Solar Power World March 2020

March 2020 www.solarpowerworldonline.com

Technology • Development • Installation

INSTALLATION INSIGHTS

+ MOUNTING INVERTERS ON ROOFS + L I T H I U M B AT T E R Y F I R E P O T E N T I A L + ROOF TOP DELIVERY SERVICES

PVLabels.com 714-835-5301 1100 S Linwood Ave Unit B, Santa Ana, CA 92705

SMARTER, FASTER, SAFER, STRONGER New & improved for 2020,

Now you can test multiple wired strings in parallel up to 1500V / 40A with the groundbreaking new Solar Utility Pro string checker.

Save time and money where it matters... in the field.

ask us for more details

Comes with

FREE product & solar O&M training

The Solar Utility Pro tests: > Open Circuit Voltage (Voc) > Short Circuit Current (Isc) > Irradiance (W/m2) > Ambient Temperature > PV Cell Temperature

SMARTER... test parallel wired strings up to 1500V / 40A - so no more separating strings to keep within the limits of other instruments – ideal for today’s powerful PV installations.

FASTER... maximize the time you spend in the field by recording up to 999 full sets of string data – to complete testing without downloading and clearing the memory.

SAFER... the highest rated PV tester on the market, the ability to test across multiple strings reduces the risk of accidental damage to the instrument and the user.

STRONGER... the rugged case design provides more protection against damage while being transported around large utility scale sites, wherever they are.

Find out more about the new Solar Utility Pro and request your live online demonstration today at seaward-groupusa.com/SPW T: +1 813 886 2775 E: sales@seaward-groupusa.com

TESTED, TRUSTED... WORLDWIDE.

Solar installation was a spectator sport at Intersolar 2020 TEAM SPW volunteered on a residential solar installation in 2017, but our two-day, 2.5kW system was amateur hour compared to what I watched at Intersolar North America’s inaugural Solar Games contest in San Diego.

Installation teams from Colorado, Nevada and California competed to install a 3.15-kW system in under 90 minutes to win a cash prize of $5,000.

Watching the three teams — two of which were SPW Top Solar Contractors — work to install systems in that short time was riveting.

Installers from Sullivan Solar Power, SunKey Energy and Sol-Up USA came with a plan and got to work as soon as the clock started, communicating throughout the process to address problems like alignment issues and complete the cleanest installs possible.

I was heartened to see most teams had a diverse makeup of installers — although I’m hoping to see some women out there next year — that showed solar can be a welcoming industry for people of every background.

The most exciting moment came during the championship round, when teams were tasked with installing an operational offgrid system that powered a large light. Both Sullivan Solar Power and Sol-Up USA had only minimal experience installing off-grid systems, so I was curious to see how it would go. In

the end, Sol-Up turned on its light in just 75 minutes. Sullivan took the full 90 minutes, but did switch the light on at the last second, eliciting lots of cheers from the crowd in the stands.

It could have been the cash prize talking, but the Sol-Up installers were giddy when they learned they won the Solar Games. They jumped up and down and hugged to celebrate their work paying off after three intense installation rounds. I had a great time watching the action and seeing the pride installers took in their work in every round.

Back in Cleveland, we’ve been hard at work on this special installation issue. In the pages that follow, we dive into the details of daily life in the field for contractors, including rooftop inverter mounting considerations, fire safety precautions for solar + storage installs, rooftop delivery services and much more.

Our team appreciates all the work you do on roofs, in fields and everywhere in between! SPW

Kelsey Misbrener

Senior Editor kmisbrener@wtwhmedia.com @SolarKelseyM @SolarPowerWorld

2

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

Follow the whole team on Twitter @SolarPowerWorld

PUBLISHER Courtney Nagle cseel@wtwhmedia.com 440.523.1685 @wtwh_CSeel EDITORIAL

CREATIVE SERVICES & PRINT PRODUCTION (CONT.)

ONLINE DEVELOPMENT & PRODUCTION

Director, Audience Development Bruce Sprague bsprague@wtwhmedia.com

Web Development Manager B. David Miyares dmiyares@wtwhmedia.com @wtwh_webdave

VIDEO SERVICES

Editor in Chief Kelly Pickerel kpickerel@wtwhmedia.com @SolarKellyP

Videographer Bradley Voyten bvoyten@wtwhmedia.com

Senior Editor Kelsey Misbrener kmisbrener@wtwhmedia.com @SolarKelseyM

Videographer Derek Little dlittle@wtwhmedia.com @wtwh_derek

Associate Editor Billy Ludt bludt@wtwhmedia.com @SolarBillyL

CREATIVE SERVICES & PRINT PRODUCTION VP of Creative Services Mark Rook mrook@wtwhmedia.com @wtwh_graphics Art Director Matthew Claney mclaney@wtwhmedia.com @wtwh_designer Graphic Designer Allison Washko awashko@wtwhmedia.com Graphic Designer Mariel Evans mevans@wtwhmedia.com

WTW H M e dia , LLC 1111 Superior Avenue, Suite 2600, Cleveland, OH 44114 Ph: 888.543.2447 Fax: 888.543.2447

MARKETING VP of Digital Marketing Virginia Goulding vgoulding@wtwhmedia.com @wtwh_virginia Digital Marketing Specialist Emily Gillespie egillespie@wtwhmedia.com @wtwh_emily MARKETING (CONT.) Digital Production/ Marketing Designer Samantha King sking@wtwhmedia.com

Digital Media Manager Patrick Curran pcurran@wtwhmedia.com @wtwhseopatrick Digital Production Manager Reggie Hall rhall@wtwhmedia.com Front End Developer Melissa Annand mannand@wtwhmedia.com Digital Production Specialist Jaeden Froese jfroese@wtwhmedia.com Digital Production Specialist Nicole Lender nlender@wtwhmedia.com Digital Production Specialist Elise Ondak eondak@wtwhmedia.com

IN-PERSON EVENTS Events Manager Jennifer Kolasky jkolasky@wtwhmedia.com @wtwh_jen

CUSTOMER SERVICE Customer Service Manager Stephanie Hulett shulett@wtwhmedia.com Customer Service Representative JoAnn Martin jmartin@wtwhmedia.com Customer Service Representative Tracy Powers tpowers@wtwhmedia.com

FINANCE Controller Brian Korsberg bkorsberg@wtwhmedia.com Accounts Receivable Specialist Jamila Milton jmilton@wtwhmedia.com

Webinar Coordinator Halle Kirsh hkirsh@wtwhmedia.com Webinar Coordinator Kim Dorsey kdorsey@wtwhmedia.com

SOLAR POWER WORLD does not pass judgment on subjects of controversy nor enter into disputes with or between any individuals or organizations.

SOLAR POWER WORLD is also an independent forum for the expression of opinions relevant to industry issues.

Letters to the editor and by-lined articles express the views of the author and not necessarily of the publisher or publication. Every effort is made to provide accurate information. However, the publisher assumes no responsibility for accuracy of submitted advertising and editorial information. Non-commissioned articles and news releases cannot be acknowledged. Unsolicited materials cannot be returned nor will this organization assume responsibility for their care.

SOLAR POWER WORLD does not endorse any products, programs, or services of advertisers or editorial contributors. Copyright©2020 by WTWH Media, LLC. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, or by recording, or by any information storage or retrieval systems, without written permission from the publisher.

SUBSCRIPTION RATES: Free and controlled circulation to qualified subscribers. Non-qualified persons may subscribe at the following rates: U.S. and possessions, 1 year: $125; 2 years: $200; 3 years $275; Canadian and foreign, 1 year: $195; only U.S. funds are accepted. Single copies $15. Subscriptions are prepaid by check or money orders only.

SUBSCRIBER SERVICES: To order a subscription or change your address, please visit our web site at www.solarpowerworldonline.com SOLAR POWER WORLD - VOLUME 10 ISSUE 2 - (ISSN2164-7135) is published 7 times per year: January, March, May, July, September, November and December by WTWH Media, LLC, 1111 Superior Avenue, 26th Floor, Cleveland, Ohio 44114. Periodicals postage paid at Cleveland, OH and additional mailing offices.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Solar Power World; 1111 Superior Avenue, 26th Floor, Cleveland, Ohio 44114.

4

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

ENERGY ANYWHERE BREAK AWAY FROM LIMITATIONS WITH RBI’S NEW & IMPROVED SUNFLOWER® SINGLE-AXIS TRACKER

rbisolarinc

MARCH 20 2 0 • v o l 1 0 n o 2 www.solarpowerworldonline.com

37

8

BUSINESS

16

10 ROOFTOP DELIVERY Installers with Las Vegas-based Sol-Up USA compete in the inaugural Solar Games at Intersolar North America this past February. The company won the competitive installation event, taking home a $5,000 cash prize.

Photo courtesy Mel & Tim Photography

New services bring solar materials straight to the rooftop

6

SOLAR POWER WORLD

54 CONTRACTORS CORNER 56 AD INDEX

3 • 2020

TECHNOLOGY

46

26 PANELS

Small U.S. solar panel companies take advantage of OEMs for specialized products

32 INVERTERS

POLICY

16 SOLAR-READY BUILDINGS

Solar-ready rules make equipping new homes with solar much easier

INSTALLATION

Best practices for mounting solar inverters on commercial roofs

38 MOUNTING

A breakdown of the various ground-mount foundation techniques

42 STORAGE

We have to first admit a fire can happen to improve lithium-ion battery safety

21 CASE STUDY

A New Hampshire high school takes a complicated path to go solar

2 FIRST WORD 8 NEWS BRIEFS

21

46 INSTALLATION TIPS

We asked NABCEP trainers three questions on how to install better and work more efficiently

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

Don’t let your customers spend another night in the dark The growing demand for residential energy storage is opening the door to bigger opportunity. With Panasonic EverVolt™ you can help your customers maximize their solar investment while increasing sales on every project. An innovative combination of high capacity & versatility, EverVolt™ comes in AC- and DC-coupled versions. Its unique modular design can be scaled down to as little as 5.7 kWh of storage or expanded to 100 kWh. na.panasonic.com/us/evervolt

NOW SHIPPING

Connect with your Panasonic solar + storage rep today and find out how to get started.

1

Study finds Vermont won’t reach solar goal at current trajectory

Solar policy snapshots

Montpelier, Vermont A recent report by the Vermont Energy Investment Corporation found solar progress in the state has declined steadily over the last three years due to unfavorable solar policy. Vermont will not meet its goal of 20% solar by 2025 at the current installation rate.

2

3

A guide to recent legislation and research throughout the country.

New Mexico reinstates solar tax credit Santa Fe, New Mexico The New Mexico House passed a bill with bipartisan support to reinstate a 10% tax credit toward the purchase of a solar system for homes and businesses with a $6,000 cap per taxpayer per year.

Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed the bill into law.

3

4

Idaho Power clarifies net-metering rules for existing solar customers

SMUD community solar approval threatens California new home solar mandate goals

Sacramento, California The California Energy Commission approved the Sacramento Municipal Utility District’s Neighborhood SolarShares Program, the first community solar program that can be used as a compliance alternative to rooftop solar installations for the new-home solar mandate. Solar advocates opposed it from the start, saying it doesn’t meet the 2019 Building Standards goal to keep new solar installations local.

