O&M
Thinking of launching an O&M division? Here are five factors to consider. BY E R I C D O M E S C I K | CO - F O U N D E R A N D P R E S I D E N T | R E N E W V I A E N E R G Y
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in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis, the U.S. solar industry has shown impressive growth, with no signs of slowing down. The industry added a record 19.2 GW of new capacity during 2020 — a 43% increase from 2019. The report also projected that by the end of the decade, the U.S. solar market would quadruple from current levels. This projected growth has numerous implications for solar developers across the country, including what will likely be an unprecedented demand for operations and maintenance (O&M) services. Solar developers often contemplate how and when to expand their offerings to include O&M. In making this important decision, there are a number of factors to consider, ranging from the size of your client base to the availability and skillset of your employees, among other areas.
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SOLAR POWER WORLD // 2022 RENEWABLE ENERGY HANDBOOK
For Renewvia, we carefully explored expanding our solar development business to include O&M, prior to launching our maintenance division last year. We are fortunate to have built our EPC business around a client base that believes in the value of incorporating solar into their long-term business plans, with many installing solar at multiple facilities. With this in mind, we have always tried to offer maintenance and warranty replacement services beyond our standard one-year workmanship guarantee, as a way to provide additional value, gain referrals and earn potential new business. However, as our client portfolio grew, we found ourselves in need of hiring full-time employees to focus solely on monitoring and maintaining existing sites. We also began to hear from clients a desire to formalize long-term services. We were
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