GPHLAMS: small-size pv modules
Founded in 2010, Hangzhou GPHLAMS Renewable Energy Technology Co., Ltd (in short: GPHLAMS) is a very young manufacturer of crystalline silicon pv modules that entered an already very competitive market. Not long after its establishment, our team started to perform pre-shipment quality inspections at this manufacturer for pv companies from India. This report is a glimpse on Kisun’s overall quality impression regarding GPHLAMS after several inspections.
GPHLAMS: small-size, low-power output pv modules
Other than most manufacturers in China, GPHLAMS – although having higher output mono- and poly solar panels in its product lineup as well – specializes in particular in the development and production of small-size pv modules with power output ranges starting from as low as 3W. GPHLAMS’ products specifically aim at meeting the demands and requirements for small-scale and very economic pv modules in the South Asian and Southeast Asian markets. Every of our Indian clients unisono confirmed that such small solar panels were ideal for their rural electrification pv projects, reaching customers that do not require much more than stable supply of electricity for their low-consumption appliances such as bulbs, fans and televisions, but that would also never have been able to afford a large pv system producing power beyond their real daily needs.
Big minus: lack of standard certifications
Even though certifications and warranties alone are not enough to guarantee product quality as a once obtained certification is not followed by regular re-inspections, GPHLAMS pv modules are yet to prove that they are capable of meeting the standard qualification and safety testing according IEC standards, most importantly IEC 61215 (ageing of pv modules), IEC 61730 (safety of pv modules) and IEC 61345 (and UV testing). The manufacturer currently only holds ISO and CE certifications which in fact do not tell much about the overall quality of the manufacturer’s pv modules.
Performance during quality inspections
Pre-shipment quality inspections on finished goods at GPHLAMS, performed by Kisun Solar Consultancy Services, have shown that GPHLAMS’ modules have done quite okay in terms of quality and on average over 95% of the tested modules have performed within positive tolerance levels of +3%. Minor and repairable issues such as welding spots on cells and poor sealing of the modules as well as missing labels have been quite frequent and were recovered during quality inspections.
Conclusion
PV modules ordered from GPHLAMS currently come with inadequate certification and thereof lacking standard quality and safety conformity. From our experience, even though the average quality of GPHLAMS’ pv modules has been more than acceptable and are certainly a good buy especially for solar pv projects in rural South- and Southeast Asia, rampant minor quality issues and overlooked quality control details internally before final shipment make a strong case for systematic quality inspections.
Solar panel (PV) quality inspections
Are you purchasing solar panels in China? At Kisun Solar Consultancy Services we perform independent quality inspections at manufacturers of solar pv modules as well as inverters and mounting structures in China and their overseas warehouses.
Advantages:
- Replace defects prior to shipment
- Independent and confidential testing report
- 100% certainty about product quality and performance
- International testing crew specialized in solar (pv) technology manufactured in China
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