Summary
As stated in this source article, the AEE Solar Dealer Conference offered solar patrons the opportunity to learn more about new products and services in the industry.
Analysis
Noted in this template article, AEE Solar, which sells exclusively wholesale renewable energy sources and components to renewable energy resellers, contractors, integrators and installers held its annual conference and expo February 17-20 in Mesa, Arizona. It is one of the primary solar distributor organizations in the U.S., and it aids many solar panel manufacturers in reaching their end markets. The main 3 days of the event included numerous classes, workshops and expo demos of innovative solar products and services. Only approximately four major solar photovoltaic (PV) module manufacturers were represented at the expo, although there was an abundance of solar inverter and controller companies, as well as other elements of the supply chain.
This application-oriented conference included a wide array of presentations on critical issues facing the solar industry such as: PV market economic status, code training for installers, shade mitigation, policy advocacy, residential and commercial financing, backup power sources, and solar system pre-screen modeling and performance monitoring. Interesting concepts were raised during the event such as the need for battery power backup on residential solar systems tied to the local grid. Typically, backup power is only necessary during a power outage, and the cost is not warranted unless the home is located in geographic area frequently affected by inclement weather or power grid failure due to demand surges. What’s more, in many cases, the battery life is shorter than the panels themselves.
However, in the case of utility-scale solar power plants, unfortunately, there is significantly less emphasis on battery power storage across the industry, especially in preparation for when solar becomes a much higher percentage of a utility’s overall energy portfolio. Many of the battery suppliers exhibiting at the event are conducting research and development on optimal materials for these applications and one in particular, Exide Battery, was awarded stimulus funding for this key area of study. In contrast to electric hybrid vehicle battery technology, the performance metrics are quite different and the batteries for plants will be required to last longer than their expected 10-15 year lifetime. Major infrastructure projects such as power plants are required to last 35-50 years, in general, so replacing battery backup power systems every 10 years is not desirable.
In terms of commercial solar monitoring systems, Draker Laboratories showcased a number of innovative solutions for evaluating performance of a renewable energy system. Of course, after implementing a new solar system for a building, one cannot simply walk away and expect everything to be functioning optimally over time without any maintenance. This company provides high-performance hardware monitoring and software-as-a-service data management systems for commercial-scale renewable energy systems including: solar PV, wind, solar thermal and hybrid power. Their Sentalis (TM) product line is an end-to-end (source to grid) solution that includes: field instrumentation, remote data collection, data hosting, and a web-based user interface, encompassing performance trends, energy production statistics, carbon emissions offsets, alarms and a raw data viewer. As more companies or government buildings enact new LEED standards, this product will be extremely handy for energy facility managers.
With respect to financial analysis of the investment commercial and residential solar power offers to the customer, OnGrid Solar demonstrated its product portfolio through its exhibition and several classes during the AEE Solar Dealer Conference. This company sells an innovative software package to solar installers and distributors, which calculates the combined benefit from incentives such as: rebates, tax credits, depreciation, solar renewable energy credits, feed-in tariffs, etc. while also thoroughly evaluating the rate of return and yield of a solar system compared to conventional investments like stocks and bonds. This software can be updating regularly to include energy rates and new incentive programs for selected regions of the country. It is very useful for installers in establishing the business case and a proposal for a customer to go green.
In any case, the AEE Solar Dealer Conference offered solar patrons the opportunity to learn more about new products and services in the industry. Amidst the enthusiasm for growth in 2010, it was essentially a consensus that if the U.S. enacted pending Congressional legislation for solar such as the Solar Manufacturing Jobs Act, Solar Technology Roadmap Act, Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act, all elements of the supply chain would really thrive.
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