Milestone follows completion of Greenwood facility expansion to 3 GW of annual solar cell manufacturing capacity
GREENWOOD, S.C., Sept. 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — ES Foundry, a U.S. manufacturer of high-performance crystalline solar cells, today announced that its Greenwood, South Carolina manufacturing facility has achieved ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015 and ISO 45001:2018 certifications following a comprehensive Integrated Management System (IMS) audit that concluded with zero major and zero minor nonconformities.
The certifications come as ES Foundry continues to scale its U.S. manufacturing operations, following the recent completion of a 2 GW expansion that brought the Greenwood facility to 3 GW of annual solar cell manufacturing capacity. The audit and certification process was completed during this period of rapid operational growth, requiring teams across the organization to demonstrate that quality, environmental and occupational health and safety systems were being implemented consistently as production expanded.
The independent integrated audit assessed ES Foundry’s quality, environmental and occupational health and safety management systems as a unified framework across its manufacturing operations. The resulting certifications establish an internationally recognized management system baseline for how the company manages product quality, environmental performance, workplace safety and continuous improvement.
“Domestic manufacturing isn’t defined by scale alone. It is built through strong standards, disciplined execution and systems that support consistent performance,” said Lionel Moss, General Manager of Operations for ES Foundry. “Achieving all three certifications with zero nonconformities while expanding our manufacturing operations is an important milestone for our team and a strong validation of the operational foundation we are building as we scale U.S. solar cell production.”
The Integrated Management System applies to the manufacture, testing and delivery of monocrystalline photovoltaic solar cells, including associated procurement, material handling, quality assurance, environmental management and occupational health and safety processes that influence product conformity, environmental performance and worker well-being.
The three certifications include:
- ISO 9001:2015 – Quality Management Systems, which establishes requirements for consistent quality, process control, continuous improvement and customer satisfaction.
- ISO 14001:2015 – Environmental Management Systems, which provides a framework for managing environmental responsibilities, risks and performance.
- ISO 45001:2018 – Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems, which establishes requirements for proactively managing workplace health and safety risks.
Building Operational Discipline from the Inside
Achieving the certifications required teams across Quality, Engineering and Operations to demonstrate not only documented processes, but also an integrated approach to managing performance, risk, corrective actions and continuous improvement.
During the audit, several areas of ES Foundry’s management system were highlighted as strengths, including:
- Performance management: Fourteen operational objectives spanning quality, environmental performance and safety are actively defined, monitored and measured against established targets.
- Governance and internal review: ES Foundry’s internal audit program demonstrated a structured and detailed approach to identifying opportunities for improvement and strengthening compliance. Its management review process evaluates operating performance, risks and environmental considerations with company leadership.
- Corrective and preventive action: The company maintains a formal corrective action system incorporating 8D root-cause analysis to identify issues, determine underlying causes and implement lasting corrective measures.
- Emergency preparedness: Documented planning and response procedures address scenarios including fire alarms, severe weather and chemical releases or spills, with records maintained as part of the company’s management system.
As part of this ongoing process, ES Foundry built internal auditing capabilities across the organization. To date, 12 employees across the Quality, Engineering and Operations teams have completed the internal auditor qualification process, helping embed accountability and continuous improvement directly within day-to-day manufacturing operations.
“Scaling domestic manufacturing requires more than adding capacity. It requires the systems, accountability and discipline to perform consistently at that scale,” said Alex Zhu, CEO of ES Foundry. “Completing our expansion to 3 GW while strengthening these management systems demonstrates the kind of manufacturing platform we are building — one designed to deliver reliable, high-quality solar cells as U.S. demand continues to grow.”
Certification as a Starting Point
ES Foundry views the certifications as an operational baseline rather than an endpoint.
As production continues to scale, the company is focused on translating its Integrated Management System into increasingly consistent execution on the manufacturing floor, including stronger operational discipline, standardized 5S workplace practices and greater use of automated, cloud-based systems that integrate quality, environmental and safety requirements into everyday workflows.
“A clean audit is something our team should be proud of, but certification itself is not the objective,” Moss said. “The objective is safer operations, fewer quality incidents, stronger processes and consistently delivering cells our customers can depend on. These standards give us another tool to hold ourselves accountable as we grow.”
The certifications are one part of ES Foundry’s broader effort to establish a scalable, reliable and disciplined domestic manufacturing platform capable of supporting the expanding U.S. solar supply chain.
About ES Foundry
Based in South Carolina, ES Foundry is accelerating the U.S. solar industry by onshoring the manufacturing of crystalline solar cells. Its state-of-the-art Greenwood facility produces high-quality, bankable cells that meet the needs of U.S. panel manufacturers and the supply chain demands of developers and EPCs. Purpose-built for Foreign Entity of Concern (FEOC) compliance, ES Foundry operates with fully non-FEOC ownership, leadership and financing, ensuring transparent supply chains and verified eligibility for incentives, including the domestic content bonus. Backed by a team of seasoned industry veterans, ES Foundry delivers reliable, U.S.-made products that drive the growth and sustainability of clean energy. Follow ES Foundry on LinkedIn and Bluesky for the latest updates.
PR Contact
Leah Wilkinson
Wilkinson + Associates for ES Foundry
leah@wilkinson.associates
703-907-0010
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SOURCE ES Foundry
