Advocating for Solar Energy

While Heliolytics has a history of advocacy work in the solar energy space, we are now taking steps to formalize our commitments internally. In 2021, we made advocacy work core to our strategic company objectives. Moving forward, this will allow us to prioritize and obtain the resources necessary for us to place a greater focus on advocacy work.

Heliolytics aims to contribute to general advocacy initiatives for solar power. We do this through our membership contributions to organizations doing this important work, such as SolarPower Europe and the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA).

Heliolytics is also committed to its role as an active advocate for technical competency within the solar industry. In December 2021, we kicked off an internal initiative to develop a new online platform for solar learning and knowledge. SOAR© by Heliolytics, or Solar Open Access Resource, is a knowledge base (KB) ecosystem for solar industry professionals that will support global talent development and increase solar industry knowledge. The knowledge base will provide users with practical information on system operations and reliability through a variety of learning formats, materials, and content.

Finally, Heliolytics is involved in a number of industry advisory groups and activities including the following:

Solar Energy Industries Association

SEIA is the national trade association for the U.S. solar industry and is leading the transformation to a clean energy economy, creating the framework for solar to achieve 30% of U.S. electricity generation by 2030. SEIA works with its 1,000 member companies and other strategic partners to fight for policies that create jobs in every community and shape fair market rules that promote competition and the growth of reliable, low-cost solar power.

SolarPower Europe

SolarPower Europe is a member-led industry association operating in 38 countries around the world. They aim to provide energy market analysis, advocate for solar-based solutions to policymakers, ensure solar financing opportunities, publicly advocate for solar, and drive business opportunities for their members. Heliolytics’ involvement with SolarPower Europe includes participation in committees and collaborating on the SolarPower Europe Operation & Maintenance Best Practice Guidelines. Additionally, Heliolytics is the only certified aerial thermography provider listed under the Solar Best Practices Company Directory. The Solar Best Practices are a suite of Guidelines (handbooks), Checklists, and certification-based Marks (labels), prepared by SolarPower Europe to create more transparency in solar services and incentivize excellence.

DuraMAT Industry Advisory Board

DuraMAT is the Durable Module Materials Consortium. Their goal is to eventually levelize the cost of electricity to lower than three cents USD per kilowatt-hour by enabling innovative materials and design for PV modules. Heliolytics is an active member of DuraMAT’s Industry Advisory Board, which ensures the consortium can achieve its goal.

NREL PV Reliability Workshop Planning Committee

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) hosts an annual Photovoltaic Reliability Workshop to encourage discussion with the goal of increasing investor confidence and reducing the cost of solar electricity. Rob Andrews, CEO of Heliolytics, has participated in this workshop in 2019, 2020, and 2021 as a subject matter expert and speaker. He is also an invited speaker and panelist for the 2022 workshop.

Additionally, Heliolytics is a founding member and contributor to the NREL “Best Practices for Operations and Maintenance of Photovoltaic and Energy Storage Systems; 3rd Edition.”

NIST Workshop on Photovoltaic Materials Durability

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Engineering Laboratory promotes U.S. innovation and industrial competitiveness by advancing measurement science, standards, and technology in ways that enhance economic security and improve quality of life. NIST develops the testing, measurements, and reference materials needed to ensure the quality of energy-related products and services and ensure fairness in the marketplace. Rob Andrews, CEO of Heliolytics, was invited to give a technical presentation at the 2021 Workshop on Photovoltaic Materials Durability, which was titled, “Testing Methodology, Measurement, and Observation Biases: Insights from 80GW of PV inspections.”