Vertical Market

While understanding the need and opportunities within specific verticals we have built expertise and developed solutions for these specific markets. From the retail sector to the agricultural sector, each vertical is naturally suited for solar application and presents a real opportunity for businesses in gaining a competitive edge.

Solar Farms – Solar Power Plants

Solar farms or solar energy farms are energy farms where thousands of solar panels are used to convert solar energy to electricity shaping up into a solar power plant. The solar farms can be implemented on any piece of land that is not in use and can supplement the electricity of the business or can be sold to the utility company. Importantly, the solar farms also enable business to gain Solar Renewable Energy Certificates or carbon credits.

Solar farms are major projects requiring significant investment. Solar farm installations require careful feasibility assessment, technical design and product selection. Solar farms also require a detailed process design in light of the engineering of the system for maintenance and repair. Even a small design problem can cause major financial loss.

BIPV - Solar Panel Dimensions

Solar panels work well for retrofits or remodels while BIPV are appropriate for new construction or a major renovation. By including solar early in new construction or renovation, there is a possibility to select the optimum materials and technology according to financial and resource constraints. For example BIPV materials are PV arrays that are part and parcel of the building. They could be integrated in tiles, roof tiles, windows and walls. Similarly, thin film is flexible allowing a range of options in the architectural design and look of the building. With the right solar panel dimensions and technology even the most constrained space can be utilized for a commercial solar system.

Solar for Agriculture

Application of solar for agriculture on commercial scale is energy intensive. Just water heating can take up to 40 percent of the energy utilization in a dairy farm. This is particularly true as many processes that used to occur down the verticals have been shifted to the farm. There is a challenge in reducing costs while maintaining product quality of products with short shelf lives. Solar for agriculture can supply or supplement many of the farms energy requirements for heating and cooling. Agricultural landscapes lend themselves to solar installations – with little or no moving parts, solar installations are ideal for rural settings. PV solar panels can also be used to power water pumps, lighting, small motors and fans spread over large distances, reducing the need for extensive wiring.

Benefit Corporations - Flexible Purpose Corporations

Although, stakeholder value is supposed to be built into the modern financial system, by allowing market forces to punish companies who are harmful in their pursuit of profits, the time delay in the spread of information, legal requirements and the lack of transparency often means that the market forces are not able to deliver this punishment. Recently, two new forms of corporations have come up that are aimed towards corporations looking to marry profit and purpose: Benefit Corporations and Flexible Purpose Corporations. Ingrained in these two business structures are the concept of stakeholders (as compared to shareholders) and transparency.

Benefit corporations look not only pursue shareholder wealth, but also pursue other stakeholder value. By changing the legal purpose of the company, decisions taken to improve the environment, suppliers, customers and employees are shielded from lawsuits. The new status also asks for far greater transparency and accountability.

The Flexible Purpose Corporation allows the company to pursue a specific mission beyond profit maximization for shareholders. This can be anything from improving communities through running a soup kitchen to reducing environmental impact by going solar. This form of structure also asks for greater transparency and accountability.

We can help you decide if this is the way for you to go and guide you through the legal requirements to become a Benefit Corporation or a Flexible Purpose Corporation. Once this status is achieved, we can also help you design projects to achieve your purpose, and deliver real stakeholder value.