TEWER ENGINEERING SL

Their core work

TEWER Engineering is a Madrid-based SME specialising in the design and manufacturing of precision optical-mechanical components for Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) plants — specifically heliostats (mirrors that track the sun) and the reflector facets that make them work. Their core technical contribution is improving the geometry accuracy and performance of heliostat fields, which directly impacts the thermal efficiency of tower solar plants. In their most recent project, they moved beyond design into flexible automated manufacturing processes for RST (Reflector Surface Technology) facets, targeting industrial-scale supply to the CSP industry. They operate as an independent technology developer, self-funding their R&D roadmap through EU SME Instrument grants rather than through consortium research partnerships.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

TEWER's trajectory across two projects follows a textbook deep-tech SME path: prove the technology, then automate production. Their 2016 HELITE project was a Phase 1 feasibility study focused on precision and performance of heliostats — the optical-mechanical design problem. By 2019, with AUTO-RST, the question had shifted to "how do we make these at scale?" — flexible automated manufacturing of reflector facets for the broader CSP industry. This is not a change in domain but a maturation within it: from R&D prototype to manufacturable product. The progression suggests they have resolved the core engineering challenges and are now solving the commercialisation barrier.

TEWER appears to be positioning itself as a component supplier to the CSP industry — not a plant developer, but a manufacturer of high-performance reflective elements — which makes them a potential B2B partner for EPC contractors, CSP plant operators, or renewable energy manufacturers scaling up solar thermal capacity.

How they like to work

TEWER consistently leads rather than joins — both of their H2020 projects were coordinated solely by them, with no recorded consortium partners. This is characteristic of companies using the SME Instrument pathway, where grants go directly to the company to develop their own technology rather than to build research consortia. Working with TEWER means engaging them as a technology provider or supplier, not as a research collaborator in a shared consortium structure. They are likely accustomed to driving their own agenda and would suit a partnership where they contribute a specific, well-defined technology component.

TEWER has no recorded consortium partners in the H2020 data, which is expected given their exclusive use of the SME Instrument — a grant type designed for single-company R&D. Their network, if any, would exist outside the formal EU project structure, likely through industry relationships in the CSP supply chain.

What sets them apart

TEWER occupies a narrow but commercially valuable niche: precision components for CSP tower plants, specifically heliostat facets and reflector surfaces. While most solar energy companies focus on PV or wind, TEWER's entire identity is built around concentrated solar thermal — a technology with strong relevance in Southern Europe, MENA, and Sub-Saharan Africa. Their combination of optical engineering expertise and manufacturing process development makes them relevant not just as a research body but as a potential industrial supplier to CSP plant developers and EPC contractors.

Highlights from their portfolio

• AUTO-RST
  The largest SME Instrument Phase 2 grant in their portfolio (€1.58M), covering the full arc from engineering design to automated manufacturing — the project that turned TEWER's CSP expertise into a scalable commercial proposition.
• HELITE
  The foundational Phase 1 study that established TEWER's core technical claim: that higher-precision heliostats for variable geometry fields are both achievable and commercially viable, paving the way for AUTO-RST.