8

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

5

9

6

10

2

Boise, Idaho The Idaho PUC determined that solar systems, not customers themselves, can retain existing solar rates if new rates are set, according to the Post Register.

When residents move out of a solarized home, the new homeowner will still receive the same net-metering rates as before. The PUC rejected Idaho Power’s proposal to end net metering in 2019, but a solar study is underway that will inform the next net-metering battle.

4

8

1

7

New Mexico’s governor reinstated solar tax credits for homes and businesses.

5

Rocky Mountain Power wants to cut net-metering rates in Utah

Salt Lake City, Utah Rocky Mountain Power proposed reducing net-metering rates for Utahns from 9.2 cents/kWh to as low as 1.56 cents/kWh, according to the Deseret News. A hearing on the new rates will take place in October. If approved, the change would only affect homeowners who install solar after the ruling.

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

6

Virginia Assembly advances 100% RPS bill

Richmond, Virginia The Virginia House and Senate passed two versions of the Virginia Clean Economy Act (VCEA) to create a 100% by 2050 RPS for the state. A study by the Virginia Commonwealth University Center for Urban and Regional Analysis found the act could create 29,500 local solar jobs.

7

Florida Power & Light may get special solar tax treatment under new bill Tallahassee, Florida A Florida House bill would exempt Florida Power & Light and other utilities from paying taxes on solar projects until all permits or approvals “required for commercial operation” have been approved, according to the Tampa Bay Times. Florida counties stand to lose tax income if the bill is passed.

8

New York governor wants to speed up solar permitting and construction

Albany, New York New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo introduced a budget amendment that would create the Office of Renewable Energy Permitting to speed up solar permitting and construction. The act would also create an incentive program to advance "build-ready" solar projects installed on existing, underutilized sites.

9

High Performance Solar Modules

Vote Solar says Massachusetts should increase SMART target to grow jobs

Boston, Massachusetts After the Solar Foundation’s “2019 National Solar Jobs Census” noted that “policy uncertainty is still curtailing nonresidential development in Massachusetts,” Vote Solar repeated its call for the state to expand the SMART target by 3,200 MW. The group also asked the state legislature to pass a bill setting a goal of net-zero carbon pollution by 2050.

10

First Kentucky city sets 100% renewable goal

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville is the first city in coalrich Kentucky that has pledged to convert to 100% renewable energy by 2040. The city aims to power all municipal operations with renewable energy five years earlier.

15 We have modules availability • AXIblackpremium 310-325MH/120S • AXIpremium 380-400M/144S • AXIpremium BLK 320-330/120S AXITEC, LLC, 1819 Underwood BLVD, Suite 5, Delran, New Jersey 08075, Phone 856-393-7800, info@axitecsolar.com

3 • 2020

SOLAR POWER WORLD

9

BILLY LUDT

ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Rooftop delivery services

help solar crews get

straight to installation Installing

solar at heights is in itself intense and comes with added safety measures.

But moving components to a rooftop worksite adds time and more physical demand to a job.

Contractors get solar equipment to commercial roofs with the assistance of heavy machinery or by carrying components up ladders on 10

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

a sloped residential rooftop. Once everything is situated and secured on the roof, the system still needs installed.

Services that pick up bills of materials for solar projects and deliver them straight to roofs have appeared in select regions in the United States.

In the residential solar markets in parts of the Midwest and Southwest, there is

Final Mile Solar, a rooftop delivery and warehousing service; and in Greater New York City, Allied Solar Products serves commercial rooftop projects.

The two companies have different approaches and requirements for their services, but both remove the tasks of coordinating delivery and hoisting components to the jobsite for solar installers.

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

F

a in

lM

ile

So

la

r

Commercial eastern seaboard delivery The developed landscape of New York City leaves no potential for ground-mount solar systems or space to safely deliver solar components at the street level for installers. Instead, they must hire boom truck or crane services to lift solar equipment to a rooftop worksite.

Allied Solar Division, a solar products distributor and subsidiary of Beacon Roofing Supply, offers a rooftop delivery service to select commercial customers throughout New York City and parts of the eastern seaboard.

“It is on a case-by-case basis. It’s not something that is done with every job, it’s something that is done on an as-needed basis,” said Peter Lippert, national VP of Beacon’s solar division. “Some of the smaller contractors, instead of trying to hire a crane — which in New York City can be $8,000 minimum — they can pay us a flat hourly rate and it saves them money as long as we have the boom available.”

The service expanded from Beacon’s rooftop delivery for roofing and siding supplies, after finding solar contractors were requesting some of the same materials for their photovoltaic jobs as well. Allied is mainly a full product line distributor for solar, but can offer installers other materials if they’re required to handle tasks like roof cover replacements.

The company uses its fleet of boom trucks to hoist solar components up to 10 stories from an on-vehicle crane. Allied’s rooftop delivery is not for outside hire and is strictly offered to its customers purchasing solar products through the company.

3 • 2020

SOLAR POWER WORLD

11

Allied Solar Products offers rooftop delivery to select customers in the New York City area. The company hoists solar equipment onto rooftops with its fleet of boom trucks, eliminating the need to hire a crane to accomplish the same task.

“In New York City, you just do not have the space to store product. If space is tight on a jobsite, then eventually the products need to be on the roof anyway, so it’s a convenience factor because they leave the logistics up to us,” Lippert said. “They don’t have to coordinate when the products are going to be there and when it’s going to be lifted.”

Lippert said clients have cited convenience and cost-savings as a motivator for using the service. Partnering with Allied gives solar installers greater control over guarantees and product delivery than if they outsourced a boom truck, he said.

Residential rooftop delivery Final Mile Solar of Salt Lake City, Utah, was founded in 2017 as a for-hire rooftop delivery service for residential solar contractors. Founder and CEO Nate Bendall spent eight years working in the operations side of solar EPC services. He started the company after receiving a string of inconsistent deliveries.

Bendall tracked how accurate and on-time component shipments from distributors were and realized that, in his case, a little over half were either missing equipment, showed up late or both. That meant installers had to run back to suppliers to get the right components, ultimately increasing job times.

“We thought if we could have everything delivered to the roof the day before installation with guaranteed 100% accuracy on the actual bill of material that’s being sent over, then this would help the installation go so much smoother,” Bendall said.

The company’s delivery service works like this: An installer places an order with a distributor. Final Mile delivery personnel pick up the equipment based on the given bill of materials, load it into a box truck and drive it to one of the company’s warehouses for storage. Final Mile contacts its clients’ customers ahead of time and informs them that they are delivering the equipment to their homes, then drives the components to the worksites.

Delivery personnel arrive the day before the job, and they haul the solar components onto the rooftop using a pulley system,

Allied’s delivery service is offered exclusively to customers.

12

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

Final Mile Solar delivers solar components directly to rooftops the day before installation.

ladder hoist or simply by carrying it up the ladder (if it’s a Monday job, everything will be delivered on Friday). The equipment will be waiting on the rooftop for the installers when they arrive, ready to start construction.

“The day-before delivery is crucial,” Bendall said. “It allows install crews, especially for big companies, to install multiple systems a day.”

The equipment is secured on the rooftop with Final Mile’s patented roof rack, which is attached to the peak of pitched rooftops. Panels are rested in the racking, and the remaining components are secured on the rooftop in bags and using ratchet straps. Installers can also use the rack as an anchor point to tie off.

With deliveries, homeowners are liable for the equipment that’s dropped off in their yard or on their driveway. Unlike commercial worksites, fences aren’t set up to secure components, and day-before delivery on the ground runs a risk of theft, Bendall said.

“Having it up on the roof, up off the ground, gives them that added level of security,” he said. “That’s one of the main benefits.”

When installation is complete, crews can leave the roof rack, excess components and trash that is left over, and Final Mile employees will haul it all away.

Trash pickup was a time-consuming task for Arizonabased contractor Elevation Solar. After each job, the company had to pack everything up, drive it to the dump and pay to deposit the garbage.

NEW! SNAP, SLIDE & SECURE ™

“It became more and more of an issue, to where something you think is pretty small got really aggravating and frustrating to our installers,” said Greg Andersen, VP of operations at Elevation Solar.

Between dealing with cleanup, delivery delays and carrying components to the roof, installers were adding between six and eight hours of extra time to installs.

Elevation was able to cut that time and reduce its crew size from four to three people with help from Final Mile rooftop delivery.

“We’re very nimble and asset-light, so we actually do not warehouse anything,” Andersen said. “We utilize distribution for basically our warehouses.”

Elevation installs solar in nine states, and Andersen estimated the company uses Final Mile’s services for about 70 to 80% of its jobs.

“I was skeptical at first,” Andersen said. “It’s been a great value-add to us. It’s helped us make sure that we’re installing when we’re supposed to be installing and keeping up and being efficient at the same time.” SPW

TM

patent pending

TM

SNAP,Racking SLIDE & SECURE ™ HVHZ Solar Works with ISR, SSMR, Single-Ply & Asphalt Learn more: www.aceclamp.com/solar-racking-systems

NEW!

QB2 Patent # 8448407

ERROR-PROOF COMPRESSION The QB2 doesn’t leave any room for user error when it comes to Microflashing® compression.

Once the Dual Drive Shoulder Screw is secured, the Microflashing® is compressed!

ONLY 3 COMPONENTS The QB2 is comprised of Microflashing®, an L-Foot, and a Dual Drive Shoulder Screw. No more Nuts needed to tighten and secure the L-Foot! Not only does this simplify the installation process, it also cuts down the installation time!

DUAL DRIVE The new Dual Drive Shoulder Screw design can be driven using a standard 1/2” Hex Nut Setter or a 6mm Hex Driver. Installers can use the drive that works best with the rest of the components of their array.

THE FASTEST,

SIMPLEST,

MOST EFFICIENT

QUICKBOLT DESIGN

YET!

QUICKBOLT.COM (844) 671-6045•MON-FRI: 7AM-5PM PST

NABCEP BOOTH #47

KELSEY MISBRENER SENIOR EDITOR

Solar-ready building requirements can bring rooftop PV to new markets 16

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

Sunlight Electric worked with the architect to design this barn for solar. The installer suggested the larger southfacing roof and the architect oriented the building for best sun exposure.

For

long-tail solar installers, good local solar policy is crucial to business success. One trending policy initiative, solar-ready building requirements, helps eliminate barriers to local solar adoption and creates business opportunities in tough markets.

Solar-ready building requirements compel builders to make solar installation easier on new builds, whether rooftop PV will be installed now or in the future.

These requirements aim to cut the costs that come with retrofitting buildings for solar and encourage building owners to consider solar as a real possibility.

NREL published a guide to help cities and states pursue solar-ready

guidelines or mandates in 2012. The organization highlights six different areas that should be addressed by solar-ready legislation: determining the optimal solar system placement on a roof, accounting for building orientation and shading; minimizing obstructions in roof design; considering PV install and equipment needs such as pre-installing mounting brackets; making initial PV design considerations such as system size; researching policy factors like net metering and how they may impact a future system; and discussing zoning and permitting requirements such as solar access laws or historical preservation regulations.

