The Clean Energy Council is calling for solar designers and installers to submit entries for the 2017 Solar Design and Installation Awards.
This year’s awards are open from now to Friday August 15. Finalists will be announced in September and nominations can be made through the Solar Accreditation website.
The winners will be announced on Wednesday 11 October at an awards dinner, a highlight event of the All-Energy Australia conference in Melbourne.
CEC Executive General Manager (Industry Integrity) Sandy Atkins said solar installers lead innovation in the Australian energy sector.
He said the Awards recognise “the highly inventive solutions that these innovative men and women come up with to deliver the best possible outcome for their clients in challenging situations.
“As we’ve seen from previous years’ entries, the ingenuity of these solutions never fails to impress.”
Solar energy entries from all across Australia
Mr Atkins said last year’s solar energy winners came from across Australia. Winning installations were diverse, with sites ranging from a remote Arnhem Land community to an 18-storey building in Melbourne.
“All of these projects involved very different and unique challenges, but all were overcome with clever installations that made them worthy winners.”
The Award categories cover installations of all types and sizes across five categories::
- Under 30 kW – stand-alone PV power system
- Under 30 kW – grid connect PV power system
- Under 30 kW – grid connect PV power system with battery back-up
- 30–240 kW – any system eligible
- Over 240 kW – any system eligible
Energy Matters: major achievements in solar design
The Energy Matters’ team has worked on high-profile projects including 1 MW solar project for Australia’s second-largest airport, Karratha Airport in WA.
The Energy Matters’ led Sustainable Buildings Research Centre (SBRC) at the University of Wollongong meant the building became the first in Australia to register under the Living Building Challenge Program.
Meanwhile, with support from the Energy Matters’ team, The Pines Elanora shopping centre on the Gold Coast installed Australia’s largest single solar car park structure.
The huge PV array consists of 2,051 x 310 watt solar panels with a combined capacity of 636 kWp.
