Solar design tips, sales advice, and industry insights from the premier solar design software platform
There are many factors that can reduce the energy production of a solar installation. In this series, we explain common types of PV system losses so you can ensure accurate solar energy production estimates. In this article, we explain losses from soiling, snow, and system degradation.
Andrew Gong
Using cutting-edge solar software like Aurora gives an advantage when it comes to the quality of your solar designs. When you clearly communicate the benefits of your advanced design tools, you can help customers see the value your company brings to the table—and ultimately close more solar sales.
Gwen Brown
Having the right insurance coverage can protect your solar contracting business from catastrophe. But working in the solar industry comes with its own unique insurance needs. We explore some of the key considerations to make sure you have the appropriate business insurance for your solar company.
Sara Carbone
The complexity of solar permitting has long been recognized as challenge for the industry, but there has not been a comprehensive effort to solve the issue to date. That's changing with a new program from SEIA and The Solar Foundation: the Solar Automated Permit Processing (SolarAPP) initiative.
Sara Carbone
Time of use (TOU) rates — which charge different prices for electricity depending on the time it is used — add additional complexity to finding the best solar design for the customer. There are several strategies that can help you design the best PV system for your customer’s TOU rate, however.
Gwen Brown
In 2018, the solar industry has been buffeted by three solar tariffs affecting the prices of imported solar components. We explain each of the tariffs and David Dunlap, VP of Operations at distributor Baywa r.e. Solar Systems, shares his perspective on how the tariffs impacted on solar contractors.
Sara Carbone
When designing a solar installation, one important consideration is whether to use module-level power electronics (MLPE), which include microinverters or DC optimizers. We explore some of the benefits of MLPE and explain how they fit into a PV system design.
Gwen Brown
Solar energy enjoys broad support, yet that doesn’t always translate into action. Drawing from one of the key panel discussions at SPI 2018, “Turning Positive Solar Attitudes to Positive Results,” we highlight five strategies for more effective communication that can help you close more solar sales.
Gwen Brown
Did you know SPI 2018 was partially solar-powered? To keep the fun of the conference going, we took a few minutes to model Anaheim Convention Center’s solar installation with Aurora’s new and improved design tools, in about ten minutes. Here's how we did it!
Gwen Brown
Each year, Solar Power World compiles a list of the Top 500 solar contractors in the U.S. We spoke to some of the many companies on the 2018 list that use Aurora's solar design and sales software to get their tips for running a successful solar contracting business.
Gwen Brown