The state of California and cities of Orlando, Florida, and Tucson, Arizona, along with others, have incorporated solar-ready requirements in commercial or residential building codes. Some have done so in pursuit of SolSmart designations, a program run by The Solar Foundation that distinguishes cities and counties that are “open for solar business.�

Solar-ready requirements can be a step toward a full solar mandate on new builds like California's, which went into effect this year. New York also adopted a solar mandate for new buildings and existing buildings undergoing certain significant roof renovations in 2019.

3 • 2020

SOLAR POWER WORLD

17

Solar-ready requirements can also be a way for states that weren't solar-friendly to give the technology an opening, like in St. Louis, Missouri. At the end of 2019, the city passed legislation requiring all commercial, residential and multi-family construction to be built solar-ready — with elements including a roof that can handle the added load, a reserved space on the electrical panel and, possibly most importantly, an obstruction-free space on the roof for adequate solar capacity.

St. Louis rooftops are often small to begin with, so obstructions combined with fire code setbacks have made solar installation a challenge until now, said Paul McKnight, board member of the Missouri Solar Energy Industries Association (MOSEIA) and CEO of installation company EFS Energy. He thinks the new code could help solve old problems with installations in the city.

"There's a lot of relatively heavily shaded areas, there's a lot of trees in the region, and then when you do have

an open roof space, there's always obstructions," McKnight said.

Another issue he's faced is pushback from code officials when trying to install solar on historic buildings, which are numerous in Downtown St. Louis. He hopes the new rules help make solar more accepted in these cases too.

"Having this more overarching goal and having solar-ready zones, I think there will be a lot less pushback from other authorities on where [solar] can go, so I think it's good in that respect," McKnight said.

EFS has not done many solar installations in the city, but McKnight is hoping this law opens more possibilities.

When solar-ready goes wrong Missouri's solar advocacy group MOSEIA was not directly involved in creating the solar-ready legislation, and a few exceptions to the rule are written vaguely, making it potentially easy for builders to get out of it if they really wanted to, McKnight said. He’s also

concerned that code officials may not be prepared to enforce the rules due to their lack of knowledge about solar.

Even in the No. 1 solar state of California, solar-ready rules haven't had much oversight, according to Rob Erlichman, president of installation company Sunlight Electric.

"We have seen over 17 years at least half a dozen times where we had proposed solar, the customer has said, 'Great, I want to get my structural engineer to sign off on this,' and the structural engineer comes back and says, 'Yeah, no can do, the building needs to be reinforced,'" Erlichman said.

In all of those instances, Erlichman's own engineers took a second look and determined it was in fact structurally sound enough to handle a solar load.

"I'm sure they're all super capable licensed structural engineers, but if you've never done solar before and you're not doing it five days a week, you don't really understand how to interpret the code," Erlichman said. "So, as a result,

St. Louis solar installations

by EFS Energy.

18

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

If I were made national wizard for solar, I would want to make sure that there’s a set of standards associated with how to build the electrical infrastructure to properly prepare for solar. we've seen plenty of the 'solar-ready' situations involve over-engineering a building, which makes no sense and is a waste of money, or we've seen the opposite happen."

In one example of the opposite, an international food service company told Sunlight Electric its new underconstruction warehouse was being built to be solar-ready. When Erlichman looked at the building plans, he saw the steel support columns were actually too thin to support a solar load. Since he caught the error early in construction, the company had time to up-size them so solar would work.

"If we didn't ask, then it would have been a tragedy. To reinforce those columns after the fact would probably have made it prohibitive," Erlichman said.

In addition to load-bearing capacity, he said the ideal solar roof is made of 20-year single-ply membrane for strength and added energy efficiency. Electrical infrastructure must also be planned for to ensure a smooth solar installation later.

"If I were made national wizard for solar, in addition to ensuring that the structural integrity is adequate but not overly designed, I would want to make sure that there's a set of standards associated with how to build the electrical infrastructure to properly prepare for solar," Erlichman said.

Solar-ready without a mandate Sean Price, director of commercial sales for Virginia-based installer Sigora

3 • 2020

SOLAR POWER WORLD

19

Sunlight Electric

Available in 0-10V, 4-20-mA & Featuring RS485 Modbus

Made in Germany.

The RS4845TC-2T-v-MB Weather Station

Irradiance Sensors

www.imtsolar.com +1 716 276 8466 Reference Cells for Solar Monitoring

Solar, said although there's no requirement for constructing solar-ready buildings in the company's home state yet, he's seeing a trend of more building owners choosing to design net-zero buildings with solar or at least leave the option for future solar via solar-ready design.

He said the biggest solar-ready considerations for building owners is designing roofs that are structurally capable of handling the additional load of solar panels and making sure the roof has a long warranty.

"In the event that a building isn't ready today or for whatever reason it's just not in the cards for the near future, having that kind of proactive planning is always beneficial," Price said.

Axium Solar of Texas has worked on some solar-ready new builds as well, most notably the Austin Central Library.

The builder wasn't sure it would install solar immediately but prepared for it anyway.

"Sometimes the solar might be an alternate, and depending on the bid and the budget that comes in, they may decide to keep it or take it out of the scope but they're at least putting in the infrastructure just in case," said Eric Cotney, VP of Axium.

The library ultimately decided to add solar while the building was under construction.

Cotney said there have been other new building projects where engineers have consulted with Axium to understand what size conduits to use and how to adequately prepare for solar.

Whether it's mandate-driven or a building owner's personal choice, preparing new construction for solar in the future is a good investment that cuts solar install costs later and increases the technology's reach. SPW

Example of site layout impacts on solar potential. NREL

20

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

BILLY LUDT

ASSOCIATE EDITOR

LIVE FREE OF

FOSSIL FUELS 0R DIE TRYING: A NEW HAMPSHIRE SOLAR CASE STUDY

DOVER Technical Center was

High School & Career

a building 10 years in the making. Its doors opened for the first time to 1,476 students for the 2018-2019 school year after a decade of navigating proposals, planning, permitting, board review and construction. The final touch on the prolonged project was a yet-to-beinstalled rooftop solar system.

During the first official school year in the new school, students saw equipment hoisted to the rooftop, where installers were setting up 2,851 solar panels that would account for 40% of the building’s electricity needs.

Building a cleaner school ReVision Energy developed and designed the 912-kW solar array occupying the rooftop of Dover

High School and Dover Regional Career Technical Center in Dover, New Hampshire. The Northeast solar company subcontracted Ayer Electric, whose headquarters is just 20 minutes west of Dover, for construction of the system. Both Ayer and ReVision have employees who graduated from the school district, taught there or have children currently enrolled.

“We live in these communities.

We feel a connection to many of the projects we do personally around the state and that was very much true of Dover,” said Dan Weeks, director of market development at ReVision Energy.

The former Dover High School was built in the 1960s and was in dire need of repairs. The city determined it was more cost effective to rebuild rather

than renovate, so a new 100,000-sq.ft larger school was designed and equipped with modern necessities like energy efficient lighting, air conditioning and dehumidifiers. Nothing could be installed on the school’s rooftop until after the general contractor completed construction of the building and placement of the new HVAC system — which made planning for solar difficult. Prior to even breaking ground on the new school, ReVision used GPS coordinates, drone imaging and building blueprints to design a solar system for a building that didn’t exist yet.

“Unfortunately, nobody ever thinks about putting solar on the roof when designing a building,” said Marc Wiemer, project manager at Ayer Electric. “They designed the school and 3 • 2020

SOLAR POWER WORLD

21

Construction of the solar system on Dover High School didn’t start until after classes began, so cranes had to be brought in during off hours to hoist equipment to the school’s rooftop. ReVision Energy

then the whole solar idea for the brand-spankingnew school was an afterthought. All the HVAC equipment that’s on the roof, I mean there’s tons of it stacked all around, there’s penetrations coming through the roof, so it was working around that. It made it very difficult sometimes.”

The roof itself posed some challenges for solar, since Dover High School varies between a two- and five-story height, and the building footprint is square, with an open-air courtyard in the center.

Solar construction began in January 2019, just as students were entering their second semester. Cranes had to be

22

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

brought in during off-hours, weekends and holidays to lift equipment to the rooftop to leave school bus routes uninterrupted. Components were dropped off in four segments and staged from there, because structurally the rooftop couldn’t handle the entire project load at a single point. Ayer’s installers used a Garlock Equipment power jack to safely, and as quietly as possible, move components across level sections of the rooftop.

The solar system uses REC 320-W N-Peak panels, seven SolarEdge 100K 3-phase inverters, Ecolibrium Solar’s EcoFoot2 flat roof ballast racking and a Locus L Gate 360 monitoring system.

“All the students were in place. They had buses coming in and out, trying to get deliveries. There’s a road going all the way around, so that means the entire perimeter of the school is being used at all times,” Wiemer said. “Now, we also have a construction project going on during classes, so not only that, we’re trying to make sure that noise and interruptions to the school are at the absolute minimum.”

Since the system would use ballast, crews did not want to void the warranty of the Sika membrane. So, slip sheets of the same Sika material had to be purchased and laid underneath every ballast foot for extra layering for the weighted mounting solution to qualify for the warranty.

In addition to the extra precautions, crews had to navigate subzero temperatures and heavy snowfall that delayed installation until March.

“We did get a fair amount of snow, which we had to work around or let it melt,” Weeks said. “Definitely below freezing temperatures, which is something our crews deal with throughout winter, so this was no exception. They had some weather to deal with, but they soldiered through.”

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

The system officially came online in September 2019.

The community in general has been looking at ways to implement solar options on municipal buildings and looking at ways to be more mindful of our environment and our impacts on the environment.

Design and permitting hurdles When the City of Dover initially requested plans for a solar array on the school in 2018, it asked for a more modest 400kW system.

“We wanted to provide what they were looking for in the form of a 400-kW design, but also just felt that there was a really good opportunity based on our understanding of net metering to max out that roof,” ReVision's Weeks said. “We knew that it was designed to accommodate solar across the entire structure, and so we included a full-sized design at 912-kW, which they ultimately went with.”

New Hampshire net metering caps off at 1,000 kW for commercial customers and 100 kW for smaller, residential systems. The original vision for the array didn’t include any export of electricity, but schools have fluctuating energy needs throughout the year, where the facilities wouldn’t be used as much during summer months.

“We [requested] a baseline system that had been suggested by a consultant that we had brought on previously. The concern was the lack of net metering in this state and some of the regulatory impediments that the state has put in place,” said Chris Parker, assistant city manager. “So, ReVision, when they bid on it, said we could do the smaller system, but they said the larger system would still meet the regulatory framework but also provide a much better opportunity. That’s why we went with the larger array.”

Before any solar could be installed, plans had to be approved by both the school board and city council. Both the school and the city had a say in the permitting because it was a school district-owned building residing on public land.

