May 21 , 2014

 


The new building for the Ben-Gurion National Solar Energy Center was dedicated on Wednesday in Sede Boqer. A major architectural project led by the French Associates was successfully brought to completion in January 2014 with the occupancy of this new, modern, aesthetic, and specially-constructed building for the Ben-Gurion National Solar Energy Center, a part of the Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research (BIDR) in Sede Boqer.

Prof. Pedro Berliner, Director of the Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research welcomed the gathered Board members and guests and noted, “This building will make a dramatic change in the research capabilities of the center. We have a fantastic new cadre of scientists that have joined us" and will be able to use this facility.

“If not for you, this building would not be here," President Rivka Carmi told the members of the French Associates. “I have no doubt that the most advanced research in the world will happen in this building," she declared.

Prof. (Emeritus) David Faiman, the Center's founder, begged the audience's indulgence to read from prepared remarks (*see file below) rather than an extemporaneous delivery since “I am overawed on this occasion and I'm just so excited, I would get discombobulated if I hadn't written my remarks down."

“And so dear friends, if scientists at other universities are hurriedly running after new, more lucrative areas of research funding, we at Ben-Gurion will just have to increase our efforts to develop a solar alternative to the madness of fossil fuel. This will be possible thanks to the scientific talents of a whole new generation of brilliant scientists and this wonderful building that Rivka's vision and your efforts have created," he said.

He also warmly thanked the members of the French Associates for their generous contribution. He also offered a spirited defense of solar energy even in the face of new finds of natural gas and shale oil, for reliance on such fossil fuels will have “disastrous consequences."

A representative of the French Embassy praised the dedication of the French Associates and the close connections developed with the Center over the years.

Gerard Worms, chairman of the French Associates said that now was the fourth stage of solar energy research following the pioneers, heavy global investment, and extremely concerning Chinese investment. “Solar energy remains a crucial ingredient for the sustainable future of the planet," he averred. “Long life to solar energy in Sede Boqer!" he cried.

 

The Building 


The construction of a new building to house the Ben-Gurion National Solar Energy Center was in answer to an array of pressing needs of the BIDR.  The new modern building replaced old and temporary field structures with limited technical capabilities. 

Proximity to the existing The Swiss Institute for Dryland Environmental and Energy Research in the Forest Goldman-Sonnenfeldt Building for Solar Energy and Environmental Physics will facilitate both cooperative and collaborative research. The new building is wholly dedicated to solar energy research.  The building added 1,100 square meters to the existing space on campus.  Specially designed balconies and rooftop areas will be adeptly exploited for solar research equipment and instrumentation.

The building design and architectural plans were completed by a leading Israeli architectural and design firm - Linenberg Rozen Architects and intelligently exploits a variety of "green" construction techniques including thermal insulation systems, walls that enable energy storage, and strategic placement of windows and openings.

The new facility houses thematic-based research laboratories, all capable of contributing a specific area of expertise to the overall pursuit of solar energy research.  Additionally, the building provides office space for 24 graduate students, alleviating an acute shortage of space for these research students to work. 

The building will house six specialized research laboratories: Photovoltaic Applications, Dust Studies, Solar Optics, Battery Research, Solar Power, Energy, and Radiation and one to be determined at a later date.

 

A full gallery of pictures from this event can be viewed on our Facebook page.

 

*Solar Building Speech (David Faiman, 21.5.14).pdf