Viessmann | Solarthermalworld

March 19, 2018
World’s largest flat plate collector manufacturers in 2017

The 2017 ranking of the world’s largest flat plate collector producers clearly shows the market dominance of Chinese companies. Even second-ranked Greenonetec, an Austrian collector manufacturer, is now majority-owned by the Chinese-based Haier Group. The...
January 3, 2018
Solar thermal goes digital

On 14 December 2017, members of industry associations Austria Solar and BSW-Solar met founders of start-ups to draw up digital strategies for solar thermal. One of the key findings from the one-day workshop in Vienna, Austria, was that “traditional solar thermal companies cannot take on...
November 26, 2017
IEA SHC Task 54: Solar Thermal Cost Reductions

The objective of IEA SHC Task 54 is to reduce the purchase price of solar thermal systems by up to 40 % across the entire value chain. To achieve this, the project partners have been evaluating technical and non-technical cost-saving potential, with low-cost materials, such as polymers, and...
September 3, 2017
Serbia: EU Supports 903 m² Solar District Heating Installation

Throughout the last years, the EU has been criticised for many things, and the UK has now been the first to decide on leaving. Still, there are good examples of how the union can benefit even non-member countries. For instance, there is a project called Energy Efficiency – The Premise...
August 1, 2017
Germany: Tool to Calculate Solar Feed into District Heating Network

Interest in solar district heating is growing in Germany. A map by German research organisation Solites shows the systems currently in operation to be 23 totalling 49,600 m² of collector area (34.7 MW_th). Last year saw the addition of four installations with a combined area of 12...
April 5, 2017
ISH in Germany: Easy Selling – Heating Industry Starts Digital Marketing Journey

Traditionally, the ISH has been the biannual forum for the European heating industry to showcase product innovations and new business strategies. The big five in Europe – Bosch Thermotechnik with its brands Buderus and Junkers, Viessmann, Vaillant, Ariston and its Elco brand, and BDR...
March 16, 2017
Belarus: 287 Completed Systems Prove Growing Interest in Solar Heat

The use of solar heat is becoming increasingly popular in Belarus, an eastern European country with around 10 million population. Official statistics from the Ministry of Energy put the number of systems installed across the country at 287; their combined collector area, however, has not...
January 31, 2017
Russia: “I estimate the potential at 2 million m², half each for tourism and single-family homes”

Professor Vitaly A. Butuzov is one of Russia’s well-known experts on solar heating and cooling. He is professor at the Department of Electrical Engineering, Heat and Renewable Energy of Kuban State Agrarian University in Krasnodar, the capital of the region which bears its name. This region...
August 15, 2016
Germany: Vaillant Establishes End-Customer Online Platform

German Vaillant has launched a project which has stirred controversy among installers: Online platform heizungonline.vaillant.de can be used by manufacturers to directly address those end customers who wish to shop online – and send them a “price indication” for a complete heating...
July 28, 2016
Switzerland: Solar Thermal Market Decline, Unclear Policy Situation

In 2015, the solar collector area newly installed in Switzerland shrunk by 16 % compared to 2014. Imports outperformed domestic production, and larger systems for multi-family and commercial buildings, particularly those with vacuum tubes, have gained market shares. These are some of the...
July 8, 2016
Russia: Basel Aero Plans Solar Installations on Three Airports near Black Sea

Russian airport operator Basel Aero, which is part of Russian financial conglomerate Basic Elements, is planning additional installations of solar collectors at airports managed by the company in Anapa, Gelendzhik and Krasnodar near the Black Sea, according to a March 2016 press release....
May 29, 2016
Germany: Thermondo Digitalises Heating Industry Planning and Sales

Start-up Thermondo, based in Berlin, Germany, has turned the tables on sales and planning methods for home heating systems. Not only does the company generate its turnover online, it also leaves most of the planning for heating installations to a computer algorithm called “Manfred”....