“New Hampshire is not the only state this way, but we’re a bit famous as the ‘Live Free or Die’ state, for our local system approach, where you’ve got a lot of different entities claiming at least partial jurisdiction over projects of this nature,” Weeks said.

The high school array was financed through a power purchase agreement with the city, and after 10 years of operation, Dover has the option to buy the solar system.

“The community in general has been looking at ways to implement solar options on

3 • 2020

Dover High School & Career Technical Center’s dynamic rooftop hosts a 912-kW, net-metered solar system. Developer ReVision Energy had to wait until construction on the new school was completed and receive permitting approval from the district and city before installing any solar.

ReVision Energy

SOLAR POWER WORLD

23

municipal buildings and looking at ways to be more mindful of our environment and our impacts on the environment,” Parker said.

Weeks said that a small experienced labor pool has slowed ReVision’s growth but installing solar systems for settings like technical schools, where electrical training is offered, might encourage students to seek a career in solar.

A school official said the array isn’t implemented into any official curriculum at Dover High School yet, but it has been part of conversations on subjects of climate issues and local government, and the school’s Eco Club participated in the array’s ribbon-cutting ceremony back in September.

Pictures of Dover High School’s rooftop solar system are featured in the building’s main lobby alongside how much power it’s producing.

“Early solar was done for rich people and environmentalists,” Weeks said. “God bless them for being early adopters, but we really wanted to move beyond that, and particularly make solar accessible to public sectors and nonprofits. We also felt we could, over time, develop a market and provide to the local school.” SPW

760-744-4131 MBARCONLINE.COM CSLB #869960

M Bar C Construction is proud to specialize in solar & non-solar carports, DSA structures, fabric & steel canopies, parking garages, and renewable energy solutions.

Throughout the nation, our projects represent over 500MW of renewable energy.

24

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

KELLY PICKEREL EDITOR IN CHIEF

AMERICAN SOLAR COMPANIES TURN TO OEMs FOR CUSTOM SOLAR PANELS Next Energy Alliance

26

SOLAR POWER WORLD

13 •• 2020 2020

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

ALTHOUGH

American solar panel manufacturing is growing and many global brands have set up in the country, the domestic demand far outweighs supply. This often leads to mismatched or unfulfilled orders to needy installers. To ensure contracts are met, some installers might choose to source their own panels and use an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) for smaller orders of custom product.

There are a few U.S. panel manufacturing plants that also offer space as OEMs, and a number of players take advantage — whether it’s a foreign company wanting to deliver a batch of Made-in-USA product or a small domestic outfit with a unique need.

CertainTeed Solar has a network of installation partners that have become accustomed to its high-quality roofing products and want the same in the solar department. Lumos Solar makes beautiful architecture projects with integrated solar that not just anyone can supply. And Next Energy Alliance is a Utah installer and distributor that wants a consistent supply of solar panels. These three companies aren't trying to be panel manufacturing powerhouses but are supplying niche markets and a steady stream of customers through OEMs. Veteran manufacturer — CertainTeed Solar CertainTeed has been an American building mega-company for over 115 years. Primarily known for its roofing products, the company made the logical step to enter the solar market 10 years ago. Not only does CertainTeed, a Saint-Gobain company, produce solar shingles installed alongside traditional roofing shingles and tiles, the company also offers 60- and 72-cell panels

installed through its "Master Solar Installer" dealers.

Instead of linking with an established panel manufacturer for its installation partners, CertainTeed produces its own modules through an OEM in California. Chris Fisher, solar product manager for CertainTeed, said this decision was made to have better control over the characteristics, performance, quality and reliability of the products the company sells.

"Having been in the solar industry for more than 10 years, we’ve seen a number of very large solar panel manufacturers come and go as they grew too fast, traded profit for market share or couldn’t create a sustainable compelling product. So, bigger is not always better," Fisher said.

CertainTeed is capable of producing more than 100 MW of panels in California. The company uses the California OEM to make its Apollo II and Apollo Tile II building-applied PV options and its 60- and 72-cell Solstice panels.

Maybe because CertainTeed is involved with other aspects of the roof, bringing solar products in-house was an obvious choice.

"We fundamentally believe that for the end customer, having a unified, singlesource warranty for both the panels and the balance of systems is a much better value than having multiple warranties from disparate component manufacturers," Fisher said.

Fisher said that although having Made-inUSA panels is an important selling point for CertainTeed, manufacturing domestically reflects the company's commitment to the United States.

31 • 2020

NREL

CertainTeed Solar

SOLAR POWER WORLD

27

lar s So Lum o

"We've been in business in the United States for 115 years," he said. "With more than 60 facilities in North America and more than 6,000 employees in the United States, we’ve got deep roots in this country, and we want to support it to the greatest extent possible."

Architectural solar designer — Lumos Solar Colorado-based Lumos Solar started in 2006 doing both solar product development and installation, but founder and CEO Scott Franklin said the installation side was difficult to differentiate in the race to the lowest price. So, the company switched gears in 2014 and now focuses 100% on product development.

"We're building solar products that enhance the environment. Most 28

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

commercial projects are on flat roofs that no one can see. Our products are the entryways — canopies or shade structures that people can live with every day," he said. "Lumos is changing the perception of solar from an unwanted electrical appliance to a statement."

Lumos is a "solar architectural firm," working primarily with building and site designers to get its solar products — solar awnings, canopies, pergolas and facades — included in final designs. The company has contracted a California OEM to make Lumos's proprietary solar panels.

"There is no solution that can do the same thing. We're not making commodity modules that you can get from anyone," Franklin said. "Everything is holistically designed from the ground up." www.solarpowerworldonline.com

Lumos produces both mono- and bifacial modules out of California. The LSX is a 60-cell frameless module with a clear backsheet. GSX is a bifacial glass-glass module in a traditional 72or 60-cell module footprint, but fewer cells can be used to increase module transparency between cell rows. Since each project is so custom, Franklin said the company manufactures panels in "the megawatt range" annually.

"There are a lot of opportunities for improvement in architectural solutions," Franklin said. "We take a total system approach to design and manufacture our products. Solar panel manufacturers make panels, racking manufacturers make racking, electrical makes BOS — no one is thinking about how the whole project goes together.

Our solution solves a lot of those issues

— panels, integration, aesthetics."

Both the LSX and GSX modules have concealed conductors and junction boxes, a "trademark feature" of Lumos Solar.

"We're focused on overhead solar, like awnings and canopies, where your interaction with it is from below," Franklin said. "We've focused on making that as aesthetic as possible."

Franklin said Lumos Solar has worked with sourcing modules from China and elsewhere, but bringing that manufacturing control to the United States allows the company to focus on quality.

"We're committed to Made-in-America for our own beliefs and business practices," he said. "Everything we make is made in the United States. The only thing coming from overseas are the solar cells and glass. Beyond that, we make it all here."

Next Energy Alliance

Distribution newcomer — Next Energy Alliance Next Energy Alliance is very new to module manufacturing. The distributor/installer in Utah got involved in manufacturing after founder Doug Hewitt was struggling to secure panel orders from bigger names.

"I was buying direct and it just became a joke of trying to make sure I had inventory," he said.

"One month I was buying Trinas at 330-W and they were guaranteeing me that I could get them. Then when it came to order, they'd only have 295-W." The demand for panels was so high that companies would guarantee something, and it'd be gone the next day, Hewitt said. So that's when he started looking at getting bulk supply from Asian companies. Eventually that led to working through a Southern California OEM for NEAbranded panels.

"I was getting stuff overseas and decided really quickly that navigating tariffs was difficult. So I talked to three different manufacturers in the United States and decided to have someone make my panels," he said. "I'm just pulling a ‘Nike model.’ They decided, 'We're not going to have our own factories everywhere. We're just going to outsource it.'"

Hewitt also mentions that almost all tier 1 companies adopt this outsourcing process, and many Southeast Asian OEMs have reached out to Next Energy Alliance to make NEA panels on their manufacturing lines alongside other tier 1 brands.

When customers ask for tier 1 panels, they're requesting an industry marketing term that does not reflect panel reliability or performance. Next Energy Alliance panels are UL certified and have received high marks on performance scorecards.

Hewitt envisions Next Energy Alliance as a network of solar companies, connecting sales with installers and providing 3 • 2020

SOLAR POWER WORLD

29

guaranteed product. For now, the company is making all-black 60- and 72-cell NEA modules through the California OEM. Hewitt said he only offers all-black modules because he wouldn't put a white backsheet on his own home, and people are worried about aesthetics. Next Energy Alliance either sold or personally installed almost 7 MW of NEA modules last year.

Hewitt said he tries to have at least five containers of modules in stock in the warehouse at all times. NEA and the OEM can scale to 20 containers a month, but the company isn't quite to that level yet. Next Energy Alliance was recently approved with Dividend, Loanpal and Sunlight Financial, so wheels are in motion.

Today's focus is just making solar installers' lives easier.

"The plan is to continue to build that distribution and relationships," Hewitt said. "We're not just a manufacturer — we've done it all. We've done installs.

We know the pain and heartaches for contractors." SPW

THINK SOLAR

THINK CABLE MANAGEMENT

CertainTeed Solar

Snake Tray cable management products have been specically designed to lower the total cost of construction with innovative features to manage cables for rooftops, tracker and xed array solar installations.

Commercial Grade Systems

• Hand bendable to go over obstacles • Lobster trap design secures cables • Built-in mounting rings for quick installations • Maintains NEC compliance

Utility Grade Systems

• Snap together components cuts the installation time by 50% • Maintains NEC Article 310.15 for proper cable seperation. No need to de-rate cables

www.snaketray.com 800-308-6788 | Made in the USA US Patent #8985530 and other Patents Pending.

• Mounts quickly to any style of vertical pilings utilizing messenger wire or aluminum rails

CALL 800-308-6788 TO DISCUSS YOUR NEXT PROJECT spw-mar 1-2 pg ad.indd 1

2/12/2020 4:07:49 PM

ADVERTORIAL

SOLAR SPOTLIGHT:

RBI Solar CINCINNATI, OHIO-BASED solar racking company RBI Solar manufactures mounting and tracking systems for the commercial and utility-scale solar markets. Below is a portion of the company's Solar Spotlight podcast with Solar Power World, but be sure to listen to the full episode on your favorite podcast app to hear more about RBI's increased focus on solar tracker projects.

What does RBI do differently in the tracker market?

We offer a one-stop, single-source option for trackers. We specifically design the systems ourselves in-house.

We do all the engineering ourselves — all the material specifications and the material itself, we produce and then check. So what's neat is you can come into the office one day with the design concepts, get it on paper, review it with your R&D and engineering teams and then have it made in the shop, which is attached to our offices.

We have a very good team of project managers and manufacturing staff, and they can do some amazing things on lead times. If you need a job in four weeks to start, whether it's fixed-tilt or tracker, we can typically do that.

One thing that's not to be overlooked with having all the design and engineer teams in-house with our project managers is we have that knowledge and expertise about how a project is completely developed and designed, all the way through the means and methods of installation.

That foundation has really helped us to develop smarter, more efficient structures and systems.

