VALLEY FORGE, Pa. — CertainTeed Corporation has partnered with Penn State University in the construction of a solar-power training facility. The project is the second phase of the groundbreaking, new smart-energy campus GridSTAR Center at The Navy Yard in Philadelphia. Functionally designed with input from CertainTeed, the building will showcase the manufacturer’s line of innovative solar roofing products and provide an outlet for training students and building professionals in contemporary solar roofing system installation.

“This facility will provide real-life solar installation training on a variety of solar products including our Apollo II and Solstice systems,” said Mark Stancroff, director of CertainTeed Solar. “And, since it’s located right in our back yard, it offers us an opportunity to display our photovoltaic roofing products to potential customers while helping increase the awareness and acceptance of solar energy in the residential building field. We are delighted to be a part of this project.”

The steep-slope portion of the facility’s roof will feature a 2-kilowatt Apollo II™ solar roofing system integrated among Landmark Solaris™ Gold premium designer shingles in Max Def Weathered Wood and a 2-kilowatt Solstice® rack-mounted solar roofing system. The GridSTAR Center also features a net zero energy demonstration home with Landmark Solaris shingles and a host of other exterior and interior CertainTeed building products. 

Solar Grid Storage, a developer of solar energy storage technology for backup power also partnering with Penn State on the project, applauds the forward-thinking contributions of materials and technical expertise from CertainTeed and other manufacturer partners.

“This project really is a great partnership between industry, new technology and academia,” said Don Bradley, senior vice president of business development at Solar Grid Storage. “It’s through these efforts that contemporary technologies deployed at the GridSTAR Center will eventually become mainstream.”

Expected to be completed by the end of this summer, the GridSTAR Center will serve as a valuable hub for workforce training, building performance testing, energy management research and “smart” microgrid modernization deployments.

For more information, visit www.gridstarcenter.organd www.certainteedsolar.com.