In the old days, ordering a solar mounting system was a manual process. Systems were designed by hand. Costs were calculated on spreadsheets. Purchase orders were sent in by mail.
That process has certainly changed a lot since solar mounting manufacturers began adding powerful design tools to their websites. And as these tools increase in usability, more niche providers are looking to add them.
Mounting Systems first dipped into the web-based design sphere in 2007, when it launched an online tool that was essentially a glorified Excel sheet. In 2010, it released a more complex version.
“The main reason was to provide a code-compliant installation for installers using our products and to make their jobs easier,” said Don Massa, product manager at Mounting Systems. “By doing all the calculations online, and having it be PE certified, it makes the permitting process and inspection process faster and smoother, and it gave customers confidence that their installation would be done correctly and would not raise any issues.”
Design tools, regardless of supplier, tend to offer similar functions. Most allow you to choose where you want to place modules on a roof. They allow you to determine the panel type. You can insert various loading options and what buildings codes are applicable.
When you’re done, systems generate a bill of materials. Installers sometimes take this to their distributor to begin price negotiations.
In fact, some installers use online tools as a way to determine costs of systems and shop around, said Matt Danning, director of product development and technical services at Everest Solar.
“They’re trying to figure out what their cost will be and which system they’ll use,” Danning said. “The margin for some of these installers can be quite slim, so they have to be pretty careful.”
Plus, Danning said, the software can be beneficial to mounting companies, too. It allows them to spend more time helping customers.
“Any company that is serious about helping their customers navigate all the possible mounting systems out there, and any company looking to focus on customers who are ready and willing to buy, will need to have an online tool to help customers get educated and also to weed out tire kickers, so to speak,” he said.
Mounting companies, in most cases, are partnering with outside software firms to develop the programs, though individual mounting suppliers might supply all of the raw data and engineering calculations.
For instance, Unirac product manager Ernest Gallegos designed the first U-Builder tools and then, once the structure was there, managed third party software developers, who keep the tool functional and up-to-date.
Unirac recently partnered with Folsom Labs, makers of Helioscope solar design software, to integrate with an API. It lets clients of both companies share project information between tools. Behind the scene, Unirac helped Helioscope develop structural engineering capabilities for flat roof designs.
“The collaboration with HelioScope came from the realization we’re not really a software company,” Gallegos said. “We’re proud of our tools, and we plan to grow those into other spaces, but we really needed to start partnering with these emerging solar software tools.”
As with most software platforms, updates are needed constantly. IronRidge released an update to its Design Assistant in late February, splitting the flat-roof and pitched-roof elements of the software into two separate offering.
All the companies interviewed noted that their layout tools are not necessarily a be-all, end-all design system for installers—the need for which is being filled by a growing number of solar-software companies.
“People are trying to get a bill of materials and an estimate of the mounting system cost,” said David Briggs, marketing manager at IronRidge. “And the No. 2 use-case is engineering analysis—confirming the dead loads and live loads at attachments locations, just to confirm that the structural capacity is what the engineer or designer wanted.”
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