PV and BESS inspections and expert reports
Technical inspections of PV plants and battery storage systems, expert reports for planning, permitting and disputes, and planning and consulting.
Technical inspections
Acceptance and commissioning inspection
Inspection at acceptance and commissioning so that no defects or faults are overlooked: for PV plants based on DIN EN IEC 62446‑1 (VDE 0126‑23‑1), for battery storage systems based on DIN EN IEC 62933‑2‑1. For storage systems we have been trained by several manufacturers, e.g. Commeo, ABB, Tesvolt, Varta and Kostal.
Technical due diligence
Technical project review before the acquisition of a PV plant or a portfolio, down to the plant documentation. We identify defects and assess technical risks.
Inspection by measurement
Measurements reveal defects and faults: string measurement, thermography and aerial images, insulation resistance measurement and testing according to DIN EN IEC 62446‑1 (VDE 0126‑23‑1).
Construction progress monitoring
Inspection of construction progress during the construction phase, so that defects and deviations from the contract are identified early and countermeasures can be taken.
End-of-warranty inspection
Until the warranty period ends, hidden defects can be reported and remedial work can be demanded. We make such defects visible and advise on the possible steps.
Technical asset management
Regular or event-driven inspection by an independent party for an unbiased condition report: assessment of defects and their rectification by the O&M operator, evaluation of plant yields and reports.
Assessments
We prepare expert reports for project development, portfolio expansions and disposals, warranty and complaint claims, and legal disputes.
Noise assessment
Noise immission predictions according to TA Lärm (German Technical Instructions on Noise Abatement) for battery storage systems, inverters and transformers: site evaluation, simplified prediction or detailed prediction according to DIN ISO 9613‑2.
Glare assessment
Simulation-based assessment of glare from planned or existing PV plants on road and rail users, for plants near airports also on air traffic, and of immissions from reflections at sensitive locations such as residential areas.
Yield assessment
Yield assessments and simulations for planned and existing PV plants, using PVsyst among other tools: site-specific irradiation, plant yield, performance ratio and loss analysis.
Revenue assessment
A battery storage system does not generate energy, so a yield assessment does not apply to it. We assess the expected revenues over the operating life with time resolution, for example from day-ahead and intraday trading and balancing reserve, and review existing revenue calculations by third parties.
RPS analysis
Verification of the distances of module tables, stations, fences and gates to federal trunk roads according to RPS 2009 (German guidelines for passive protection on roads by vehicle restraint systems), when the road authority or the FBA (Federal Highway Authority, Fernstraßen-Bundesamt) requires it. Including a georeferenced file of the minimum distance as shapefile or DXF.
Landscape impact assessment
Visibility of a ground-mounted plant based on the official digital surface model, selected viewpoints in the 3D model and assessment of near and far zones against six criteria, including the cumulative effect with existing plants.
Drainage assessment
In many regions the authority requires a drainage assessment in the permitting procedure for PV plants. It analyses the precipitation-runoff behaviour of the site in its original state and the changes caused by building the plant.
Damage assessment
For insurers and legal disputes: analysis and categorisation of the damage, determination of the cause, quantification of the repair costs and evaluation of yield losses caused by the damage.
Defect assessment
For warranty and complaint claims and on the acquisition or disposal of a PV plant: analysis of the defects and their risks, quantification of the remediation costs and determination of possible warranty claims.
Further services
- Simulation-based storage sizing: Design variants of a battery storage system in terms of power and capacity under the same assumptions, comparing additional revenue and additional cost for each variant.
- Self-consumption calculations for industry and commerce: Economic viability of own PV plants, with storage if applicable, based on the load profile: sizing, levelised cost of electricity, self-consumption rate and cost savings.
- Review of existing expert reports: Review of existing expert reports for completeness and technical correctness, with the results in a separate report.
- Decommissioning cost analysis: Expected decommissioning costs of ground-mounted PV plants, with statements for permitting procedures and concepts for reserves and security.
Planning and consulting
Planning and design
Support with all technical project development steps or complete takeover of the design, in particular grid connection planning and support during design and construction in line with the requirements of the grid operator and the VDE.
Consulting
Advice on technical questions of project development, for example on the selection of system components and on the bill of quantities or the specification of works.
Further services
- Yield analysis
- Preliminary design
- Sizing of battery storage systems
- Support with plant certification and declaration of conformity
- Selection of system components
- Bill of quantities and specification of works
- Tendering support
- Construction supervision and quality assurance
Enquiry
Use the form, call us on +49 4103 121 4221 or write to kontakt@sonnwinn.de – whichever suits you best.
You do not need to attach documents to your enquiry – once we have received it, we will help you put together the documents required.