Page 131 - ISES SWC50

E. Kenneth May (1949-2020)
Country: USA
Year joined industry: 1979
Company first worked for: Industrial Solar Technology Corporation
Technology area: Solar Thermal
Still active in the industry: No

Ken May) was a pioneer in the development and deployment of commercial and industrial solar thermal technology
between 1979 and 2020.Mr. May began his solar career at the US Solar Energy Research Institute in 1979. At
SERI he analyzed the technical and economic benefits of direct steam generation in parabolic troughs - which led
to a multi-million-dollar research effort in Europe - and co-authored the first publication of tools and techniques for
designers of large solar thermal installations.
In 1983, Mr. May and Mr. Randy Gee founded Industrial Solar Technology Corp. (IST) where they developed an
innovative parabolic trough technology capable of unattended operation and deployed commercial projects in
several countries. For much of its history, IST was one of just a few companies in the world developing parabolic
troughs for industrial and commercial applications. In 2000, Mr. May and Mr. Gee were the first recipients of ASES
Hoyt Clarke Hottel Award “for unique contribution to make solar thermal technology a commercial reality”.In 2006
IST’s parabolic trough business was acquired by Abengoa, where Mr. May directed the Abengoa Solar Industrial
Systems division. IST’s infrastructure and experience helped Abengoa to contract and construct the groundbreaking
Solana and Mojave CSP plants. Mr. May also authored and advised two of the company’s first major US DoE-
sponsored research contracts, which developed a next-generation large-aperture collector and other innovative
CSP technologies that remain “state-of-the-art” to this day. Under Mr. May’s direction, the IST technology also
continued to evolve for Industrial Process Heat applications. Abengoa deployed IST-derived systems worldwide
including the largest parabolic trough process heat system in the US (2008) and the largest in the world (Chile
2012). Mr. May retired in 2015, remaining active as an advisor and consultant to the solar thermal industry until his
death in October of 2020.

Paul Maycock
Country: USA Year joined industry: 1975
Company first worked for: US Department of Energy
Technology area: PV
Still active in the industry: No

In 1975 after first working at the Office of Naval Research followed by 15 years at Texas instruments Paul Maycock
was appointed the Director of Photovoltaics Energy Systems Division within the US Department of Energy. President
Carter provided a large budget for the renewable energy sector and Paul managed the funding of research and
development projects and particulary in the area of reducing the costs within the PV industry . After President
Reagen reduced the budgets Paul left and founded PV Energy Systems , the consulting company he operated
until he retired in 2002. During the 80’s and 90’s Paul published the monthly newsletter the “PV News”. This was
where many in the industry kept up todate with the developments within the PV industry before the establsihment
of the many magazines (and internet sources) available today. Paul also worked on manu consulting projects and
also published many reports. In 1985 he co-authored the book “A guide to the Photovoltaic Revolution” . He also
supported Neveille Williams with the establsihment of the Solar Electric Light fund (SELF) and SELCO and was
nonexecutive chairman of SELF for many years.

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