In 1993, Flachglas, the German solar facade supplier, installed a solar facade on its building at Wernberg in Germany. The total facade area of building is 217 square metres, of which 140 square metres has been clad with solar photovoltaics. 85 square metres of solar panels have been installed on the south west side of the building and a further 55 square metres on south east. The architect decided to install ‘false’ solar panels on the west side of the building to ensure aesthetic continuity.
The facade is fully grid connected and has a power output of 10kW, enabling it to generate 7,000 kWh of electricity per year. In 1994 the building was awarded the prize of ‘Best Architecturally Integrated Solar Building’.