. This zone ranks top 5 in terms of comprehensive development strength in Jiangsu since 2007. For more information, please visit http://www.ksnd.gov.cn.

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Contact

Anthony Toderian
Manager, Corporate Affairs
CSA Group
416-747-2620
[email protected]