Operation and Maintenance (O&M) has become a standalone segment within the solar industry and it is it is widely acknowledged by all Companies for high-quality O&M services mitigate potential risks, improve the levelized Cost of Electricity and Power Purchase agreement prices, and positively impact the return on investment
Responding to the discrepancies that exist in today’s solar O&M market, RKR SOLAR SYSTEM SERVICES O&M follows the Best Practices Guidelines which make it possible for all to benefit from the experience of leading experts in the sector and increase the level of quality and consistency in O&M.
The Quality Practice are meant for O&M Contractors as well as investors, financiers, asset Owners, asset Managers, monitoring tool providers, technical consultants and all interested partners and beyond.
we begin by contextualising O&M by explaining the roles and responsibilities of Our various Clients such as the asset Manager, the Operation service provider and the Maintenance provider and by providing an overview of technical and contractual terms to achieve a common understanding of the subject.
It then walks the reader through the different components of O&M, classifying requirements into “minimum requirements”, “best practices” and “recommendations”.
Conduct or ensure ongoing operations and maintenance (O&M), including repair and replacement Task:
O&M Plan and Budget
System performance
Monitoring system
O&M Contracts and agreements
Warranties
Production guarantees
Correlate with business plan and strategic energy plan
Contract compliance
Reporting of generation
Met or exceeded energy and financial performance
Increase efficiency and energy delivery
Decrease downtime
Extend system lifetime
Reduce cost of O&M
Ensure safety and reduce risk
Enhance appearance and image
Often required in financing and warranty.
Performance ratio
List elements of a documented PV system O&M plan
Criteria for selecting O&M provider: installer/ in-house/3rd party.
Tracking log and up-to-date document service histories
Online mobile work order management
Optimize balance between cost of scheduled maintenance, yield and cash flow
Use reserves or line of credit to make repairs quickly (corrective maintenance).
Onsite inspections, operational indicators, and procedures – Monitor Shade – Name responsibilities of the off-taker – Off-taker contacts provided if there is a problem
Inspection of fleets on a sample rather than every system
Performance guarantees consider insignificant corrections that can be deferred - consider degradation rates specific to module type.
Emphasize automated monitoring and analytics – Remote reset – Push reports to stakeholders
Report loss of production daily
Report low production weekly (false positives)
Monitoring system is transparent, maintainable and auditable – Backup is secure
On-site or remote sensing of environmental condition
Identify Safety Issues – Balance response time and urgency with cost of a “truck roll” and lost revenue – Address safety problem as soon as possible
Establish criteria to decide repair or replace of components and inverter
Establish criteria to order and stock part
Document financial solvency of contractors (installer, service provider)
Verify contractor has health and safety manual
Check that contractor maintains current and appropriate business insurances (coverage limits, deductibles, premiums)
Warranties – Performance indicators – Requirements to keep in effect – Transferability
The sun is a huge source of energy which has only recently been tapped into. It provides immense resources which can generate clean, non-polluting and sustainable electricity, thus resulting in no global warming emissions. In recent years, it was discovered that solar energy can be collected and stored, to be used on a global scale with the purpose of eventually replacing the conventional sources of energy. As the world is turning its focus to cleaner power so we RKR SOLAR SYSTEM SERVICES integrating each and every step to converse and protect our environment for the cleaner future. Therefore, we support solar energy which we have seen a significant rise in importance.
Solar energy systems offer significant environmental benefits in comparison to the conventional energy sources; thus, they greatly contribute to the sustainable development of human activities. At times however, the wide scale deployment of such systems has to face potential negative environmental implications. These possible problems may be a strong barrier for further advancement of these systems in some consumers.
Our trained Team Manages the risks posed by the solar plant to the health and safety of people, both on and around the plant, is a primary concern of all.
Solar plants are electricity generating power stations and have significant hazards present which can result in permanent injury or death.
Risks can be reduced through proper hazard identification, careful planning of works, briefing of procedures to be followed regular and well documented inspection and maintenance. the dangers of electricity are well known and can be effectively managed through properly controlled access and supervision and proper induction to ensure they are briefed on any hazards and risks.
In order to achieve a safe working environment, all work must be planned in advance, normally written plans are required. risk assessments need to be produced which detail all of the hazards present and the steps to be taken to mitigate them. the following dangers are likely to exist on most solar plants and must be considered when listing hazards in order to identify risks. the severity of any injuries caused are commonly exacerbated by the terrain and remoteness often found on solar plants.
1.) Medical problems. it is critical that all personnel engaged in work on site have considered and communicated any pre-existing medical problems and any additional measures that may be required to deal with them.
2.) Slips, trips and falls. the terrain, obstacles and equipment installed on a site provide plenty of opportunities for slips, trips and falls both at ground level and whilst on structures or ladders
It is of critical importance that all Operation and Maintenance Personnel have the relevant qualifications to perform the works in a safe, responsible and accountable manner. It is difficult to define exactly and in general not advisable to be rigid with the profile of the employees suitable to carry out the work and meet the necessary requirements. Indeed, the necessary knowledge and experience can be gained through different career developments and by different engagements
RKR SOLAR provide a wide range of skills and experience team members with a range of electrical, mechanical, financial, business and communications skills are required to handle different tasks and all of them strengthen the positive impact of the service provision.
Everyone who enters our team we trained in the dangers present in addition to their individual skills and experience required for the tasks that they normally perform. awareness of the necessary health and safety regulations. as the solar industry globally is a growth industry, it follows that skills will need to be taught in order to create a suitable workforce. it is therefore incumbent on all employers in the industry to create a training scheme both internally and externally which creates opportunities for qualifications and development.
Whilst it is inevitable that some staff will choose to leave, it is unrealistic to imagine that any company can always employ already skilled and qualified staff. the creation of a training matrix such as shown the proposed skills matrix in the annex enables a company to record skills, both formal and informal, to identify gaps and to provide training to fill the gaps. as the industry grows, there is a rapid rate of technological change as well as emergent best practices, which require a programme of continuous personal development to which both individuals and companies need to be committed. the matrix goes beyond any educational background and focuses on the skills required by the O&M company in a specific country. therefore, many of the skills/requirements are adjustable due to different practices and regulations