Social engagement

In July 2009, two Hanwha Qcells technicians taught 25 college students in Addis Ababa the basic principles of solar cell physics and production.

In November 2009 and November 2011, two Hanwha Qcells employees returned to Ethiopia to train 25 solar technicians in Rema and Hawassa. Since 2007, Hanwha Qcells has supported the International Solar Energy School in the country, managed by the Solar Energy Foundation. The Hanwha Qcells technicians provided solar cells, measuring devices, cables, soldering irons and training materials relating to photovoltaics and delivered a one-week course covering the theoretical and practical basics of solar electricity generation. After completing the training, participants in the programme were able to apply their skills in solar centres across the country, offering services such as financing, installation and maintenance of small rooftop systems.

In areas with limited access to the electricity grid, small photovoltaic systems combined with storage can provide electricity for lighting and other everyday activities after dark.

Since 2012, Hanwha Qcells has also supported a project to provide a solar-powered water supply system to the Ethiopian mountain village of Rema. After the diesel-powered generator used to pump water from the well in the valley to the village broke down in autumn 2011, Hanwha Qcells supplied solar modules and collected €8,000 through an internal company donation to help finance the installation of a solar-powered water pump.

The Solar Energy Foundation’s principal aim is to support development initiatives through the use of solar energy. The foundation also promotes environmental protection, education and training. It runs solar electrification projects in Ethiopia under the slogan “Light for Education” and maintains a school for solar technicians in Ethiopia. Hanwha Qcells supports the foundation’s work through financial contributions and by sending trainers to Ethiopia.

About the Foundation

We were inspired by Swiss adventurer and climate activist Louis Palmer’s idea of travelling around the world using solar energy to demonstrate its potential for mobility. Hanwha Qcells therefore supported the Solartaxi on its journey around the world, during which passengers were able to experience solar-powered mobility first-hand.

To the Solar Taxi

Fairness, training and responsibility are corporate values that we take as seriously as performance, efficiency and quality. We are guided by international standards such as the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, and the principles of the United Nations Global Compact.

Knowledgeable, committed and motivated employees contribute significantly to our business. That is why we attach great importance to developing our employees’ expertise. In 2013, a total of 689 employees took part in 169 training events, representing 3,523.25 hours of training. This included legal training for managers as well as training for auditors.

In 2013, Qcells had contracts with a total of 33 trainees and students across four training programmes and three student programmes. At our in-company training centre, twelve specialist training rooms provide facilities for professional development and preparation for careers in the solar industry. In November 2009, one of our trainees was recognised by the Halle-Dessau District Chamber of Commerce and Industry as the best machine and systems operator.

Our social responsibility also includes initiatives beyond the region, such as our support for the Solar Energy Foundation.

In cooperation with the charitable organisation Diakonieverein e.V. Bitterfeld-Wolfen-Gräfenhainichen, we carried out an advanced training project for five young people with intellectual and multiple disabilities in 2010. One of our trainers taught participants how to use spreadsheet and word-processing software at our in-company training centre, supported by business administration trainees.

Our employees are increasingly focussing on finding a balance between their career and family life. Employees shouldn’t need to choose between a child and a career. We'd like them to combine the two, so that our employees are able to fulfil their personal and professional responsibilities in equal measure. Depending on the job and place of work, we thus offer a range of different working-time models, such as trust-based working hours, flexitime and a one-year extension to parental leave involving part-time employment and telecommuting from home. In 2010, we set up a day-care centre near the company with 20 places for our employees’ children in cooperation with the town of Sandersdorf-Brehna.

Establishing organisational regulations has enabled us to create the conditions needed to support high standards of occupational health and safety at Hanwha Qcells. Our strategic goals are:

1. To protect the health and working capacity of Hanwha Qcells employees and to prevent workplace accidents and occupational diseases, with the aim of reducing them to a minimum.
2. To assess machinery and equipment with regard to their safety-related design, safe operation and the prevention of risks associated with potential failures.

These measures help ensure that machinery and equipment are planned, installed, operated and decommissioned in accordance with applicable safety engineering standards.