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PVEL provides vital performance testing and field services to the PV industry

We’re the experts in extended reliability and performance testing for solar PV and storage technology. Our mission is to support the worldwide PV buyer community by generating data that accelerates adoption of solar technology.

Meet Our TeamThe PVEL Story

PVEL provides vital performance testing and field services to the PV industry

We’re the experts in extended reliability and performance testing for solar PV and storage technology. Our mission is to support the worldwide PV buyer community by generating data that accelerates adoption of solar technology.

PVEL stands out as an independent test lab

 
 

Global Network

As a member of the Kiwa Group of companies, PVEL collaborates on testing and inspection best practices with leading labs around the world. We work with 400+ downstream partners representing over 30 GW of annual buying power in every major solar market worldwide.

 
 

Deep Experience

PVEL was the first lab to recognize the importance of independent product testing for PV equipment buyers. We pioneered extended reliability and performance testing to meet their needs. Our team leverages nearly a decade of unique data sets – more than any other independent lab.

 
 

Market-driven

We’re the only solar technology lab that designs test programs in direct response to feedback from PV equipment buyers. Our team continuously innovates and refines our test programs as technology advances, components change, and buyer needs evolve.

 
 

Comprehensive Services

We can evaluate the performance and reliability of every component in a solar power project to yield critical data that support commercial transactions. Thanks to our state-of-the-art labs, grid-connected outdoor testbeds, field testing expertise and global partnerships, we provide truly comprehensive services.

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Global Network

We work with 400+ downstream partners representing over 30 GW of annual buying power in every major solar market worldwide. Our network includes developers, EPC firms, financial institutions and insurance companies who use PVEL’s data and reports to inform their technology strategies.

Deep Experience

PVEL was the first lab to recognize the importance of independent product testing for PV equipment buyers. We pioneered extended reliability and performance testing to meet their needs. Our team leverages nearly a decade of unique data sets – more than any other independent lab.

Market-driven

We’re the only solar technology lab that designs test programs in direct response to feedback from PV equipment buyers. Our team continuously innovates and refines our test programs as technology advances, components change, and buyer needs evolve.

Comprehensive Services

We can evaluate the performance and reliability of every component in a solar power project to yield critical data that support commercial transactions. Thanks to our state-of-the-art labs, grid-connected outdoor testbeds, field testing expertise and global partnerships, we provide truly comprehensive services.

Services that support the solar and energy storage industry. 

We provide independent testing, engineering, and data solutions for mitigating risk and optimizing project performance and economics.

Technical services that support the solar and energy storage industry. 

We provide independent testing, engineering and data solutions that drive strong financial performance in solar and storage projects.

Meet our Leadership Team

Kevin Gibson

Managing Director

Kevin Gibson brings nearly two decades of experience as a PV technologist to PVEL.

Kevin joined the company’s leadership team in 2020 with a mandate to drive and support a new phase of growth and expansion. His relationship with PVEL began much earlier: Kevin was the company’s first customer in 2010.

As managing director, Kevin leverages his past work with PVEL to bring the voice of the customer into PVEL’s strategic planning and daily operations. He joined PVEL from Solaria Corporation, a PV module manufacturer that he co-founded in 2003. While at Solaria as CTO, Kevin not only developed award-winning PV module technologies and unique manufacturing processes, but he also established global production facilities, managed logistics and operations, contributed to investor fundraising initiatives and supported the successful spin-off of Nextracker. Kevin was instrumental to Solaria’s transformation from a start-up into an internationally recognized, technology-leading solar module manufacturer.

Kevin holds an MBA from both Cornell University, Ithaca NY and the Katholieke Universiteit, Leuven, Belgium and a BESc Electrical Engineering from the University of Western Ontario, London, Canada. He is named on more than 100 patents.

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Tristan Erion-Lorico

Vice President of Sales and Marketing

Tristan Erion-Lorico brings over 15 years of solar and electrical industry experience to PV Evolution Labs (PVEL). As PVEL’s VP of sales and marketing, he collaborates with PV module buyers, investors, research institutions and manufacturers to develop innovative performance and reliability test programs for product qualification.

Tristan previously served as Product and Quality Manager for a major PV module manufacturer, where he oversaw extended reliability testing and was responsible for new product development and new material qualification. He has also directed equipment procurement and technical site operations for solar project developers and Independent Power Producers at a range of projects across North America, South America and Asia

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Todd Karin

Vice President of Technical Operations

Todd Karin, Ph.D, is the Vice President of Technical Operations at PV Evolution Labs (PVEL), the leading independent lab for the global down-stream solar and energy storage markets. Dr. Karin holds a Ph.D. in Physics from the University of Washington and a B.A. in Physics from UC Berkeley.

He received a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship and a University of Washington Clean Energy Institute fellowship.

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Ingrid Ojeda

Vice President of Finance and Business Operations

Ingrid Ojeda is the VP of Finance and Business Operations. She is responsible for managing finance, strategic sourcing, insurance, real estate, tax, and other business services functions with PVEL’s parent company in the Netherlands, Kiwa.

Prior to joining PVEL in 2021, she spent 4+ years at Levi Strauss & Co. in the Corporate Real Estate department leading a finance team and implementing a real estate lease system globally. Before that, Ingrid held finance leadership positions and drove cost-saving strategies at Adobe and Salesforce.org.

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Meet the PVEL Team

PVEL’s passionate solar experts work diligently to create the data that drives the global clean energy transition. Explore some of PVEL’s team below.

Jenya Meydbray

Co-founder and Strategic Advisor

Sishir Garemella

Head of International Business Development

Jean-Nicolas Jaubert

Director of China Operations

Ashley Fallon

Head of Marketing

Hazem Ajlani

Napa Operations Director

Jeff Cleland

Project Manager

Max Macpherson

Data Analytics & Reports Manager

Richard Wickham

Director of Quality

Dave DeLong

Operations Site Manager

Eddie Hu

Head of Chinese Business Development

The PV Evolution Labs Story

When global solar deployment began to accelerate in the early 2000s, most PV equipment buyers assumed that module reliability was consistent from manufacturer to manufacturer.

They relied on 25-year power warranties to protect their investments. Few predicted the volatility that now characterizes the PV manufacturing landscape.

At that time, Jenya Meydbray was a reliability engineer for one of the world’s largest project developers. The tests that he conducted told a very different story: modules composed of different materials behave differently, especially after accelerated testing.

Jenya knew that sharing this data was the key to building investor confidence in solar, which was critical to adoption of PV technology.

In 2010, Jenya started PV Evolution Labs – also known as PVEL – to bring valuable data about the performance and reliability of PV module technology to the greater solar industry. Over time PVEL introduced complementary testing and data services for inverters, balance-of-system equipment and operating assets.

From 2014 to 2019, PVEL operated under DNV, an advisory services consultancy and classification society. In 2021, PVEL became a member of the Kiwa Group of companies. As a Netherlands-based leader in testing, inspection and certification across multiple industries, Kiwa is driving significant investments in PVEL’s facilities, operations and global expansion efforts.

From the beginning, PVEL created data that matters to the global solar and energy storage industry. Throughout our history and to this day, our commitment to this mission has not wavered.

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