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Although the oil price is quite low at the moment, energy costs are cutting into profits for many companies. Electricity in particular is costly, even for businesses. By switching to solar electricity, this item in the balance sheet can be reduced significantly. That is, if you take the following advice:
These are the 6 business tips to save money by using PV in your company:
- First have your roofs assessed – and those devices that use too much power!
- Use solar electricity for hot water!
- Compressed air storage systems and electric vehicles improve efficiency!
- Run ventilation and refrigeration directly on solar energy!
- Prefer European components and equipment!
- Leave the installing to the experts!
Join our Solar Saturday Club! More tips and news for your use here.
1. First have your roofs assessed – and those devices that use too much power!
If you want to use solar electricity in your company to really reduce your energy costs, you need to go about it in a professional manner. First, you need to have all your roofs assessed to determine if they are suitable: structural integrity, accessibility and availability. Who actually owns the roof? Generally speaking, it does not make a difference if the company, a lessor or the bank owns the roof. That is only significant, because it has tax or business ramifications.
Once your roofs have been assessed as suitable, you can start planning your solar generators. The more solar electricity you use on-site, the more cost-effective the investment will be. So it is important to know the company’s consumption patterns. Identify those devices that use too much electricity. Often these can be eliminated even before you start planning to cover their usage with solar PV. Examples of such devices are out-dated mercury-vapour lamps or old ventilation systems, which can easily be replaced by new LEDs or efficient ventilators.
Connecting solar generators to an intra-company power grid (a so-called on-site grid) usually is no problem, also in medium-voltage grids. The site metre marks the limit of the property. Within its own grid, a company can install solar generators, as long as it does not feed any power into the public grid. In that case, the permission of the local grid operator is required, which usually involves all kinds of extra bureaucracy. back to top.
2. Use solar electricity for hot water!
Because electricity is a relatively expensive form of energy, solar power should first and foremost be used to meet the company’s demand for production. But it can also be a good idea to dimension the solar generators a bit larger to also meet the demand for hot water, for instance by using electric boilers. That may be sensible in washrooms or tea kitchens. If a company uses hot water in high volumes (e.g. food industry, electroplating), one could also consider solar-thermal water heating (but only is such cases). Hot water is also useful for storing excess solar power off of the roof: Immersion heaters convert the electricity into heat, which then generates hot drinking water to be kept in smaller reservoirs. This avoids having to feed solar electricity back into the power grid. back to top.
3. Compressed air storage systems and electric vehicles improve efficiency!
Solar electricity can also be used to run the electric compressors of a compressed air system. Compressed air is also a medium for storing energy. Electric cars can also be powered from the solar electricity off the factory roof or covered parking spaces on the premises. Access to charge points provides an incentive to employees to buy electric cars or pedelecs. Electric cars are still more expensive to buy than vehicles with a combustion engine, but manufacturers these days offer leasing at very favourable conditions. And the unbeatable advantage: Electric vehicles are much cheaper to run. Not only are there no fuel costs, but maintenance and ‘MOT’ are much less expensive. back to top.
4. Run ventilation and refrigeration directly on solar energy!
Another way of utilising solar power is to run ventilation fans and cooling systems or refrigeration units on it. The need for ventilation and the cooling requirements are naturally greater in the hottest hours of a summer’s day than in the mornings and evenings. Thus the generation curve of a solar generator almost perfectly matches the consumption curve of the electric compressors (cooling/refrigeration) and the fans in the ventilation shafts. Specific solar batteries are usually not required in this case. back to top.
5. Prefer European components and equipment!
When it comes to solar generators and their components (solar panels, wiring, inverters) as well as storage units (solar batteries, charging technology), you should give a preference to European manufacturers. This does not mean that foreign companies are not capable of building such components properly, but German suppliers usually have better service in case of complaints or damage. Sure, European products might be more expensive than the competition from the Far East. But buying cheap usually means buying twice. back to top.
6. Leave the installing to the experts!
When designing commercial solar generators you should always consult experienced planners who are well-versed in their field. The installation of the components and equipment should be executed by trained technicians. These technicians and planners are familiar with meteorological and regional circumstances and often have already fitted similar systems and provided equipment for similar companies.
A proficient planner will, beyond designing the solar installation and analysing the structural integrity of the roof, also analyse and address the question of funding. You can tell a good installation company – apart from their references – by the fact that beyond commissioning and lightning protection, they also offer to take care of maintenance right from the start. Also, they should issue the German Federal Solar Energy Association’s ‘facility passport’ (documentation) for the installation without having to be asked. back to top. (Heiko Schwarzburger)
Join our Solar Saturday Club! More tips and news for your use here.
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