4 Kinds of Online Tools Residential Solar Installers Need to Know About

1. 4 Kinds of Online Tools Residential Solar Installers Need to Know About Trina Solar

2. Introduction Hard costs for panels, inverters and hardware in residential solar have been on the decline for years now. This means softs costs can now account for up to 65 percent of total system costs, up from only 58 percent in 2014. To find new ways to boost margins, installers need every tool at their disposal to lower these softs. Thankfully, new digital applications, websites and online platforms provide a major opportunity for installers to cut soft costs and improve their margins.

3. What are The Resources Residential Solar Installers Can Use For Streamlined Installations? Let’s take a look at 4 online resources residential solar installers can use for easier and more streamlined operations and installations: 1. Online Sales 2. Bills of Material 3. Logistics 4. Permitting

4. Online Sales The stay-at-home orders and social distancing restrictions during the pandemic ended many solar sales business model. In response, many installers turned to online sales as an alternative. This successful shift revealed that online sales helped installers present a cost-saving route for the future. By re-allocating resources to online sales, installers can lower customer acquisition costs while streamlining the sales process. These platforms provide access to pre-sales toolkits that let installers design, model, share, propose and close deals from a single online repository.

5. 2. Bills of Material An improperly filled out bill of materials (BOM) can create huge headaches, such as missing materials, incorrect orders and wrong delivery dates. All of these problems may ultimately mean a major delay in the installation and higher costs. There are many online platforms and apps that can help resolve these issues. For instance, some BOM apps let installers submit a design and receive a granular list that covers every item needed down to the washers. This speeds up procurement and makes the process more accurate.

6. 3. Logistics A logistics app project helps residential solar installers create checklists and workflows that help boost organizational efficiency. With a logistics app, installers can upload videos and photos to project management folders that can be shared in real-time by all stakeholders. They can track truck or technician inventory or gather on-site data for more streamlined installations and maintenance. In addition, logistics apps can also help optimize technician schedules and manage customer assets more effectively.

7. 4. Permitting The permitting process has become one of the biggest pain points for soft costs when it comes to a residential solar installation. Dealing with multiple Authorities Having Jurisdiction (AHJs), fire, building and electric code regulations can lead installers into a labyrinth of bureaucratic red tape. Some new platforms and apps aim to change that. The first is The Orange Button Project, a searchable crowdsourced database, which can help installers more easily navigate these AHJs quickly and efficiently. It also facilities the exchange of solar project data. This means residential solar installers can drastically cut down on the time and resources necessary to navigate the permitting process.

8. Want To Know More? https://www.trinasolar.com/us/resources/blog/4-kinds-online-tools-residential-solar-installers-need-know-about

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