“Manufacturing technologies and equipment to produce low-cost PV bituminous-modified roofing membrane with full integration of high efficiency flexible thin-film silicon PV modules”
Project duration: 1st of November 2010 to 31st of October 2013 (36 months)
PV-GUM is a three-year Demonstration project involving nine European partners, 6,4 M€ funded by European Commission under the 7th Framework Programme.
The main scope of the PV-GUM project is to fully integrate flexible thin film PV modules in the roofing membrane during manufacturing.
Indeed, the PV-GUM project is born of the desire of the project coordinator and initiator, the Belgian roofing bitumen-based membranes manufacturer DERBIGUM, to provide a fully 'building-integrated' PV product that really meets the expectations of the building industry: by the full factory integration of the PV cell into the bitumen membrane, a significant reduction of the installation time of the PV roof system can be realized, providing simultaneously a durable waterproofing solution included in the modules itself.
To be adopted by the building industry, this new Building Integrated PV product should be low-cost, close to 'classical' high performance roofing membranes in terms of size and installation, with proven waterproofing properties, enhanced production of PV electricity, robust, easy-to-install, sustainable and recyclable. To achieve this at low cost, developments are necessary from manufacturing to installation and recycling.
The new flexible PV membrane is pre-eminently suitable for flat roofs. Compared with pitched roofs, flat roofs have the advantage of good accessibility, easy installation, an almost limitless choice of orientation for the PV units and usually part of commercial, industrial or public buildings.
