Nexteer Automotive is usually known for its innovative automotive steering systems, but a new product from the Saginaw company is steering something else--solar energy systems.
Senior VP and COO Vince De Zorzi says Nexteer's new SunSteer product is its first for the alternative energy industry. SunSteer is a solar tracking actuator that tracks the sun's position and moves solar arrays for maximum energy efficiency.
"The team at Nexteer relied on our industry leading automotive technologies to develop a product for the renewable energy market that accurately positions solar arrays to follow the sun," says De Zorzi. "SunSteer™ is built right here in the U.S., with more than 90 percent U.S. content and greater than 50 percent of its content produced in Michigan, including the Great Lakes Bay Region."
When researching the possible new market, Nexteer engineers found that reliability and efficiency, along with durability, were lacking in existing products on the market, and used their automotive expertise in electronic power steering to design a tracking system that offered all of those qualities. And it doesn't hurt that the economic development efforts in the Saginaw area have been focusing on alternative energy and the solar power industry in recent years.
"SunSteer™ fits perfectly into the Great Lakes Bay Region's economic development partnership that focuses on the regional development of comprehensive solar solutions and manufacturers," says De Zorzi.
Writer: Sam Eggleston
Source: Vince De Zorzi, Nexteer Automotive
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