Drivers
“Together, we can seize new opportunities – and rise to the responsibility”
Collins Aerospace were seeking ways to reduce their energy costs and emissions. They approached Climate Integrated Solutions (CIS) and requested an investigation into the potential for roof mounted solar PV and the potential for a funded solution for their Plymouth site.
The system as well as reducing operating costs would support the company’s aggressive goals to reduce their environmental footprint across their facilities.
Feasibility Study
The initial step was to undertake structural surveys for the roof areas identified as potentially suitable for a solar PV array. This was carried out by CIS and conformed with the clients’ global insurers requirements. We also commenced discussions with the DNO to ensure we could deliver a grid connection for our designated system design.
With these steps completed we were able to focus on the modelling of the return of investment using site specific data and developing a bespoke funding model maximising the financial benefit for Collins Aerospace with a project supported by extended warranties, fire fighter switch technology and an O&M support package incorporating annual service visits for the defined life of the system.
Design
CIS designed and specified a high output 345w panel to maximise the available roof space.
The initial project design was 319kwp system, but further exploration of additional roof areas allowed us to design and deliver a 503 kWp system. Incorporated in the design were 2 different mounting systems to meet the different roof type requirements.
In full coordination with the client requirements our design incorporated bi-facial panels ensuring no combustible materials facing onto the roof. We also included optional firefighter safety switches which gives simple and quick isolation of the full system without need to get onto the roof, an increasing requirement of building insurers.
Our solution also included an extended 20-year warranty on the inverters and an annual O&M and site service visit to optimise performance and deliver proactive maintenance of the system
We modelled the half hourly energy usage data against the expected PV generation across the year and by maximising all available roof space using high efficiency panels we were able to achieve utilisation of over 95% of generated power providing over 16% of site demand. The simple payback on the electricity cost at the time was under 5 years and at July 2022 was closer to 3 years. Modelling factors in panel output degradation over the life of the system and takes account of location, orientation and any shading factors and only presents ‘Real World’ outputs so providing realistic CO2 offset and cost saving data for commercial consideration.
Install
As the scheme developed there were additional client requests which we incorporated into the final system. This included the final locations of inverters in a number of different switch rooms, an integration strategy with existing fire alarm system and integration with systems connected to on site generators. Our design ensured the system is fully integrated with the site energy back up and fire alarm systems and doesn’t require manual resetting.
Results
The installed solar PV array is fully integrated with site systems delivering an automated solution optimised to maximise the energy savings over the lifetime of the system. We also provide live access to output data as part of the project, allowing users to view and monitor key data including on-site generation, CO2 savings and money saved. The project was completed in July 2022, With the first month’s output exceeding the ROI modelled figures the system is set to deliver target savings and with increased energy costs will further reduce the payback period for the investment.
The funding, developed by CIS, means that all the financial savings pass to the client after an initial funding period maximising their return on investment. The solution is fully funded with no capital investment and cash positive from year 1 and this system will be delivering savings of approximately £120K in the first year. The funding term set is 8 years
| Financial savings (PA) | CO2 Savings | |
| Year 1 | £120,000 | 67.3 t/Co2 |
| 20 Years | £4,128,275 | 2090 t/Co2 |
Will deliver over £420,000 of savings net of funding costs over the 8 year contract term *based on energy unit cost at July 2022
On -going Support
CIS renewable solutions incorporate a full ongoing O&M service to give our clients peace of mind and to optimise the output from the installation over the life of the system. Remote monitoring of live data and an annual service visit mean that we will be there to keep the solar PV system operating at its peak efficiency and to provide any support or information for our client over the long term.