We actually have our own installation crews that we use all throughout the country to install our products and they're all trained on our systems too. For the most part, everybody that's installing our jobs in the field are trained in our systems, so they know how things go together.

You're buying that package with RBI. You're not just buying a product, you're not just buying a commodity, buying steel — you're buying the service side, you're buying years of experience, you're buying that exciting, energetic culture that we hope to bring to our clients.

What trends are you seeing in the tracker market moving forward?

Bifacial panels could provide the next

boost in module or energy production.

PV panels have a hypothetical limit in terms of how much sunlight they can convert into energy. That limit, some say, is starting to be reached, so the next jump in efficiency would be having production on both sides of the modules.

Energy production for bifacial panels depends on your ground surface or your reflective material, so some of the highest reflective materials obviously are snow or white surfaces like light gravel or crushed limestone.

We're looking at, 'How do we develop sites better? Do we incorporate some kind of gravel with our installation crews below the modules? How do we expand our racking to provide more back light, so reflect the light to the back of the panel without blocking it with, say, a steel material?’ We’re working with a lot of module manufacturers on what we can do for better mounting techniques.

RBISOLAR.COM

3 • 2020

SOLAR POWER WORLD

31

KELSEY MISBRENER

SENIOR EDITOR

The nuances of mounting inverters on commercial rooftops The ideal place to house string inverters on commercial rooftop solar projects is indoors in a climatecontrolled, locked room — but that's not always feasible. When groundlevel mounting options are scarce, installers often put these fragile power electronics on the rooftop alongside the array.

Solar installers started bringing inverters to the roof level when rapid shutdown requirements were introduced in the 2014 National Electric Code. The easiest and most costeffective way to comply with rapid shutdown on commercial rooftops was

through what installers termed the "10ft rule" — installing the inverter within 10 ft of the solar array. Installers would mount inverters on angled steel "sleds," made by the inverter manufacturer or third-party providers like Shoals or Bentek, within 10 ft of the array.

When the 2017 NEC update requiring module-level rapid shutdown went into effect, the 10-ft rule no longer met the code. Since solar panels now have to handle shutdown actions in jurisdictions that have adopted the 2017 NEC, the inverter can be placed anywhere. The motivation for mounting string inverters on the roof is no longer primarily code-driven, but many

A rooftop inverter project by Standard Solar.

32

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

installers have grown to prefer the roof for inverter placement.

Current inverter mounting considerations For inverters to operate most efficiently without derating, they should be kept at a stable temperature and out of direct sunlight, according to Geoff Greenfield, president of Athens, Ohio-based Third Sun Solar. Inverters also generate heat while working, so it's important for indoor inverter storage rooms to be climate-controlled and large enough.

"The majority of [inverters] are outdoor-rated. They've got pretty wide temperature operating windows, but I still think that electronics perform better

REAL HUMAN, REAL SERVICE. THE CPS PROMISE. Meet Robert.

His job is to bring you peace-of-mind. He ensures your CPS America inverters are operating at optimal performance levels. Robert, and all of our field team are backed by a Texas-based support hub and lab.

With easy access to real, knowledgeable people, stocked parts, 24-hour RMA turnaround, and exceptional diagnostic hardware, CPS is committed to full life-cycle service and support.

Want to know more?

Ask about our full 99% Availability Guarantee. www.chintpowersystems.com • 855-584-7168

CPS-America-fullpg-ad_SolarPowerWorld_2020-03_AD1.indd 1

2/14/20 3:21 PM

INVERTER TECHNOLOGY PVCA repaired these rooftop inverters damaged by heat.

Another advantage to a rooftop mount is a more stable cell modem connection for data acquisition and monitoring.

"When I have a cell modem, now I can't put that in the basement or in an electric room because I may not get very good service, so putting it on the roof can be an advantage," Colavito said.

You want to make sure your inverter is protected from being overheated, so we typically avoid putting it in direct sunlight unless we have some sort of shade for it because it can cause early derating.

in modified, easier temperatures," Greenfield said.

Inverters also need to be protected from potential vandalism, so fencing is a must if they're mounted outside at ground level, especially if children are nearby.

Maryland-based Standard Solar mostly finances and installs groundmounted projects but does some on commercial rooftops. On its rooftop installs, the company almost always anchors inverters on the rooftop for a few reasons. For one, many AHJs in its service territory are still adhering to the 2014 NEC and its 10-ft rule, according to C.J. Colavito, VP of engineering.

Standard Solar has also chosen rooftop inverter mounting for several school district installations in the interest of safety.

"You don't want vandalism, you don't want people to touch it, you don't want anyone getting hurt. Putting it up on the roof could be a relatively safe place," Colavito said.

34

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

Ideal roof-mounting practices When installers choose to put inverters on the roof, the next step is finding the best possible mounting spot. When the 10-ft rule doesn't need to be followed, Standard Solar prioritizes a shaded, northfacing spot on a vertical wall or parapet. The company prefers to bank the inverters in one spot for ease of maintenance. If a vertical wall isn't available, the team constructs a racking system using steel strut.

"Our maintenance techs generally like the inverters mounted vertically on a wall at working height rather than on the surface of the roof on a rack," Colavito said.

Even if manufacturers say their product doesn't derate in the sun, it's still best to install them in the shade if possible.

"You want to make sure your inverter is protected from being overheated, so we typically avoid putting it in direct sunlight unless we have some sort of shade for it because it can cause early derating," Colavito said.

Chint Power Systems created inverter accessories CPS America’s ro of mount solution. specifically for roofmounted applications, including a shade cover and mounting brackets the company calls “legs.” Peter Hsiung, director of product management, said most of Chint's customers prefer to mount inverters nearly flat on the roof for aesthetics

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

INVERTER TECHNOLOGY

and easy mounting. Chint inverters can be mounted at a 15° tilt or higher.

Although the shading and Left: PVCA had to fix an LCD screen mounting accessories cost failure on this project after three extra, Hsiung said they’re years. Right: Inadequate shade required PVCA to replace multiple more affordable than those inverters on this project after fewer made by third-party vendors. than five years.

Water is the enemy of power electronics, so mounting inverters horizontally isn't ideal, especially in snowy climates, according to Colavito.

When the snow melts, all that water endangers the sensitive equipment. He said he prefers mounting rooftop inverters with at least a bit of a slope to protect units from condensation.

Colavito also suggested mounting the inverter relatively close to the array if possible to limit the amount of wire needed, as well as somewhere maintenance techs can access relatively easily.

When it comes to initial installation, hauling the inverters to the roof is not typically an added stressor. They can be craned or lifted at the same time as the other equipment with a little extra planning.

"It's not that big of a difference to crane six inverters up on to the roof on a pallet during the lift at the same time we're craning pallets of solar and pallets of ballast block," Greenfield said.

The real problems arise when rooftop inverters need to be replaced.

Although commercial-scale string inverters are getting lighter, they are still typically too heavy for a person to carry.

O&M perspective Third Sun Solar installs more than half of its jobs on commercial rooftops. When it comes to inverter installation, ease of access for O&M is a main priority. Company president Geoff Greenfield said ground-level inverter installation is preferable to avoid added O&M costs.

36

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

INVERTER TECHNOLOGY

"We've got jobs where, for service, we've not been able to replace an inverter without renting a scissor lift," Greenfield said.

Luke Pollinger, president of California-based solar O&M company PVCA, said he understands it's often easier for installers to mount inverters on the roof since the equipment has increased in voltage and decreased in weight over the years. But he believes a climate-controlled room is always the best inverter housing option.

"The biggest two elements that we have to fight in O&M to keep equipment reliable [and] operating long-term without issues is moisture and heat. So, it's generally not good practice to put inverters on the rooftop," Pollinger said. "The goal is to keep your equipment reliable and limiting the harsh conditions it has to operate in."

In Pollinger's experience, inverters mounted indoors last much longer than those mounted directly in the sun.

"If you can limit the temperatures it has to operate in, you're only extending the usable life of that equipment," Pollinger said.

If installers have no other choice but the roof, he advises

they mount inverters on a northfacing wall that's fully shaded and easily accessible, as well as at least 4 ft off the roof's surface to avoid excess heat. He said installers should provide some type of shade for rooftop inverters even if the manufacturer's manual doesn't say it’s necessary.

Even in perfect conditions, inverters are the hardestworking part of a solar array and will inevitably experience failures. When units need to be replaced, PVCA typically uses a jib crane or boom truck. Although inverters usually carry a 10-year manufacturer's warranty, project owners will still have to pay for labor and rental equipment needed to swap units on the rooftop, so O&M costs will be higher than for ground-level maintenance.

Chint Power Systems has found a unique solution to the rooftop inverter O&M problem. The company aims to cut out the need for renting expensive transport equipment by producing a smaller, lighter-weight commercial inverter.

Chint's string inverters are made of two distinct parts — the wire box and the powerhead.

Hsiung said the powerhead is the part of the inverter that typically

experiences faults and needs to be replaced. The company has made it so the powerhead can slide out of the unit when it needs to be replaced, eliminating the need to disassemble the wire box.

"We wanted to make sure that customers don't rent those scissor lifts,” Hsiung said. "For the 25-kW unit, the powerhead is lower than 50 lbs, so you can actually carry them in a backpack and climb up the ladder when you need to swap that."

No matter which inverter brand is used in a rooftop installation, developers must factor O&M costs into the longterm project estimate, said Eric Cotney, VP and general manager of Texas-based Axium Solar. Axium evaluates inverter mounting location on a case-bycase basis and chooses the best location for each customer.

"I expect that we're going to continue to do projects where we install on the roof. We don't foresee that going away, but now with the module-level rapid shutdown and using the shutdown devices, now we have the flexibility of installing pretty much anywhere, and that's a great thing," Cotney said. SPW

A rooftop inverter installation by Third Sun Solar.

3 • 2020

SOLAR POWER WORLD

37

BILLY LUDT

ASSOCIATE EDITOR

There are solar ground-mount solutions for every type of soil The United States is a vast land mass. With varying altitudes, water tables and environments, the soils between its two ocean coasts can be sandy, soft, rocky or clayladen. Solar installers have to navigate many unique soil requirements when working on ground-mount projects.

The five most common solar ground mounting solutions — I-beams, helical anchors, ground screws, concrete piers and ballast — have specific homes across the country. It really depends on what's going on in the soil underneath your feet.

Solar racking with an I-beam/H-beam foundation mount. RBI Solar

I-beams I-beams are a common component across the field of construction, used as structural supports in horizontal and vertical applications in buildings. They are also the most common ground-mount option for solar systems.

I-beams, H-beams or C-channels are installed using a piledriver that pushes them directly into the earth. Racking is then attached to the exposed beam. Beams can be mounted in clay, black and sandy soils, and work best when the site is rock-free. The soil’s friction keeps the piles in place.

For I-beams in sandy soil, embedment depth is based on grain size. Higher water tables can reduce friction and require a pile to be driven deeper than usual.

