The Solar FlexRack TDP Turnkey Tracker at the company’s headquarters in Youngstown, Ohio.
The 2016 U.S. solar market is expected to outperform all previous years. A robust pipeline of projects, spurred by the once-possible sunset of the investment tax credit, is available to suppliers, and leading companies are developing in-demand technology while increasing manufacturing capacity to fill a swell of orders.
At the same time, the solar industry is trending toward trackers for ground-mount projects, with 60% of ground-mounted projects in the U.S. using them. As trust in the technology improves, that percentage is expected to increase. GTM predicts the market for trackers will reach almost $5 billion by 2020.
Reading market trends, managers at mounting supplier Solar FlexRack knew they had a key opportunity to develop a product that would satisfy demand, in price and in design. It became the company’s goal to launch a new tracker product in 2015.
“The market was asking for a quality product at a lower price point, and we recognized that we wouldn’t get there with our current product, so we started evaluating alternative designs that would meet competitive price points without sacrificing quality or functionality,” said Tom Meola, CEO of Solar FlexRack.
After a year of design and prototyping, Solar FlexRack has delivered the TDP Turnkey Tracker, which the company says offers the lowest total-cost solution by providing key support services, including full design, installation and commissioning, bundled in one contract.
“The TDP Turnkey Tracker is the result of our systematic, in‐field testing and collaboration with our clients,” said Steve Daniel, executive vice president of sales and marketing. “The TDP addresses a critical need for services that will be essential to support the expected increase in demand in 2016.”
The Service
What really separates Solar FlexRack from other suppliers, Meola said, is the customer service offering for commercial and utility‐scale solar customers. An in-house team will provide mechanical, structural, civil, electrical and geotechnical engineering. In addition, for developers, Solar FlexRack can provide installation through construction partners.
“Our objective is to make the customer’s project easier by providing a full slate of engineering, project management, construction and value-add services, rather than having the customer engage multiple firms for these services,” Meola said.
One of Solar FlexRack’s key competencies is soil testing, which is critical for determining the right type of tracker foundation. Considering the projected growth of solar in Minnesota, Meola pointed out the company’s extensive experience in Ontario, where it has built over 500 MW of projects. Meola said conditions in Minnesota and Ontario are similar in many ways, especially as it relates to frost.
“Our lessons learned in Ontario will allow Solar FlexRack to better serve the Minnesota market by helping clients select the right foundation design for a site,” Meola said. “The one thing that has clearly emerged is our knowledge of how to cost-effectively design foundations.”
The TDP
Realizing that the bankability of individual array components, such as mounting, is critical in developing projects, Solar FlexRack has largely kept the TDP’s mechanics the same as seen in previous trackers. To make the tracker more cost-effective, however, the company changed its table configuration: a single row of panels mounted in portrait. Also, small drive blocks lead to the best land use, with up to 40% reduction in the number of acres needed for same-size projects.
“At FlexRack, we like to think smart means keeping things simple, and our new system is just that,” said Greg Huzyak, head of product development. “We’ve been at this as long as anyone in the solar industry. We’ve learned that keeping things simple and robust is what allows us to remain competitive in a very demanding market without sacrificing the long-term integrity of our offerings.”
For construction firms, the tracker has been designed with fewer components and requires no special tools for installation. The simplicity carries over to maintenance needs.
“The mechanical components, primarily the bearings and actuators, are designed to be maintenance free,” Meola said. “This industry often finds itself up against tight construction deadlines, and as a result, long term O&M costs can be overlooked. We are always striving to be the best, not only in the short term, but the long term as well because both have an impact on a project’s overall economic viability.”
The adjustability in the mounting components of the TDP allow for fast and easy field alignment of the array for optimal system operation and aesthetically pleasing lines.
Solar FlexRack—a division of 45-year-old metal fabricator Northern States Metals—plans to exhibit at the major solar power tradeshows this year, including Intersolar and Solar Power International.