“Applied Cost Modeling” E-Zine Now on Web

PLEASANTON, Calif. - Sept. 18, 2013 - PRLog -- Wright Williams & Kelly, Inc. (WWK), the global leader in cost and productivity management software and consulting services, announced today that the latest edition of its much acclaimed free E-Zine “Applied Cost Modeling” (ACM) is now available on its web site at http://wwk.com/newsletter.html.  First published in 1994, ACM has been the mainstay for manufacturing and assembly industries in disseminating information on hot topics such as cost of ownership (COO), overall equipment efficiency (OEE), cost and resource evaluation, and discrete-event simulation.

The latest edition includes the feature article: “When Capacity Buys are not an Option: Technical Trends in c-Si Cell Manufacturing and their Implications” and is presented as the first installment in a series.  This paper tries to identify the areas the authors think will produce the largest near term paybacks.  The areas they identified are n-type wafers, Al2O3 passivation, and copper metallization.

Further information is provided on WWK’s latest paper to be published in Photovoltaics International edition 21.  This paper will be the sixth in a series covering business analysis for PV processes.  The abstract is: Economic issues are the driving forces behind photovoltaic (PV) adoption.  Even technological advances are measured against their impacts on cost per watt, levelized cost of energy (LCOE), and total cost of ownership for energy (TCOe™).  In this paper, the author looks at two approaches to manufacturing thin film Copper-Indium-Gallium-diSelenide (CIGS) PV, sputtering and coevaporation, and their potential areas for cost improvement.

With more than 3,000 users worldwide, Wright Williams & Kelly, Inc. is the largest privately held operational cost management software and consulting company serving technology-dependent and technology-driven organizations. WWK maintains long-term relationships with prominent industry resources including SEMATECH, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International (SEMI), and national labs and universities. Its client base includes nearly all of the top 20 semiconductor manufacturers and equipment and materials suppliers as well as leaders in nanotechnology, micro electro-mechanical systems (MEMS), thin film record heads, magnetic media, flat panel displays (FPD), solid state lighting/light emitting diodes (SSL/LED), photovoltaics (PV), and healthcare.

WWK’s product line includes TWO COOL® for detailed process step level cost of ownership (COO) and overall equipment efficiency (OEE), PRO COOL® for process flow and test cell costing, Factory/Healthcare Commander® for full facility capacity analysis and activity based costing, Factory Explorer® for cycle time reduction and WIP planning, and TCOe™ for energy production project costs (cost/kilowatt-hour). Additionally, WWK offers a highly flexible product management software package that helps sales forces eliminate errors in product configuration and quotation processes.