“It can work in any soil condition, and it just depends on mechanical properties of that soil for the friction of how deep that pile has to go,” said Josh Von Deylen, CEO of APA Solar Racking. Pile testing is required to determine the correct depth, a process that can be expensive. Installers make up that money by installing more beams, which is why a pilebased solar installation doesn't make sense on small projects.

I-beams come with a higher price tag than some smaller post mounts, but are ideal for larger-scale systems, Von Deylen said, because they have stronger load bearing and require fewer penetrations per rack compared to helical anchors or ground screws.

P

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

38

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

a driven pile is going to have very different characteristics on almost every site vs. a helical [that] almost has identical characteristics on every site.

Helical anchors/piers/piles Helical piles are cylindrical posts with, as the name suggests, a helix that’s two or more inches wide, mounted or attached near the bottom of the post. Once driven the proper depth, the helix portion of the anchor will resist being pulled out by creating a cone of soil above it. Helical piles are installed by digging an initial guiding hole and using a skid steer with a rotating attachment to spin the mount into place. APA Solar Racking carries a helical anchor with replaceable helixes in various lengths to adapt to different ground conditions.

With a smaller surface area, helical piles will embed with minimal soil disturbance. The design of helical piles makes them ideal for sandy, black or clay soils, as well as areas

with high water tables, where piles require greater depths for embedment. Helical piles will embed at shorter depths in soft and sandy soils compared to I-beams.

“Other foundations could not work, but the helical with the flanges works perfectly for those… because a driven pile is going to have very different characteristics on almost every site vs. a helical [that] almost has identical characteristics on every site,” Von Deylen said.

Helical piles. APA Solar Racking

ProteaBracket™ & PVKIT™ 2.0 ProteaBracket can be used for rail or direct-attach™ with new and improved S-5! PVKIT 2.0

PVKIT 2.0

ProteaBracket

• Pre-assembled components save time and money

• All aluminum with stainless hardware

• Versatile: same kit for all module frames (22-46mm)

• Load-tested for engineered application

• Only one tool needed for installation

• Use for side or bottom mount rail- no additional L-foot required

• Installs with module, reducing lay out time • All non-corrosive aluminum and stainless steel • Single-piece EdgeGrab installs with ease • Added slots for wire tie-off • Low profile hardware provides flush, clean finish • Now available in black annodized. too!

• 1″ gap between modules, allowing ASCE-7 load reduction • UL 2703 Listed *visit www.s-5.com for details on our warranties

• Compatible with S-5! PVKIT 2.0 • Adjustable – Fits trapezoidal rib profiles up to 3″ • Peel-and-stick prevents accidental shifting during installation • Fully pre-assembled • 25-year warranty*

The Right Way!™ | (888) 825-3432 | www.S-5.com

Ground screw TerraSmart

On a looser site, you might have a longer or wider ground screw vs. a rocky site. We can accommodate those different soil conditions with the design of the ground screw itself.

Ground screws Ground screws work similarly to helical piles, also creating a cone of soil that resists upward tension.

The difference lies in the threaded end that leads to a point in ground screws, much like wood screws. To install a ground screw in dense soils, contractors core a hole, set the screw inside and drive the mount into the ground using a piledriver with a rotating head. In medium or loose soils, ground screws can be driven directly into the ground.

These mounts were built to work in rocky landscapes. The pointed, threaded end pushes smaller rocks aside, and installers can even drill a pilot hole into larger stones to rotate the ground screw directly into it. Turnkey ground screw company TerraSmart fabricates ground screws of varying sizes to adapt to different soil types.

“Ground screws work in a wide range of soils and it just comes down to how you design the ground screws to accommodate where you’re trying to install into,” said Richard Van Fleet, director of

OMCO CHOICE ™

Direct-Bolt Fixed Tilt n Pre-assembled tilt bracketry components to reduce on-site labor, accelerate assembly n Flexible bridge beam design n Integrated grounding to eliminate third party grounding devices and speed assembly

OMCO ORIGIN ™ Tracker n

n

n

Up to 5% more MW per acre longer rows and minimal gaps maximize ground coverage Unique bearings adjust 8 ways on-site to solve post misalignment issues Universal: mount any module width up to 1.3 meters, and any frame height up to 50 mm

OMCO FIELD-FAST ™ Slide & Stay Fixed Tilt n Lowest total installed cost for community scale and commercial projects n Pre-assembled, no crane needed, safer installation n Ideal for “get-in & getout” situations

No Matter Your Direction,

We’ve Got a Factory-Direct Solution *

* Unlike other solar mounting competitors, we actually manufacture our fixed tilt and tracker components... in our own plants. You get reduced lead times, lower shipping costs and responsive customer service.

www.omcosolar.com

Ballasts Ballasted systems are a non-penetrating foundation solution for solar. Racking is attached directly to a footing, block or basket, and concrete is commonly used as the weight to hold it in place. The concrete is either precast, in which posts are mounted to blocks brought to the site; or concrete is poured into basins and cured on-site around the posts.

Deciding which concrete solution to use depends on site conditions, job costs and system size. Ballasted systems are often used on volatile sites, like landfills, brownfields and Superfunds, where the soil cannot be penetrated due to potential contamination.

The cast-in-place concrete solution is ideal for projects with low labor costs and easy access for heavy equipment. The site should be able to handle the weight of a concrete truck and requires handling concrete-pouring hoses.

The precast route is suited for projects near distributors that can deliver the concrete blocks. With their modular design, they’re easy to deliver. Installers can

Structural Components Made in the USA

© 2019 OMCO Holdings OMCO CHOICE, OMCO FIELD-FAST and OMCO ORIGIN are trademarks and OMCO Solar is a registered trademark of OMCO Holdings

OMCOSolar SolarPowerWorld ad_4.625x4.75.indd 1

construction at TerraSmart. “On a looser site, you might have a longer or wider ground screw vs. a rocky site. We can accommodate those different soil conditions with the design of the ground screw itself.”

This mounting solution has a smaller post surface area similar to helical piles, but comes in longer post lengths to ensure proper embedment depth. A set of racking can attach to ground screws of various lengths, keeping panels level while adjusting to varying topography.

2/18/20 1:16 PM

40

SOLAR POWER WORLD

take blocks off the trailer and set them on their designated position before attaching the racking systems.

“We don’t have to worry about curing the concrete on-site, so you don’t have potential weather delays, and you can get a lot of work done off the site before it’s even ready to be started,” said Mike Freshwater, ground mount operations manager for RBI Solar.

Using concrete foundations above the ground means panels can be disconnected and racking can be moved around, in cases like landfills, where routine inspections need to take place. RBI Solar carries preassembled fixed-tilt racking designed to work with both precast and cast-in-place concrete ballasts.

A tip for using heavy equipment on volatile jobsites is to opt for machinery that uses tracks instead of tires. A tracked machine’s weight is distributed across the ground surface more evenly than those on wheels, Freshwater said, and will alleviate ground pressure on sensitive sites.

Concrete piers There is another mounting method that uses concrete but requires significantly more excavation than narrower, pile-driven foundations: concrete piers. These posts are suspended in holes 12 to 18 in. in diameter, with a depth of 6 to 8 ft, and wet concrete is poured around them.

Concrete piers are suited for smaller projects, sites with corrosive or swampy soils and installations in regions prone to hurricanes and high winds. They tend to be more expensive than the smaller drilled or driven mounts.

“We typically do those in areas where you’re at 30, 40% slope, where you can’t get standard construction equipment on the site or you’re just limited to what construction

Solar racking with precast concrete ballasts foundations.

RBI Solar

SOLAR POWER WORLD

41

equipment you can use,” Freshwater said. “At other times, when we’re doing projects where you’re very much prone to hurricanes, our customers tend to want to be very precautious and go with a more robust foundation.”

Concrete piers are often the only option in high pH soils where the corrosive soil will damage metal posts. A high-psi concrete pier will not break down as quickly.

“The things you want to look out for in addition to acidity or the pH is your sulfides in the soil, your chlorides, your soil resistivity and your moisture content,” Freshwater said. “So, if you have very high-corrosive soils, concrete is an option to help get you the lifespan of the system that you desire.”

Whether the soil is sandy, rocky, loose, dense or corrosive, there’s a marketplace of solar mounting products that are designed to fit an installer’s needs on most worksites. SPW

Ground screws mounted into a rocky surface.

TerraSmart

KELLY PICKEREL EDITOR IN CHIEF

Just how concerned should the solar industry be about battery fires?

Plane crashes rarely happen, but the fear of an accident is real for many people. Still, thousands of Americans fly every day. The NBC television drama "This is Us" showed that Crock-Pots can cause house fires, but we're still cooking chilis and roasts while we're away at work.

The threat of energy storage systems causing or contributing to building fires is also real yet incredibly rare, but as adoption grows, life and property wellbeing will become larger concerns.

Right now, solar + storage fire worries usually arise around lithium-

ion technologies, with a divided war between nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) providers (Tesla Powerwall, LG Chem) and those developing lithiumiron phosphate (LFP) batteries (sonnen, SimpliPhi). On paper, NMC batteries have an increased risk of thermal runaway, the phenomenon that causes battery fires, simply because of the addition of cobalt. But put even an LFP battery in a less-than-ideal situation, and the end result of an accidental fire is the same — potential damage to the system, nearby surroundings and human life.

"Just because the likelihood is different doesn't mean the impact is

different," said Victoria Carey, senior consultant of energy storage for quality assurance company DNV GL. "When doing installation design, you have to design for minimizing the likelihood [of a fire]. It's always good to look at the chemistry capabilities and balance how to mitigate the impact with whether that battery's energy density is exactly what's needed for a particular application."

Batteries that like cool, constant temperatures probably shouldn't be installed outdoors in the desert. Offgrid winter cabins might benefit from using lead-acid batteries over the latest lithium product. Just because a solar installer is a certified dealer of

It’s unlikely that a lithium battery would contribute to a residential fire like this, but it’s still important to prepare for the worst-case scenario.

42

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

a specific battery chemistry doesn't mean it's the best product for every job. Carey said she is comforted that the solar industry is taking battery installation more seriously now than even two years ago.

"Folks have been treating batteries as a black box add-on to their equipment they're installing.

There's now a realization that although there are no literal moving parts, there's a lot of different small components that need to be managed and are delicate," she said. "There's a sort of awakening in the last year.

We've called energy storage the ‘Wild West,’ and it is certainly still in early development stages, but there's a sheriff in town now."

Although battery fires aren't likely to happen, it's still important to design and plan for the worst.

What causes battery fires?

If a battery is going to catch fire, the likely cause is thermal runaway.

This is when a battery experiences an increase in temperature that eventually leads to cell short-circuiting or disintegration that can spark a fire.

There are three main abuse factors that can send a battery into thermal runaway — mechanical, thermal or electrical. Mechanical would be physically damaging the unit, which can generate gases or increase the heat of a battery cell. Thermal is heat-related — air conditioning or airflow not reaching the cells, allowing heat to build up.

Electrical abuse happens during overcharging, undercharging or shorts from the inverter. Often, damage can be reversed if caught quickly.

