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Not all solar panels are created equal. That's why Solar Shop Australia uses only premium brands from Tier-1 suppliers in Japan, Germany and Australia. We take special care selecting our suppliers, in order to ensure that our products offer optimum performance and longevity.
Thin Film Solar Panels
Solar Shop Australia uses Kaneka thin film solar panels, which are manufactured and assembled in Japan. Kaneka Corporation was established in 1949, making them a well established and reliable company. Thin film amorphous solar panels use silicon film (0.3 of a micron) applied directly on to glass to create a thin film cell.
 Thin Film Advantages
Exceptional performance in low light and shady conditions.
 Lower level of embodied energy- The energy required to manufacture a thin film panel is much less than the energy required to make a crystalline solar panel. - The energy payback for the Kaneka thin film panel is 1.6 years compared to 2-3 years for polycrystalline.
- Exceptional high temperature tolerance - regular crystalline cells decrease in power twice as rapidly as thin film in hot conditions.
- Uniform appearance is ideal where aesthetics are important.
Hybrid-Crystalline Solar Panels
A hybrid-crystalline solar panel looks very similar to a regular mono-crystalline solar panel; however, hybrid cells use a regular mono-crystalline silicon wafer surrounded by ultra thin amorphous silicon layers.
 Hybrid-Crystalline Advantages:
Produces leading performance and value using state-of the-art manufacturing techniques
- Has very high conversion efficiency in mass production
- Offers high performance at high temperature
- Allows space saving installation and achievement of maximum power possible on a given roof area
Sanyo panels are manufactured in Japan and are assembled in an ISO 9001 (quality), 14001 (environment), and 18001 (safety)certified factory. Unique eco-packaging minimizes cardboard waste at the job site. The packing density of the panels reduces transportation, fuel, and storage costs per installed watt.
Traditional Crystalline Solar Panel Technology
 Our supplier of Crystalline solar panels, Suntech, is a world leading manufacturer and is among the top three crystalline module suppliers in Australia. Suntech confidently backs its products with a 25 year output warranty, providing you with a product you can rely on.
Mono-crystalline solar panels
High-purity semi-conducting material is needed to produce mono-crystalline silicon cells. Ingots are drawn from a silicon melt and cut into thin wafers. This complex production process results in the most energy dense solar cell, however the cells are round and when cut and placed onto a sheet of glass to make a solar panel, not all of the available space on the glass can be utilised.
Poly-crystalline or multi-crystalline solar panels
The production of poly-crystalline silicon cells is more cost-efficient than mono-crystalline cells. Liquid silicon is poured into a mould and solidifies. The silicon ingots are then cut into wafers. These square poly-crystalline cells make more efficient use of the available space on the glass used to make a solar panel. Poly-crystalline panels can achieve almost the same area efficiency as mono-crystalline panels.
Suntech Crystalline solar panel advantages
- Special, patented pyramid surface texturing draws more light into the cell from all angles
- Consistent performance after exposure to intense sunlight
- Special, dust-resistant glass coating helps keep panels clean
- Space efficient
Solar Panel Technology Comparison
The below table provides a quick guide to different solar panel technologies. A range of factors, such as efficiency when shaded (shade tolerance), power efficiency (power output) and space efficiency (space taken up on roof) are relevant factors when deciding which type of solar panel is right for your installation.
Inverters
Inverters are a key component in any solar system; they convert 12v DC current generated from the solar panels to 240v AC current used by appliances. A quality inverter will ensure that you gain the maximum power and efficiency from your investment.
Solar Shop Australia uses SMA Sunny Boy inverters. These are high quality and reliable inverters that are made in Germany. SMA is the world's largest manufacturer of inverters, founded in 1981 in Germany and now worldwide employing over 2,000 employees.
 Recently, SMA has built a new factory building in Germany which is energy neutral after installing a 1 Megawatt solar system on the roof. This new factory is capable of producing an inverter capacity of 3 Gigawatts per year.
Currently, SMA has inverters in the field worldwide that deliver 5 Gigawatts per year. Solar Shop Australia is SMA's largest client in Australia and we enjoy the best possible service with both the Germany based SMA team and the local SMA team.
Frame
 A quality framing system ensures panels are securely mounted on your roof. Our standard framing system is aluminium and designed to withstand severe tropical cyclone regions in Australia as per AS1170.2 wind loading code.
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