Solar glass maker ClearVue secures funding to begin local manufacturing

Perth-based smart building materials company ClearVue Technologies has secured a grant of up to $2 million from the Western Australian government which will help to bring manufacturing of the company’s core technology onshore.

ClearVue, who has designed a proprietary method of integrating solar technology into building surfaces, specifically into glass and building façades, will use the grant of up to $2 million to establish a WA-based Photovoltaic (PV) and Nanoparticle Components Manufacturing Facility.

The move is part of Western Australia’s larger goal of building up a nation-leading clean energy manufacturing industry. The grant is being made available under the WA government’s Investment Attraction Fund (IAF) which was launched in March 2022 and which has served as a key enabler for attracting investment into the state.

ClearVue will bring onshore manufacturing of key components required for its solar integrated glazing units (IGUs) and windows. Specifically, ClearVue intends to create a solar PV strip assembly line to manufacture the PV strips used in the company’s PV solar windows and façades.

ClearVue will also establish an in-house nanoparticle and quantum dot production capability to produce nanoparticles used in the polyvinyl butyral lamination interlayer currently used in the majority of the Company’s end products.

“Our board and management, and all of our staff and partners, are incredibly grateful to the State Government of Western Australia for selecting ClearVue for this grant,” said Jamie Lyford, acting CEO and executive director of ClearVue.

“The ClearVue team is very proud to have had their proposal selected – it is a fantastic honour and a testament to the hard work that the team put into the submission.

“COVID and the Ukraine war have confirmed that control of the manufacturing of our core components is critical to ensuring our future supply chain.

“We are all very pleased that we will be able to keep certain core parts of the business within Western Australia going forward – including creating new local skilled jobs and diversifying the economy – even as we are reaching out into global markets including our key sales territories of the US and Europe.”

The news comes only days after ClearVue unveiled improvements to its solar glass technology and solar façades which will reduce fabrication time and costs while also boosting energy output.

Specifically, ClearVue expects their technological improvements to reduce fabrication time by over 90%, resulting in both cost savings and the ability to better scale up production.

“The latest improvements to the ClearVue IGU design are a step-change for how ClearVue’s core product is manufactured, offering significant reductions in fabrication time for our licensed manufacturers, delivering consequent cost reductions and increases in manufacturing throughput,” said Lyford.