The market for commercial Solar PV systems offers Solar Integrators a significant opportunity to grow their businesses with projects that offer a higher profit margin. The first point to keep in mind when selling commercial solar, it is a financial sell. To effectively compete for business, a Solar Integrator must offer a solution that provides a perspective client with an attractive Return-on-Investment (ROI) and be able to effectively educate a client on both the financial benefits and technical features of a proposed solar PV solution.
There are a number of variables that impact ROI. Some are apparent, others are not so apparent in the initial analysis. The apparent variables include energy production, engineering design services, permits, cost of equipment, material costs, install labor and ongoing maintenance, as well as financial incentives. The not so apparent variables include the Solar Integrator’s risk exposure to installing and warrantying equipment that may fail to perform and/or cause an unforeseen electrical failure incident. These situations can be characterized as “shared risk” with the client and may result in injury and serve property damage.
The North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners (NABCEP) has developed a comprehensive Job Task Analysis list which details each of the process steps for the specification, installation, and maintenance of PV systems. This list is very useful in analyzing the ROI variables associated with selling and installing solar pv systems.
For example, consider tasks related to designing the system. Once you complete a site survey, you begin the process of determining the type of solar panel, mounting system and inverter configuration you intend to use. In addition, you must consider the electrical interconnection and National Electric Code. This portion of the design process involves a significant amount of time since you are contacting various manufacturers or distributors, which impacts your cost. Integrated system designs, such as RAIS® Wave reduce this time component. A Solar Integrator who selects equipment and builds a system, becomes responsible for the warranty and liability of the “system.” This is your risk. The individual equipment manufacturers warranty their equipment, but not as a complete system.
A manufacturer who offers a complete system, as solution, can enable the Solar Integrator to optimize the ROI variables and mitigate risk. The tenKsolar RAIS® Wave solution offers a better approach to addressing these issues. The result, you are more competitive and can grow a profitable commercial solar pv business.
