Entech Solar gets $1 million investment from Chapman University

Fort Worth, Texas,-based Entech Solar (OTCBB: ENSL) recently received a $1 million investment from Chapman University of Orange, Calif. The investment is in line with Chapman’s future goals and comes as Entech is moving ahead with product development.

Entech is a solar company offering numerous solar services and products, including solar light tubes, concentrating photovoltaics and engineering and installation services.

“We’re developing advanced tube lighting and concentrating solar power,” explained Entech spokesperson Bob Walters.

Entech is moving forward based on its previous work with concentrating solar photovoltaics—its first project was installed at the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport in 1984. The company’s newest model is the SolarVolt II module.

SolarVolt II, the company said, concentrates the sun 20 times and reduces the amount of silicon needed for its photovoltaic cells by 95 percent.

Chapman’s Vice President of Strategic Marketing and Communications Mark Woodland explained that the university made the investment because the university is growing its presence in the fields of science and sustainability.

“As an institution focused on developing highly qualified global citizens,” he said, “it seemed a logical extension of our mission to provide tangible support to a company that offered a track record of innovation and success, as well as an entrepreneurial business philosophy.”

The school offers environmental science and earth observance concentrations, Woodland said. Both of which are applicable to the solar industry. The earth-observance emphasis is on geographic information systems and data related to that, data that includes weather patterns and sun radiation.

In addition, to investing in Entech, Chapman also is considering adding solar to its campus.

“We are exploring solar applications for future facilities and for remodels of existing facilities,” Woodland said.

Chapman’s investment in Entech gained it a small ownership stake in the company, Walters said.

“Chapman exhibits great amount of interest in sustainability,” he said. In addition, Entech’s CEO has had a relationship with Chapman in the past.

OC Metro reported that Entech CEO David Gelbaum is an environmentalist and philanthropist; he and his wife, Monica, have donated to a number of organizations over the years, including $12 million to Chapman University.

Pictured: Entech’s SolarVolt II, courtesy of Entech Solar.