Minneapolis, Minn., - March 25, 2008 – Despatch Industries, a world-leading provider of innovative industrial solar cell manufacturing equipment, proudly introduces a new 60MW dual track firing furnace. The new firing furnace features a wider belt to accommodate two lanes of cell processing for maximum throughput. By running cells on an additional lane, users will be able to optimize their manufacturing resources, reduce costs and produce over 2400 cells per hour.

In addition to increased throughput, the new model introduces a touchscreen graphical user interface, eye-level electronics access and push button chamber access. The new features focus on making the equipment user-friendly and easy to maintain. The exterior of the unit has been redesigned for a modern look and now includes easy lift door access to the upper electronics panels.

“We work very hard to align the features and benefits of our equipment to the needs of solar cell manufacturers,” states Ken Barringer, Associate Product Manager. “The 60MW dual track firing furnace incorporates the newest innovations available. Our firing furnace matches to the best print lines in the industry, provides rapid thermal ramping, high throughput and a lower cost of ownership.”

Despatch firing industrial furnaces are known for exceptional performance, process quality and maximum equipment uptime. A testament to this success is that Despatch holds the top market share of firing furnaces sold worldwide to the photovoltaic market. The company has shipped over 4GW of production capacity in metallization firing furnaces and has sold over 100 units to China alone.