Page 260 - ISES SWC50

Arne Jacobson
Country: United States
Year joined industry: 1990
Company first worked for: Eclectic Electric (New Mexico-based electrical
contractor and solar installer)
Technology area: PV
Still active in the industry: Yes

Dr. Arne Jacobson is Director of the Schatz Energy Research Center at Humboldt State University in California
(USA). His involvement in the renewable energy sector dates back to 1990, when he began an apprenticeship in
New Mexico with electrical contractor and solar designer/installer Bob Thatcher of Eclectic Electric. Since then,
he has worked actively on renewable energy projects and research in over 20 countries in North America, South
America, Africa, and Asia. He has degrees from Earlham College (bachelor’s degree in physics), Humboldt State
University (master’s degree in environmental systems), and the University of California, Berkeley (Ph.D. in energy
and resources). For the past decade, Dr. Jacobson has served as the technical lead for the World Bank Group’s
Lighting Global Quality Assurance program for off-grid solar products (the program was recently renamed VeraSol).
As of December 2019, over 42 million off-grid solar products certified through the program have been sold globally.
The large majority of these products are sold into markets in Africa and Asia for use by people without access to
reliable electricity from the grid. Dr. Jacobson currently serves as co-chair of Joint Working Group 1 (JWG1) of IEC
Technical Committee 82 (solar photovoltaics). JWG1 of IEC TC 82 manages test methods, standards, and guidance
documents related to off-grid renewable energy systems. While much of Dr. Jacobson’s work has focused on solar
power systems and improved access to energy in off-grid and weak-grid areas, he has also worked on projects
involving wind power, biomass energy, clean transportation, energy efficiency for appliances, and other related
topics.

Gerhard Kleiss
Country: Germany
Year joined industry: 1991
Company first worked for: Fraunhofer ISE
Technology area: PV
Still active in the industry: Yes

Gerhard Kleiss received his Diplom in Physics in 1993 from Freiburg University, Germany, where he was writing his
thesis at Fraunhofer ISE in Freiburg. The research at Fraunhofer ISE (which in fact started in 1991) was continued
in combination with research at CEA Cadarache, St-Paul-lez-Durance, France, in a team what was then called the
“Groupement Energétique de Cararache”. Research was on outdoor performance of PV modules including a-Si:H
products and was leading to his doctoral thesis. Gerhard received a title as Dr.-Ing. from the faculty of EE of TU
Berlin. Gerhard worked from 1996 to 1998 for TNC Energie Consulting GmbH, directed by A. Goetzberger and Th.
Nordmann, focused on early realizations of PV noise barrier installations as well as related EU projects. In 1998
Gerhard joined the newly forming team of Shell Solar in Hamburg. He initially covered project business and became
later responsible for national direct sales and in particular for the sales center in Berlin, which he personally directed.
In 2003 Gerhard changed again to a newly uprising solar company, namely SolarWorld in Bonn. Initially he directed
Marketing and Product Management for SolarWorld. In 2006 SolarWorld took over former Shell Solar and Gerhard
was responsible for managing the operational side of the merger and was later nominated MD for some former
Shell Solar entities. Later he became Director for Product Engineering and Quality. He was in charge for the product
of all manufacturing sites world-wide including toll manufacturers. Gerhard stayed with SolarWorld until 2017 and
took a decision to continue working in the solar sector, first as a self-employed free-lancer. He also started in 2017
to work for iiDEv, continuing renewables and solar projects in the development sector. In 2018 he started a new
company, 8.2 Arp & Kleiss GmbH, focused on quality and reliability in PV, including the newly developing storage
sector. Since 2012 Gerhard is teaching at UNI Hannover “Use of Solar Energy”. Gerhard became ISES member in
1996 and is engaged in standardization of PV since 2007 in TC82.

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