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Weekly Topic: Austria: Pioneering commercial PV rooftop installation in Austria

"A rooftop system of this size is not only an important milestone for the operator, but also for Austria as a PV location," said Fabian Madl, Key Account Manager at Schletter Group. "At the same time, we as a business are further consolidating our good position in a very dynamic Austrian PV market“.

The system is located on the factory roofs of the automotive and commercial vehicle manufacturer Steyr Automotive in the Upper Austrian town of Steyr. In future, the company will cover around a quarter of its energy requirements with the solar power generated here.

Several roofs with various solar mounting systems

As the system extends over several of the factory’s roofs, various solar mounting systems and solutions from Schletter were used. The modules were mounted on the flat roof surfaces using the FixGrid system. Thanks to improved aerodynamics, the system requires less ballasting. At the same time, the Schletter developers have further optimized the system to make it more modular. "The FixGrid modular system makes the planning and installation of systems much more flexible," explained Stephan Wild, Head of Sales for Roof Systems in Austria at Schletter Group. "Thanks to its quick and easy installation, the system is also particularly economical."

Did you miss that? Christian Salzeder and Stephan Wild of Schletter: New mounting system for optimal use of space

Challenging roof construction

On the pitched roof surfaces, the modules were mounted directly onto the trapezoidal metal sheeting using the SingleFix and ClampFit clamps. Schletter seam clamps were also used in some areas where the roof sheets were joined with standing seams. "It was important for the customer that the entire project could be planned and implemented from a single source, despite some very challenging roof constructions and pitches," says Wild. "We had the right solution for every situation thanks to our comprehensive product range."

Schletter Group is currently also supplying a utiliy-scale solar park, also in cooperation with Burgenland Energie. The plant in Nickelsdorf, near the Hungarian border, is currently under construction, and will generate a total of 116 MW of solar power. (hcn)