Development and roll-to-roll production of low-light photovoltaic films and energy-autonomous IoT sensors for buildings and industry
Enerthing GmbH
Leverkusen (An der Schusterinsel 3a) · Cologne (former R&D labs, COPT Center)New on Amplifa
About Enerthing
Enerthing GmbH was founded in 2016 by Dr. Michael Niggemann and develops and produces at its Leverkusen site flexible thin-film photovoltaic films optimized for artificial-light and low-light indoor conditions. The films (enerFILM) are manufactured in a roll-to-roll process using slot-die coating and serve as an energy source for maintenance-free, battery-free IoT sensors of the enerSENSE product family. These measure temperature, humidity, CO2, motion and other variables and transmit data via LoRaWAN to enerCLOUD, which offers visualization, analytics and interfaces such as CSV, MQTT and BACnet. In terms of materials, the company works with fullerene- and NFA-based organic semiconductor materials, halogen-free solvents and flexible plastic substrates; housings are made of PC/ABS or PMMA. Customers include sectors such as smart building, logistics, industry, office buildings, education and healthcare; reference customers include Phoenix Contact and the Nagel Group. The Leverkusen site is the production and development site; previously the R&D laboratories were located at the COPT Center in Cologne.
- Site
- Leverkusen
- Processes
- Roll-to-roll coating of thin-film photovoltaic films (slot-die coating), Patterning for module interconnection (R2R), Encapsulation of photovoltaic films, Coating and drying of thin films under cleanroom/HEPA-filtered conditions, Ink filtration / particle and defect reduction (camera-based defect detection, film cleaning), Production of IoT sensors (enerSENSE) with energy autonomy via photovoltaic film, Manual coating of film substrates (R&D, laboratory/sample scale), Manufacture of custom photovoltaic modules for indoor/low-light applications
- Materials
- Organic semiconductor materials (fullerene-based system, ITO-free layer stack), NFA-based semiconductor system, PC / ABS (housing material enerSENSE Basic/Plus/CO2), PMMA (housing material enerSENSE Industry), Flexible plastic film substrate (carrier material for photovoltaics), Halogen-free solvents (process media for coating inks), Organic semiconductor materials (fullerene-based, ITO-free), Roll-to-roll slot-die coating
- Certificates
- Camera-based defect detection, HEPA-filtered process air / cleanroom cells, ISO 9001
- Founded
- 2016
- Industries
- Smart Building / Building Management, Logistics / Warehousing, Industry / Production, Office Buildings / Workplace, Education (Schools), Healthcare / Indoor Air Quality
- 01
Research & development (materials, layer stack)
- 02
Ink production/filtration (halogen-free solvents)
- 03
Roll-to-roll slot-die coating
- 04
Patterning for module interconnection
- 05
Encapsulation of the photovoltaic film
- 06
Sensor manufacturing/assembly (enerSENSE)
- 07
Cloud data processing (enerCLOUD)
Materials & Processes
Organic semiconductor materials (fullerene-based, ITO-free)
Core of the photovoltaic cell; developed as a scalable layer stack in an industrial environment.
NFA-based semiconductor system
Achieves efficiencies of up to 13 µW/cm² at 200 lux and is suitable for scale-up.
Roll-to-roll slot-die coating
Continuous coating of plastic webs, realized over more than 100 m of web.
PC / ABS
Housing material of the sensors enerSENSE Basic, Plus and CO2.
PMMA
Housing material of the enerSENSE Industry sensor.
Flexible plastic film substrate
Carrier material of the photovoltaic films for flexible and robust modules.
Sites
Leverkusen
DEProduction and development site / headquarters
- Part weight / size
- Sensor films and housings, 169–379 g per sensor
- Materials
- Organic semiconductor materials, flexible plastic substrates, PC/ABS, PMMA
- Roll-to-roll production line for thin-film photovoltaics (coating, patterning, encapsulation)
- Slot-die coating module
- Camera-based defect detection
- Cleaning module for film contact cleaning
- Supply and exhaust air system with HEPA particle filters / cleanroom cells
Cologne
DEFormer R&D labs (COPT Center)
Products & Components
Inside the production
Industries
Processes & technical limits
| Processes | Tolerance | Max. part | Weight | Lot size | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roll-to-roll coating of thin-film photovoltaic films (slot-die coating)Plastics | – | – | – | – | , halogen-free solvents/inks, flexible plastic substrates |
| Patterning for module interconnection (R2R)Plastics | – | – | – | – | Organic photovoltaic layer stacks, flexible films |
| Encapsulation of photovoltaic filmsJoining | – | – | – | – | Organic photovoltaic films |
| Coating and drying of thin films under cleanroom/HEPA-filtered conditionsPlastics | Layer thicknesses < 1 µm (dry film in total) | – | – | – | Coating inks, plastic webs |
| Ink filtration / particle and defect reduction (camera-based defect detection, film cleaning)Plastics | – | – | – | – | Photovoltaic films, coating inks |
| Production of IoT sensors (enerSENSE) with energy autonomy via photovoltaic filmAssembly | – | – | 169 g – 379 g | – | PC / ABS (housing enerSENSE Basic/Plus/CO2), PMMA (housing enerSENSE Industry), organic photovoltaic film, 700 mAh accumulator |
| Manual coating of film substrates (R&D, laboratory/sample scale)Engineering | – | – | – | – | , flexible substrates |
| Manufacture of custom photovoltaic modules for indoor/low-light applicationsPlastics | – | – | – | – | Organic photovoltaic film (enerFILM) |
5 Anlagen & Maschinen
| Machine | Manufacturer / model | Quantity | Working area | Year built | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| – | – | – | Coating of more than 100 m web realized continuously | – | Leverkusen |
| – | – | – | – | – | Leverkusen |
| Camera-based defect detection (integrated in the production line) | – | – | – | – | Leverkusen |
| Cleaning module for film contact cleaning | – | – | – | – | Leverkusen |
| Supply and exhaust air system with HEPA particle filters / cleanroom cells | – | – | – | – | Leverkusen |
Additional services
Reference customers
Quality & Yield
The yield of film production is ensured by HEPA-filtered process air, cleanroom cells, ink filtration, film contact cleaning and camera-based defect detection; in the ENERYIELD project, yield was increased from approx. 30% to approx. 80%.
| Evidence | Leverkusen |
|---|---|
| Camera-based defect detection | |
| HEPA-filtered process air / cleanroom cells | |
| ISO 9001 |
History
- 2016
Founding of Enerthing by Dr. Michael Niggemann to solve the power supply of IoT devices; start with support from angel investors (including Fraunhofer, NRW Bank, Energie 360° Innovation Fund); R&D labs at the COPT Center in Cologne
- 2018
Awarded the Next Economy Award 2018
- 2018
Start of the research projects EOCENE and ENERSCALE (EFRE/NRW) for the development and scale-up of low-light photovoltaics
- 2019
Start of the research project ENERYIELD (progres.nrw) to increase yield in roll-to-roll production
- 2020
Winner of the Handelsblatt Energy Awards 2020
- 2021
ENERSCALE project recognized as one of the five EFRE.Stars NRW; move from the R&D labs in Cologne to the production and development site in Leverkusen