{"id":8627,"date":"2026-01-22T08:55:38","date_gmt":"2026-01-22T07:55:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cleantech-alps.com\/portraits-de-la-communaute\/3s-swiss-solar-solutions-making-construction-materials-solar\/"},"modified":"2026-01-22T09:01:28","modified_gmt":"2026-01-22T08:01:28","slug":"3s-swiss-solar-solutions-making-construction-materials-solar","status":"publish","type":"portraits","link":"https:\/\/www.cleantech-alps.com\/en\/portraits-de-la-communaute\/3s-swiss-solar-solutions-making-construction-materials-solar\/","title":{"rendered":"3S Swiss Solar Solutions – making construction materials solar"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Thanks to the integrated photovoltaic technology developed and produced in Switzerland by 3S Swiss Solar<\/a> Solutions, roofs, building fa\u00e7ades and balconies can now produce electricity. An attractive way to help reduce the building sector\u2019s carbon footprint in the run up to net zero in 2050. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n

3S may have been trading in its current form since 2018, but the company has been developing and producing integrated photovoltaic solar modules in Switzerland for more than 20\u202fyears. \u201cRoof tiles, fa\u00e7ades, balusters \u2013 we turn building materials into electricity generators<\/em>,\u201d says CEO Patrick Hofer-Noser<\/a>. \u201cAnd we stand out from the competition because our products are nice to look at, too.\u201d The company produces around 250,000\u202fm2 of panels each year, fitting solar panels to around 15\u202fbuildings every day. The market-leading building-integrated photovoltaics producer, in 2023 3S opened a new production line, tripling its output. \u201cThe solar panels market is growing by 30% a year, but within the company we\u2019re growing even faster!\u201d he adds. 3S is turning a handsome profit and employing more than 200 people, including 50\u202fon temporary contracts. <\/p>\n\n

Active mainly in Switzerland, the company also has a presence in Austria and Germany and has set its sights on other European countries, adapting its products to ensure they meet local construction materials standards. 3S targets the B2B market and has customers of all sizes. It supplies some 300\u202finstallers in Switzerland, from small companies right up to the energy market\u2019s big hitters such as BKW and Axpo. Its projects vary from individual family homes to large apartment blocks and including commercial buildings, parking shelters, ski lift terminals and even mountain huts. <\/p>\n\n

And 3S manufactures products for other companies too \u2013 the bespoke coloured solar panels developed by Solaxess and Kromatix, for example. The company also has the facilities to mass-produce the products coming out of the labs of Swiss engineering schools and research centres such as the Swiss Center for Electronics and Microtechnology (CSEM) in Neuch\u00e2tel. And that\u2019s not all: its integrated solar modules can also be combined with the Next3 inverters developed by Studer Innotec. \u201cAll of these synergies are a mark of the expertise that has grown up in Switzerland, which is crucial in developing the aesthetic solar products of the future<\/em>,\u201d says Patrick Hofer-Noser. <\/p>\n\n