"There is an opportunity once that abuse factor has been put onto the cells, if it's removed then the thermal runaway condition may not occur, but there is a point of no return," Carey

said. "If it's not stopped, it will continue through these secondorder effects, which at its core is a release of potentially flammable gases. If there's an ignition source, that can then become a fire. If there's not an ignition source, these seminal gases can gather in large enough volumes that could result in explosive conditions."

DNV GL is trying to understand the risks with This LFP battery with inverter charge battery fires before they controllers, power electronics and system happen. It released its management was installed in a NEMA 3R first Battery Performance outdoor-rated box, away from livable spaces, Scorecard in 2018, which just in the off-chance of an accident. SimpliPhi ranks and evaluates different types of batteries based on performance and safety testing. By putting the batteries through the wringer, DNV GL finds the performance limits of the systems or can produce thermal runaway, depending on the test.

"The whole goal of destructive testing is to determine if something goes into thermal runaway, what happens?" Carey said. "Yes, one of the things that we see is really there may be some batteries that are important to improving quality of the more resistant to thermal runaway, systems." but we have found across the board that they release the same chemicals How should batteries be installed to with the same level of toxicity and prevent fires? potential flammability."

If battery installers follow the A safe battery is determined by its manufacturer's manual and adhere to initial manufacturing. DNV GL hopes the locality's fire codes and standards, its battery scorecard brings more the chance of a fire starting is near transparency to the market. zero. LFP battery manufacturer Blue "There's a resistance for Planet Energy claims to make the companies to share even their safest lithium battery on the market for name that they've participated in energy storage applications because this type of testing. There's concern of additional built-in safety links, but about how it will be perceived by still, head of sales Gregg Murphy said customers," Carey said. "Creating the surest way to prevent battery fires greater transparency in the market is is to install the system correctly.

3 • 2020

SOLAR POWER WORLD

43

"Any technology, if installed incorrectly, is a potential electrical hazard," he said. "The biggest support in the marketplace is for installers to closely follow the installation manual on top of selecting safer battery chemistries. The top questions we receive in customer service are around installation best practices."

Following best practices and using a little common sense goes a long way, said Brian O’Connor, fire protection engineer with the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), which released its standard for the installation of non-residential stationary energy storage systems (NFPA 855) in September 2019.

NFPA 855 provides battery installation requirements that best prevent loss of life and property — the goal of all NFPA codes. O'Connor said some best large-scale storage installation practices include providing enough space between units for adequate airflow and fire breaks and having an appropriate fire suppression system on-site.

4 4 SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

"We suggest to space batteries out in the building. If there are fire breaks between each, then the fire cannot escape one rack. If you can contain the fire to a smaller spot, it's going to burn for a shorter duration, and you can limit the damage," he said. "Another suggestion is installing a sprinkler system. Lithium-ion batteries do not react to water, so you can put a lot of water on them to cool them. It won't extinguish the fire, but it will stop the fire from spreading and jumping to other exposures."

O'Connor said many of NFPA's large-scale battery installation requirements can be translated over to the residential market with an extra dose of practicality.

"We use more common sense and basic rules for residential batteries because it's difficult to enforce all these details. No one is going door to door to see," he said. "If you're going to install a storage system in the garage, make sure you have space for vehicle protection — if you're backing into the garage, you don’t want to hit the

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

battery. Make sure batteries are not in the place you sleep, because it would limit the time you egress your house.

Don’t install a battery outside under a window, because during a fire, windows are used to exit the house."

While the likelihood of a fire in a residential application is lower, installers should still plan for accidents.

Installing batteries in rooms with firerated walls without a lot of clutter that could impede airflow is a basic first step. Keeping batteries away from livable spaces (bedrooms, living rooms) allow for better survival rates in case a fire does happen. So, all those battery company promotional pictures showing systems in the living room as aesthetic focal points — no way. Keep the battery in a garage or unoccupied utility space, just to be on the safe side.

What are some best operating practices to prevent battery fires?

A little common sense follows to the operational side of an energy storage system. A high-functioning battery management system (BMS),

This large-scale lithium battery installation in California shows the ventilation systems used to keep batteries at a consistent temperature to prevent thermal runaway. NREL

which typically comes standard with lithium-ion battery systems, will help to balance charging and discharging rates, monitor battery voltage and measure temperature to ensure the system doesn't run into problems. But just because a BMS is monitoring the battery's health doesn't mean the operator should push it to its limits.

"The critical part is making sure that whatever the battery was designed to do and whatever the BMS is designed to protect is what that battery is being used for," Carey said.

O'Connor's best advice is to prepare and plan for the worst — know what to do in case of a fire and coordinate with first responders. NFPA 855 requires safety labels There may explaining what type of be adequate airflow to this battery is installed and energy storage if there is a suppression system, but a system in place. These safer alternate precautions are very installation site is important to first responders outside or in an unoccupied utility so they aren't surprised when space. sonnen they arrive at an emergency.

"A big concern is stranded energy. You can't discharge these

batteries quickly when they're on fire," O'Connor said.

"Even when a first responder is doing cleanup, there is a shock potential. If they put [an axe] into a battery that is energized, there is potential for injury. So labeling is important."

Above all, just be smart about installing, operating and owning an energy storage system. When we fly on airplanes, we have access to safety information and receive demonstrations on what to do in an emergency. An accident isn't likely to happen, but it's good to have that information on-hand, just in case.

"Operationally, as long as these systems follow good quality practices, you have a very low likelihood of failure," Carey said. "But if you don't admit there could be a failure, you're not going to prepare the people who are trying to save lives and property appropriately. It's a touchy subject to say your product can fail, but I think it's incumbent upon people to act responsibly and admit that something could happen." SPW

3 • 2020

SOLAR POWER WORLD

45

Me

m Ph l & Ti

otogr

aphy

INSTALLATION SPECIAL SECTION

46

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

SPECIAL SECTION

INSTALLATIONTIPS

CONTINUING

education is important in all industries, especially solar. As technologies evolve, new installation techniques arise to make solar systems safer and more efficient. The best place to learn these new skills is often at tradeshows and conferences, when more industry peers are together to exchange tips and tricks.

As senior editor Kelsey Misbrener mentioned in her First Word (pg. 2), teams of installers competed at Intersolar North America in the inaugural Solar Games. It was an interactive change of pace from a typical tradeshow, and it gave solar professionals a chance to watch how various components were installed in both on- and off-grid projects.

The NABCEP Continuing Education Conference in St. Louis was postponed due to coronavirus concerns, but don’t worry, we reached out to the scheduled presenting educators at the conference to answer three questions: • What's the easiest way to speed up installation of solar systems?

• What's the most common installation error in a solar or battery installation?

• What's the best way for installers to improve customer satisfaction?

See their answers and more on the following pages. We hope you'll learn some new strategies to make your business stand out!

FOLLOW THE TEAM ON

Solar’s Fastest Attachment

Nano Deck Mount

Nano Rafter Mount

The fastest roof attachment in solar Versatile mounting options including direct-to-decking No need to lift shingles; speeds install and prevents damages to shingles

All materials are compatible with roof shingles

FOR ALL THE LATEST

INSTALLMENT

NEWS! @SOLARPOWERWORLD

SOLAR POWER WORLD

NanoMount™

High-Velocity Hurricane Zone Approved

SOCIAL MEDIA

3 • 2020

Introducing

47

SPECIAL SECTION

INSTALLATIONTIPS

What’s the easiest way to speed up installation of solar systems?

1. CHOOSE QUALITY PRODUCTS 2. PRE-ASSEMBLE/PLAN AHEAD 3. TEAMWORK

Keeping a tight focus on the quality of the products and workmanship of the initial installation is often the best way to save time.

Chris Fisher | Manager of Solar Product Development & Marketing | CertainTeed

Have all the settings worked out and pre-configured as much as possible before arriving on site.

This can be quite complex and time-consuming in the best of circumstances, let alone under pressure at the job site.

Kyle Willsey | Senior Sales Engineer | Morningstar Corp.

If you do similar designs every time but you do them from scratch, you're spending a lot of time retreading the same ground.

Setting up defaults for component selection, simulation considerations, or other elements of design allows a designer to spend their time focusing on what is actually unique about each project.

Canute Haroldson | Senior Account Manager | Folsom Labs

48

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

Qu

ick

Mo

un

tP

V

SPECIAL SECTION

INSTALLATIONTIPS Creating a consistent process of installation steps and stageworkspace with all needed materials can help to speed up installations.

Ben Brubaker | Applications Engineer & Trainer | Fronius

Teamwork is important, and communication is key. It is critical that each crew member understands the steps and their role in the process.

Kate Collardson | Product Manager | BayWa r.e.

As use cases for solar + storage become more complex, it becomes more important to utilize software in both the design stage and the ultimate operation of the system. When the use case was a remote cabin, pencil and paper could do an adequate design job. In a grid-connected facility with PV, a generator, a BESS, controllable loads, backup power for a subset of loads, and a desire to peak shave and load shift — design software and an energy management system (EMS) are vital. Modern design software creates a virtual twin of the system, simulates a year (or more) of operation, and allows iterations of variables to zero-in on an optimized system. Try that with a pencil and paper.

Wesley Kennedy | Systems Engineering Specialist | Blue Planet Energy

The crew should divide the tasks to complete the mount installation like a factory production line. Even if there are only two crew members, splitting up the tasks of preparing the mount location and installing the mount can save time and hassle.

The easiest way to speed up solar monitoring installation is to have a laptop onsite for the initial programming. Installers can then use onsite automatic device detection and confirm that all devices, including the data logger, are connected correctly and communicating with the portal.

Susan Stark | Director, Technical Sales & Training | Quick Mount PV

Silvia Blumenschein-Schϋtz | CEO and general manager | Solar Data Systems

3 • 2020

SOLAR POWER WORLD

49

SPECIAL SECTION

INSTALLATIONTIPS

What’s the most common installation error in a solar or battery installation?

1. OVER/UNDER TORQUING 2. UNDERSIZING 3. INACCURATE MODELING/SURVEYS

A common error by installers is to design a system around a price point of components rather than sizing the system around a “system” that will provide for energy needs of their customer. This often leads to the undersizing of the system and ultimately a dissatisfied customer experience.

Matthew Campbell | Channel Marketing Director | Discover Battery

Incorrect battery sizing is a common error when installing and designing battery-based systems. A battery bank sized based on budget or incorrect calculations can result in an improper battery bank for the respective loads or inverter size.

With any racking system, the most common error is overtorquing fasteners, which can cause stress on fasteners and module frames.

Jason Comstock | Field Support/Product Training Manager | Ecolibrium Solar Fronius

Troy Daniels | Technical Services Manager | SimpliPhi

50

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

SPECIAL SECTION

INSTALLATIONTIPS We hear of many surveyors estimating the sizes of onsite obstructions, especially the heights of trees and other rooftop features like vent pipes, attic fans and HVAC units.

Whether they are using tape measures, satellite imagery, Google Earth or just eyeballing things, this practice can be incredibly detrimental to creating an accurate design. An accurate survey makes all the difference!

Jason Steinberg | Co-Founder and COO | Scanifly

The most common error we see is undertorqued screw terminals, which can lead to loose connections and potential arcing.

