(TÜV Rheinland: Boston) -- In the highly competitive photovoltaic (PV) product market, manufacturers are pressured daily by the burgeoning demands of end-users to get new products developed, independently certified, and to market quicker than ever before. As a result, FM Approvals, a third-party testing laboratory for the certification of commercial roofing products, and TÜV Rheinland PTL LLC, a global provider of solar and PV testing, have joined forces to deliver comprehensive approval standards for flexible and rigid PV modules.

The new FM Approval Standard 4476—“Approval Standard for Flexible Photovoltaic Modules,” and Approval Standard 4478—“Approval Standard for Rigid Photovoltaic Modules,” currently are undergoing final review and will be released by the end of 2010.

These new standards will enable PV module manufacturers and others to obtain FM Approval for their products when used as part of an FM-approved roofing assembly. All FM-approved PV modules will be listed in FM Approvals’ online roofing resource, RoofNav.

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