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01/13/2014 | Pressemitteilung

Honorary doctorate for solar pioneer Günther Cramer

The University of Kassel has awarded an honorary doctorate to Günther Cramer, a pioneer in the development of photovoltaics and renewable energies and founder of the company SMA Solar Technology AG. "With his entrepreneurial activities, but especially with a large number of publications in technical journals and at conferences, as well as with invention applications and patents, Günther Cramer has made a significant contribution to the development of high-performance photovoltaic systems," said University President Prof. Dr. Rolf-Dieter Postlep. "Without him, his personal commitment and his creativity, Germany would be quite a bit further away from the vision of a 100 percent decentralized energy supply with renewable energies."

Günther Cramer studied electrical engineering at the University of Kassel and founded today's SMA Solar Technology AG in 1981 with Peter Drews, Reiner Wettlaufer and Prof. Dr.-Ing. Werner Kleinkauf. Cramer (61) was CEO of the world market leader for photovoltaic inverters until 2011, and has been chairman of the supervisory board since May 2011. He was also president of the German Solar Industry Association (Bundesverband Solarwirtschaft e.V.) until November 2012 and is chairman of the board of the Competence Network Decentralized Energy Technologies e.V. (deENet) as well as a member of the supervisory board of EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG. Cramer is associated with the University of Kassel in particular as a member of the university council. In 2011, Günther Cramer, together with Drews and Wettlaufer, established three individual foundations and the cdw Stiftungsverbund gGmbH as a joint subsidiary. The aim of the association is to promote the spread of regenerative energy utilities in developing countries as well as to support the region of Northern Hesse. In 2012, the German Federal Foundation for the Environment awarded Günther Cramer the German Environmental Award.

"Three basic ideas run through all of Cramer's publications," said Prof. Dr.-Ing. Peter Zacharias, head of the Department of Electrical Power Supply Systems, who presented the certificate of appointment on behalf of the university. "These basic ideas are: The technology must be simple, it must be compatible with existing power supply systems, and photovoltaic systems must be modularized and segmented. These principles have gained worldwide acceptance. The use of renewable sources would not have reached the current level without them."

 

Image by Günther Cramer (Photo: cdw Foundation Network):
www.uni-kassel.de/uni/fileadmin/datas/uni/presse/anhaenge/2013/G%C3%BCnther_Cramer.jpg

 

 

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