First PV Company to Receive IECRE Certification

 On May 11th, First Solar became the first company to achieve a recognized and accredited certification to the new  62941 IEC Technical Standard, the International Standard for quality in PV product design, manufacturing processes, and the selection and control of materials. It is also the first ever certificate issued under the newly formed IECRE conformity assessment system for the PV Sector. The certification was issued by the global safety and certification organization, Underwriters Laboratories (UL).

IECRE is a globally recognized conformity assessment and certification system based on International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) standards for equipment and processes used in renewable energy (RE) applications including solar PV, wind and marine energy. In order to be able to issue IECRE certificates, testing laboratories and certification bodies must meet specific accreditation criteria and undergo a rigorous peer assessment process to ensure conformance with the IECRE Conformity Assessment System. The auditors and inspectors need to meet special criteria to be approved and utilize rigorous and standardized assessment criteria under the centralized decision making authority of the IECRE central office. All certificates issued by an accepted IECRE certification body are published in the online database: https://iecre.org/certificates/solarpvenergy/

The IECRE System for certifying PV products and systems gives stakeholders the confidence that modules and installations are built to International Standards and perform as promised based on meaningful, transparent and effective third-party reviews. The IECRE’s harmonized certification process leads to more reliable, consistent, safe and cost effective PV projects.  

First Solar is committed to continuously raising the bar for PV quality and reliability. IEC TS 62941 sets the global industry benchmark for PV module product design, development, product certification, process control, raw material control and procurement, as well as product testing and monitoring.