RPS450-TL gives customers complete access to solar field

- Bonfiglioli USA -- an international leader in the design and manufacture of speed reducers, gearmotors and controllers for renewable energy applications, and major manufacturer of inverters for industrial motor applications -- today introduced the newest addition to its line of solutions for the solar energy market: the RPS450-TL photovoltaic inverter. Introduced during the Solar Power International show, the inverter represents the industry's first-ever integrated, modular solar power inverter system.

"The RPS450-TL represents the latest in solar inverter technology," said Greg Schulte, president and CEO of Bonfiglilio USA. "The unit offers distinct advantages over other forms of solar technology, including critical improvements to overall efficiency, energy harvesting and financial returns."

The RPS450-TL offers modular construction that combines all components of a solar power inverter -- UL1741 construction and performance, fast response maximum power point tracking, extensive power plant monitoring and high reliabilty -- in a single, compact unit. The system offers seamless integration of string combiner boxes, monitoring and a data logger that provides 24-hour access to top-performing solar energy sites and allows operators to identify maintenance issues. It is ideal for applications between 30kWp and 1 MWp.

According to Schulte, benefits of the RPS450-TL include:
• Heightened efficiency: The high efficiency ratio provides a critical improvement to overall inverter performance, maximizes power generation and offers the best possible return on owner investment.
• Improved reliability: The heart of the inverter is a power electronic building block with onboard controller (PEBB) that provides a low complexity, reliable inverter for improved uptime.
• Maintenance productivity with a modular construction: The PEBB is a modular "plug and play" concept that enables owners to only spare PEBB modules versus the entire inverter. This improves maintenance productivity by only needing to be trained on a singular design.
• Efficient Maxium Power Point Tracking: Each inverter module possesses its own max-point power tracker (MPPT), which reduces yield losses caused by the mismatching of the solar generator. This allows the inverter to harvest more energy per panel than conventional central inverter designs.
• 1MW, 1000VDC Design: Bonfiglioli's inverters by design are matched to the needs of multi-MW solar farms with ratings up to and including 1MW and 1000VDC.

Schulte said the RPS450-TL is the latest in a series of game-changing solar power solutions Bonfiglioli has introduced during the company's 52-year history. He pointed to the fact that the product is already installed in some of the largest solar fields in Europe, where Bonfiglioli is based.

"Bonfiglioli has been in business for more than 50 years, and in that time, the company has made significant financial, manpower and research investments into the solar power market," Schulte said. "Those investments are fully evident in products like the RPS450-TL, which represents another step Bonfiglioli is taking as a global provider of renewable energy solutions."

The RPS450-TL will be on display in the Bonfiglioli booth 1811 at Solar Power International through Oct. 29. Further information about the product and Bonfiglioli USA are available at www.bonfiglioliusa.com.

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About Bonfiglioli
Bonfiglioli is one of the world's leading designers and manufacturers of gear motors, drive systems and planetary gearboxes, and a developer of systems which integrate electronic, hydraulic and mechanical engineering. The company was founded in 1956 in Bologna and today is Italy's largest gear manufacturer. It has production plants and branches in 17 countries, a global workforce of nearly 3,000 and annual sales in excess of $1 billion. Bonfiglioli provides solutions and choices of excellence for industrial systems and mobile machinery, as well as innovative renewable energy applications in the wind turbine, solar panel and bio fuel sectors.