← All workClient Engagement

Solar Design Practice

600+ permit-ready PV systems across 50+ US jurisdictions

Real engagement, published with the client's permission.

Solar Design Practice — Capability, by the numbers
Fig. 01 — Capability, by the numbers
600+
PV systems designed
50+
US jurisdictions (AHJ)

Overview

Outsourced photovoltaic engineering for installers, EPCs and homeowners — residential rooftop, commercial and C&I, ground-mount and building-integrated Solar Roof. From the first shade study to a stamped, code-compliant plan set the crew can install from, engineered to the applicable NEC, IFC, IBC and IRC codes and to the local authority having jurisdiction.

The problem

Installers lose their margin in the design queue. A plan set that misreads the authority having jurisdiction, or specifies racking that does not suit the roof structure, comes back from permitting and takes the crew's schedule with it. The design has to be right for the code, the platform and the roof at the same time.

What we did

  1. 01Start from the site, the utility and the load rather than from a module count — the system is scoped before a panel is placed.
  2. 02Model shade and production in Aurora, HelioScope, PVsyst and PVWatts, so the production estimate survives being checked.
  3. 03Design to how each platform actually installs: Enphase, SolarEdge, Sol-Ark, Generac and Tesla are certified, not guessed at.
  4. 04Match racking to the structure — IronRidge, K2, Unirac and Schletter rail, S-5! for standing seam, SolarStack ballasted where penetrations are unwelcome.
  5. 05Issue the full sheet set: cover, site, roof, electrical, attachment, three-line, design tables, conductor schedules, placards and BOQ.

Delivered

  • Shade and production analysis
  • PV sizing and string design
  • AC/DC electrical and single-line diagrams
  • Structural attachment and racking layouts
  • Permit-ready stamped plan sets
  • BOQs and production reports

Outcome

Six hundred-plus systems delivered across residential, commercial and ground-mount, in more than fifty authorities having jurisdiction.

Specification

Practices
ESG, Solar & Energy
Industries
Energy & Renewables, Engineering, Real Estate
Engagement
Per project, or an ongoing design desk

Inside the build

  • Solar Design Practice — Electrical plan — 179 kWp commercial, two arrays, 304 modules
    Fig. 02 — Electrical plan — 179 kWp commercial, two arrays, 304 modules
  • Solar Design Practice — Three-line diagram — inverters, storage, disconnects, interconnection
    Fig. 03 — Three-line diagram — inverters, storage, disconnects, interconnection
  • Solar Design Practice — Assembly details — attachment cross-sections
    Fig. 04 — Assembly details — attachment cross-sections
  • Solar Design Practice — Manufacturer certifications and platforms
    Fig. 05 — Manufacturer certifications and platforms

Have something like this in front of you?

Related work

  • Tesla Solar Roof — Building-Integrated PV — The roof is the array

    ESG & Energy

    Client Engagement

    Tesla Solar Roof — Building-Integrated PV

    Where the tiles are the roof: 699 tiles, six Powerwalls, permit-ready

    699
    Solar tiles designed
    6
    Powerwall 3 units integrated

    Energy & Renewables · Real Estate

  • Solar Pre-Sales & Design Guidance — LIDAR shade model — reading the obstructions

    ESG & Energy

    Client Engagement

    Solar Pre-Sales & Design Guidance

    LIDAR shade modelling that de-risks the sale before the plan set

    95%
    Solar access achieved
    88%
    Annual TOF

    Energy & Renewables · Real Estate