1.What Types of Building-Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPV)  Can You Buy?

BIPV products used to be exclusively for roofing. This feature makes sense since our roofs generally receive the most direct solar radiation. Most early innovators in BIPV technology focused on replacing traditional roofing with panels, tiles, or shingles that could generate renewable solar energy while protecting the home from the elements. The impetus for this innovation stemmed from asimple economic calculation. Suppose the average cost of a roofing replacement in the USA costs between $5,500 and $11,500. In that case, solar panels that doubled as a roof could essentially "subsidize" part of the cost of going solar.

BIPV products are systems that can function as a component of the building skin or envelope while simultaneously converting solar energy into electricity by serving a dual purpose. Instead of attaching solar panels to a separate roof or façade, BIPV products can offer weather protection, thermal insulation, noise protection, daylight illumination, and even increased safety, along with an independent, clean source of renewable energy for your home. According to one financial analysis, building-integratedphotovoltaic products' total global market size will grow to an astounding $59.5 billion by 2028. As more and more companies rush to enter the BIPV industry, the market could see a compound annual growth rate of at least 20 percent! In practical terms, this means that the options for building-integrated photovoltaics currently available to homeowners and builders will only continue to expand. Prices should also continue to drop as competition stiffens and more innovative products become available. The combination of the plummeting cost of solar energy and innovative technologies in solar energy production (such as thin-film technologies, solar cell efficiency, open-circuit voltage, short circuit current, maximum effect, and fill factor) will almost certainly continue to drive innovation in BIPV products.