Biography:Jack West (inventor)
Jack West is CTO/CEO of Ojjo, Inc and was, until February 2017, the President and CTO of Zep Solar, a manufacturer of solar photovoltaic (PV) mounting and grounding equipment based in San Rafael, California. West is also an inventor, entrepreneur and musician. He is most known for inventing rail-free mounting technology and leading Zep Solar’s commercialization of that technology.[1] Zep Solar was acquired by SolarCity in 2013,[2] and SolarCity was acquired by Tesla in 2016.[3] West founded Zep Solar in 2009 along with Christina Manansala and Daniel Flanigan[4] and helped to grow the company into the market leader in residential solar mounting equipment.[5] In 2014, one in three residential solar systems installed in the United States contained Zep Solar technology.[2] While at SolarCity, and subsequently at Tesla, West led the development of the product that became known as the Tesla Solar Roof.[6]
History
In the early '90s, prior to founding Zep Solar, West launched the photovoltaic division of Light Energy Systems, a PV design and contracting firm that designed and installed the San Francisco Bay Area’s first grid-tied PV system[7] The company was later acquired by Acro.[8] In 2000, West and Manansala co-founded High Sun Engineering, one of the first engineering consultancies focused on PV system design.[9] West was inspired as a college student to end reliance on fossil fuels and served in 1990 as co-director of the Campus Center for Appropriate Technology, a student-run sustainability organization at Humboldt State University.
Music career
West is also an accomplished jazz guitarist, having released five albums[10] with his band Jack West & Curvature and one solo album.[11] Acoustic Guitar Magazine awarded Jack West's fourth album, As We Know It, top honors in its self-released CD competition in 2000.[12] West’s music is frequently used as segue music for NPR programming[13] and he was a winner of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest in 2004 for his composition, “This Life May be Monitored for Quality Assurance”.[14]
References
- ↑ "Schatz Energy Research Center - Sustainable Futures Speaker Series". schatzlab.org. http://www.schatzlab.org/about/publications/speaker_series.html.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "SolarCity Acquires Zep Solar for $158 Million". greentechmedia.com. http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/SolarCity-Acquires-Zep-Solar-For-158-Million.
- ↑ "It's official: Tesla's acquisition of SolarCity has closed". http://www.businessinsider.com/tesla-solarcity-deal-closes-2016-11. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
- ↑ "ZEPHYR - Bureau van Dijk". bvdinfo.com. https://zephyr.bvdinfo.com/version-201599/FullEditorialNews.serv?databaseContext=Deals&NewsId=15489&product=zephyrneo.
- ↑ Tyler Crowe (22 December 2013). "SolarCity's Greatest Move Was the One You Didn't Hear About". fool.com. http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2013/12/22/solarcitys-greatest-move-was-the-one-you-didnt-hea.aspx.
- ↑ "Inside "Steel Pulse," The Project That Became Elon Musk’s Solar Roof". https://www.fastcompany.com/40422084/inside-steel-pulse-the-mysterious-project-that-became-elon-musks-solar-roof. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
- ↑ "Products & Services for Renewable or Alternate Energy". discoversolarenergy.com. http://www.discoversolarenergy.com/systems/resources/prod-serv-main.htm.
- ↑ Robert van de Walle. "Acro Energy". lightenergysystems.blogspot.com. http://lightenergysystems.blogspot.com/.
- ↑ "Jack West: Executive Profile & Biography - Businessweek". Businessweek.com. https://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/private/person.asp?personId=114340510&privcapId=113979624.
- ↑ http://aheadbehind.com/index
- ↑ "Jack West @ All About Jazz". All About Jazz. http://musicians.allaboutjazz.com/jackwest.
- ↑ http://www.sfweekly.com/sanfrancisco/hear-this/Content?oid=2142574
- ↑ "All Things Considered for November 25, 2011". NPR.org. 25 November 2011. https://www.npr.org/programs/all-things-considered/2011/11/25/142714183/.
- ↑ http://jlsc.com/winners/2004/finalists.php
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