COMPANY I OVERVIEW
time and resources. Unirac’s product roadmap indicates that incorporating power management and electrical components into racking hardware is the direction for future products.
Figure 2: Unirac SolarMount’ rail system (Source: Unirac)
1. 2. 3. 4.
Flashing
Compression bracket Bonded washer Lag screw
Another step to lower the cost of hardware and installation was announced by Unirac. The company introduced a new type of rail that has built-in wire clips. This simple design change reduces Unirac’s manufacturing costs by 5 to 10 percent - savings that are passed along to installers and homeowners.
Wire clips have traditionally been manufactured as separate parts from rails and mounting hardware. By eliminating the need to manufacture separate wire clips, Unirac’s development will reduce production cost and increase the efficiency of a system. One less part to order, manage, kit, and install saves installation
Current costs The U.S. national average installed system price for residential PV systems was $4.93/Watt for Q1 2013 Hardware cost is generally unaffected by project location, but there can be a large regional installation cost difference due to labour rates as well as installer-specific issues; such as level of expertise, installer company size and use of best practices. A significant portion of a solar PV system’s cost today is labour related. Labour costs include the upfront engineering and system design, combined with installation and project follow-up. For example skilled labour in Texas is less expensive than in California, and this contributes to a mean installed cost difference of nearly $2/Watt (2012 data) with Texas at $3.90/Watt and California at $5.70/Watt. Current cost of installation in the mid-Atlantic is thought to be between $3/Watt to $4/Watt .
The US Department of Energy (DOE) SunShot program has a 2020 target installed system cost of $1.50/Watt for solar PV residential systems (see Table 1, below). Module pricing has dropped from $3.50/Watt in 2008 to approximately $0.70/Watt today, so the cost reduction emphasis must be on non-module costs. The DOE SunShot goal of $1.50/Watt is based on the cost structure for the system.
The total BOS-related cost (not including the electronics) in the DOE 2020 scenario is $0.84/Watt, which is a 76% reduction from the BOS costs of $3.50/Watt8 reported for 2010. The 2012 BOS costs in U.S. residential PV was reported as $3.82/Watt, indicating that very little progress has been made on reducing BOS costs over the last several years. It’s thought that currently ~$1.00/Watt is attributable to the installation labour and non- power electronics hardware which are a part of the BOS costs.
A new approach
Giga Solar modules appear visually similar to traditional glass modules, but the benefits are behind the solar cells. Giga Solar has developed modules that are lightweight and include integrated mounting hardware. Giga Solar modules alone are 60% lighter than traditional glass modules. Giga Solar modules are a non-glass and frameless design that rely on a high- strength, rigid composite to support the crystalline silicon cells.
In the factory Giga Solar’s module is directly attached to a lightweight, low-cost aluminum support structure, thus creating a single component for easy and fast installation at the job site. The corrugated pattern of the metal support structure (shown in Figure 3) allows for both the cooling of the modules, as well as, for an efficient transfer of wind and snow loads from the module to the roof. The bolt slots at the ends of the support structure allow for quick attachment to the roof. Giga Solar modules offer a true flush-mount on a composition shingle roof, giving a clean look to the system (Figure 4).
Figure 3: Giga Solar PV module and support structure 62
www.solar-international.net I Issue IV 2014
A typical 260 Watt, 60-cell glass solar module weighs 40 - 45 pounds, while a 60-cell Giga Solar module (only) weighs just 16
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