A string inverter would still detect an arc, but reliability could suffer. Proper torquing is necessary to ensure a safe and reliable operation.

Ben Brubaker | Applications Engineer and Trainer | Fronius

Inaccurate modeling of objects and 3D space on and around the rooftop (e.g. trees, obstructions on rooftops, etc.). An inaccurate model impacts the energy production estimate, which then affects savings and costs of the PV system.

Marc Georgiou | Senior Client Engagement Manager Aurora Solar

Installers sometimes don’t check equipment compatibility for rapid shutdown when purchasing inverters and MLPE. They sometimes don’t check AHJ requirements in advance and are surprised by NEC rapid shutdown requirements after the system is already installed. Installers often don’t realize that inverters with a built-in RSS Transmitter have to be configured through the menus to enable rapid shutdown.

Not being prepared to deal with the newer forms of communication to the inverter — connecting to the inverter to program and connecting the monitoring. Many newer inverters have removed displays and the commissioning and connecting to the inverter is done through built-in Wi-Fi using a smartphone, iPad or PC. Claude Barker | Technical Sales Engineer | ABB

Gary Hethcoat | Sales Enginner Tigo Energy

3 • 2020

SOLAR POWER WORLD

51

SPECIAL SECTION

INSTALLATIONTIPS

What’s the best way for installers to improve customer satisfaction?

1. COMMUNICATION 2. TRANSPARENCY 3. MONITORING

Monitoring should be applied as a proactive service to the customer.

Performance monitoring provides insight into solar plant performance to detect operational issues before they cause major generation and financial loss. Installers can enable email alerts so that they can keep on top of any problems that arise with their plants. A highly reliable combination of hardware and software to monitor, control and manage solar power saves time and money for all parties and helps unlock value in the solar plant.

Instead of keeping customers “in the dark,” educate them as to how the system works so they will know the basics to properly perform the maintenance.

Steve Higgins | Technical Services Manager | Rolls Battery

Well-designed welcome kits with manuals, paperwork, referral cards and branded swag can add to the excitement that a homeowner feels when they go solar.

Kate Collardson | Product Manager | BayWa r.e.

Silvia Blumenschein-Schϋtz | CEO & General Manager | Solar Data Systems

52

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

SPECIAL SECTION

INSTALLATIONTIPS

Customers want records of their installation’s success, and proper documentation isn’t something that can be replicated after-the-fact.

Document everything, including snags that might occur. No project is without its challenges; properly documenting hurdles that might be encountered is a great showcase of your ability to overcome them as an installer and increase your technical acumen.

Nick Valcho | Applications Engineering Manager | Sungrow

Spend 20 minutes helping them learn how to use the monitoring app and simulate a grid failure. Let them run several appliances off-grid so it creates an overload and teach them how to handle it. Then send them a video on the app or hybrid so they understand how to use it.

Tom Brennan | CTO | Sol-Ark

Apply the Golden Rule. Sometimes things get messed up, and apologies, while important, mean nothing if they aren’t followed by action. Well done is better than well said.

Roland Jasmin | Director of Engineering | SunModo

Involve the customer through the process and simply do a quality installation.

Milton Nogueira Senior Business Development Manager | Roof Tech

la So

og r-L

It’s also important to note that the closing of a deal is only the beginning of a relationship over the lifetime of a system, because a customer wants to be taken care of for the next 20+ years.

Ben Brubaker | Applications Engineer & Trainer | Fronius

3 • 2020

SOLAR POWER WORLD

53

KELLY PICKEREL EDITOR IN CHIEF

CONTRACTORS CORNER:

NEXAMP Nexamp has established itself as a leader in community solar development across the Northeast, but the company is not just a one-note band. Nexamp is also involved with behind-the-meter, small utilityscale and storage projects and is spreading its footprint across the country. Community solar, though, is the star of Nexamp’s portfolio.

In this episode of the Contractors Corner podcast, Solar Power World editor-in-chief Kelly Pickerel talks with Zaid Ashai, chairman and CEO of Nexamp, about the company’s involvement in the community solar market and beyond.

A portion of the interview follows, but be sure to listen to the full podcast for even more insight, including more about the difference between community solar and utility-scale O&M, the company’s outlook on

54

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

where community solar will pop up next and its work to make sites more wildlife-friendly. Plus, solar sheep.

We’re always down to talk about solar sheep.

Find the Contractors Corner podcast on your favorite podcast app.

What reasons are you seeing subscribers sign on to community solar projects?

Zaid: There are two drivers. The first is saving money on their utility bills. No. 2 is going green and participating in the green economy. It’s really allowing them to participate in solar development in their communities. For many people in these communities where economic development has been slow — in some of these rural communities — it’s important for them to see investments being made in infrastructure.

Customers are really pleased to see these investments being made by Nexamp and other solar companies.

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

Nexamp completed its first energy storage projects last year in New York and Massachusetts. How does storage interact with the community solar market?

Zaid: Whether it’s in community solar or utility-scale solar, solar and storage are going to be coupled together very tightly. If we want to create base-load power characteristics for solar, then storage is critical. There are program design incentives in New York and Massachusetts, among other states, to couple storage with solar because these states are planning for a future where there will be little, if any, fossil fuel generation. If we’re going to be successful, storage has to be coupled with this. If you’re a subscriber in New York and we put storage in the project, your experience is no different. Your savings will be no different. Your bills will be no different.

Nexamp used sheep on a New York solar farm for vegetation maintenance. What’s been your experience with sheep, and will you be using them on more sites?

Zaid: It’s been a great experience thus far. We’ve worked with sheep raisers and several communities to supplant traditional vegetation mitigation, which is traditionally through lawn mowing. The exciting part about using sheep — it provides an economic benefit to the agricultural communities that surround some of these projects, it’s a lower CO2 footprint and, in scale, it’s cheaper than the more mechanical techniques.

We’re definitely going to continue to roll this out to more communities, but for us, it doesn’t stop at sheep grazing. We are trying to make sure that these sites can provide other environmental benefits to the surrounding community as well. We’re looking at pollinator strategies to make sure our sites have the right ecosystem to really address that issue. We’re looking at strategies to make sure we use fencing techniques that allow wildlife to freely roam and don’t disrupt some of the migration patterns. SPW

WHETHER IT’S IN COMMUNITY SOLAR OR UTILITY-SCALE SOLAR, SOLAR AND STORAGE ARE GOING TO BE COUPLED TOGETHER VERY TIGHTLY. Podcast Alert!

Listen to this and other Contractors Corner episodes on your favorite podcast app.

3 • 2020

SOLAR POWER WORLD

55

[AD INDEX]

AceClamp ..................................................... 14 Altech ..............................................................3 APsystems .................................................. 25 AWEA ......................................................... IBC Axitec .............................................................9 Chint Power Systems ................................ 33 Everest Solar Systems ............................... 41 Fall Protection Distributors ........................ 19 IMT Solar ..................................................... 20 M Bar C Construction ............................... 24 Morningstar Corporation .......................... 36 OMCO Solar ............................................... 40

Oregon Solar Energy Industries Association ................................................. 35 Panasonic Eco Solutions NA ...................... 7 PV Labels Inc. ........................................... IFC Quest Renewables ..................................... 13 QuickBOLT .................................................. 15 RBI Solar ................................................. 5, 31 S-5! Attachment Solutions ....................... 39 Seaward Group ............................................. 1 SHOALS Technologies Group .................BC Snake Tray .................................................. 30 Sunmodo .................................................... 47

SALES Jim Powers 312.925.7793 jpowers@wtwhmedia.com @jpowers_media David Geltman 516.510.6514 dgeltman@wtwhmedia.com @wtwh_david

Ashley N. Burk 737.615.8452 aburk@wtwhmedia.com Jami Brownlee 224.760.1055 jbrownlee@wtwhmedia.com

Neel Gleason 312.882.9867 ngleason@wtwhmedia.com @wtwh_ngleason

LEADERSHIP TEAM

56

VP of Sales Mike Emich 508.446.1823 memich@wtwhmedia.com @wtwh_memich

EVP Marshall Matheson 805.895.3609 mmatheson@wtwhmedia.com @mmatheson

Managing Director Scott McCafferty 310.279.3844 smccafferty@wtwhmedia.com @SMMcCafferty

Associate Publisher Courtney Seel cseel@wtwhmedia.com 440.523.1685 @wtwh_CSeel

SOLAR POWER WORLD

3 • 2020

Follow the whole team on Twitter @SolarPowerWorld

www.solarpowerworldonline.com

Elevate.

Largescale clean energy has momentum. Driven by strong consumer demand, competitive prices and important state and federal policies, utility-scale wind, solar, and storage are each on the path to significant expansion. These industries will converge at CLEANPOWER 2020, bringing together all the major developers, utilities, OEMs, suppliers and buyers under one roof. CLEANPOWER offers the most efficient and targeted event for utility-scale renewable companies in the Western Hemisphere.

LEARN MORE AT CLEANPOWEREXPO.ORG

1400 Shoals Way, Portland, TN 37148 Solar Power World 2019.pdf Solar Power World 2019.pdf

1 1

8/22/19 8/22/19

|

615.451.1400

|

sales@shoals.com

|

www.shoals.com

2:01 PM 2:01 PM

NO MUss. no Fuss.

NO MUss. no Fuss.

The first and only above-ground, The first andthat onlydoes above-ground, patent-pending system not require patent-pending system thattrenching, does not require combiner boxes or in-array and can combiner or in-array can offerboxes $avings in the trenching, field up to and 62.5% offer $avings in the field up to 62.5%

® ®

combiner boxes combiner field o&mboxes field o&m combiner boxes torquing combiner field o&mboxes torquing cable field o&mtrays torquing cable trays torquing trenches cable trays trenches cable trays trenches re-combiners trenches re-combiners re-combiners re-combiners

The BLA (Big Lead Assembly ) takes all the guesswork out of wiring your solar field. Using Shoals’ latest in-line fuse and wire manufacturing technology, we offer youLead a siteAssembly free of DC stringallcombiners.

The entire is combined a single of aluminum conductors from the string combiner The BLA (Big ) takes the guesswork out ofload wiring your solarinto field.

Using pair Shoals’ latest in-line fuse andrunning wire manufacturing technology, to the There’s need to trench for DCThe feeders hangisstring combiner terminated with therunning BAC connector, whole array is we offerinverter. you a site free no of DC string combiners. entireorload combined into aboxes. singleAnd pairwhen of aluminum conductors from thethe string combiner in the the inverter, just walk away!boxes. And when terminated with the BAC connector, the whole array is toplug-&-play. the inverter.Plug There’s nopanel need strings, to trenchplug for into DC feeders or hangandstring combiner plug-&-play. Plug in the panel strings, plug into the inverter, and just walk away! ®

®

1400 Shoals Way, Portland, TN 37148 1400 Shoals Way, Portland, TN 37148

| |

615.451.1400 615.451.1400

| |

sales@shoals.com sales@shoals.com

| |

www.shoals.com www.shoals.com