Iowa Thin Film Technologies
Ames, IA
With a recently awarded $3.2 million dollar contract from the U.S. Army, Iowa Thin film Technologies is currently supplying hundreds of tents – in three separate designs – that use the company’s flexible solar cells integrated into the fabric. The Army expects to use the tents to address growing demands for rapid-response portable and remote power for weapons and communications systems. The tent fabric becomes a source of field power ranging from 200 watts to 2 kilowatts, which can be used to run lighting or ventilation systems, field communications, GPS systems or laptop computers, according to a company statement. The solar energy panels called PowerFilm, come in flexible sheets that are up to 13 inches wide and up to a half-mile long. The biggest tent ordered by the army is a canopy that can provide up to 2 kilowatts of power, or enough to power up to 52 laptop computers or 260 cell or satellite phones when the sun is shining, according to Michael Coon, Iowa Thin Film’s CEO. The company is working with the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Center, Natick, Mass., along with Eureka! The Tent Co., Binghamton, N.Y., and FTL Design Engineering Studio, New York.