For most of the past decade, the solar industry has been focused on deployment. Pipeline and installed capacity were the primary benchmark for success, and the industry delivered. Costs declined, projects scaled, and megawatts grew at a pace few could have predicted. That phase is now maturing, and what is becoming increasingly clear in the field is that the next phase of growth will not be driven...
The changing landscape of the solar industry requires a more active approach to performance, integrating monitoring, engineering, and field operations. Improved data analysis can lead to better dispatching of technicians, prioritization of maintenance, and the incorporation of real-world performance data into design and repowering decisions, ultimately resulting in more predictable system behavior and tighter performance across portfolios. This transition is driven by a need for better data, dee...