US solar hardware manufacturer Create Energy and Swiss cable producer Stäubli have announced a partnership to produce a new solar connector product.
The strategic manufacturing partnership will produce a “next-generation” connector which Create said would address “long-standing challenges in the tracker market” and set “a new standard for safety, reliability, and performance”.
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The company said the connector will be designed to withstand the mechanical stress and environmental conditions unique to solar trackers, and Create said it would harness Stäubli’s expertise and material strength to “enhance connector longevity, reduce maintenance costs, and improve overall energy yield”.
“The misuse of PV connectors in the tracker market has been a huge issue, compromising EBOS [electrical balance-of-system] integrity and long-term performance,” said Dean Solon, founder and CEO at Create Energy.
Production is slated to begin in 2026, Tennessee-based Create said, with distribution in North America and international markets.
“I have been friends with Ian Pratt and the North American Stäubli team for over 20 years,” Solon said. “This partnership with Stäubli allows us to deliver a purpose-built solution that not only solves this problem but also pushes the industry forward. Another partner in our un-evil empire!”
Create Energy is aiming to establish a US solar and renewables manufacturing “one-stop-shop” for PV hardware, balance-of-system components, energy storage solutions and electric vehicle infrastructure. Its OnTrack programme “allows customers to purchase everything they need directly from Create”, the company said.
Stäubli has also announced plans to expand its US manufacturing base, investing millions in its California and South Carolina manufacturing plants last year.
US solar supply consolidation
Create has established other partnerships with European manufacturers to establish US production lines. In September it unveiled a partnership with German solar inverter producer SMA Solar to establish US inverter production, specifically aiming to produce SMA’s Sunny Highpower PEAK3 string inverter and PowerSkid turnkey solution. If successful, this plan would result in the first US-produced SMA products since it abandoned its previous facility in 2016.
In comments to PV Tech, Solon outlined his plans for Create’s “one-stop-shop” supply model.
His aim is to change the current market landscape, where “the typical company buys this module, buys this tracker, buys this e-bos, buys this inverter, buys this blah, blah, blah, right?” And at each step of the procurement process, each supplier adds a profit margin. “The project becomes expensive as hell,” Solon said in an interview with PV Tech following the announcement of SMA partnership.
“So what we’re doing is… we have a menu board. Like McDonald’s. I want a burger, I want burger and fries, or I want a combo meal. You drive up, you order what you want, you pick it up at the window, right? So, with us, we have a menu board; take what you want.”
The “menu” in this case consists of modules, trackers, EBOS systems, connectors, inverters; any part of the solar array a developer might need.
“And then we’ll have a lot of this material just sitting in warehouses ready to ship,” he says.
Create’s ambitious plans to bring the US solar supply chain under one roof reflect a broader consolidation trend in the hardware and BOS sector. US tracker producer Nextracker announced a rebrand this week to reflect its shifting focus towards “full-platform” energy solutions.
Now known as Nextpower, the company has been on an acquisition spree in recent months, broadening its offering from tracker production to include module frame manufacturing, EBOS solutions and solar project foundations. Fellow US tracker firms, Array Technologies and FTC Solar have also made acquisitions in recent months.
The already complex US solar supply landscape became harder with the election of Donald Trump and the passage of the “One, Big, Beautiful” budget reconciliation bill, which introduced more stringent supply criteria for renewable energy projects alongside the US president’s imposition of global tariffs on imports. In offering simplified procurement options – Solon’s “one-stop-shop” – firms such as Nextpower and Create Energy will anticipate strong positions in the US renewables market.
