It’s a bright new year and wow. The solar industry sure expanded in 2016! I can’t believe how much solar capacity was installed. SEIA predicts that a full 14,000 MW of solar capacity was installed (based on the first 3 quarters' performance). That represents a lot...
I have been talking a lot about the intricacies of estimating on a commercial level and felt it is time to step back and look at a more residential-centric view. In past articles, I have talked about how much I dislike the price-per-watt metric. I see that the...
Hello esteemed readers! As you know, the cost of solar electric systems has plummeted in recent years. A decade ago when I started, the average cost per watt was an unbelievable $8 per watt. Back then, different rebate programs were needed to drive the price down...
Rain is falling on our offices at Powerhouse, Oakland, California, which has me thinking. Wet roofs can be bad business. Good foresight can make those days go smoothly. The right team can save the non-roof work for rainy days. This includes things like hanging the...
This week I want to talk about the benefits of “actual data” (defined as the actual costs and labor hours associated with a specific project) and how it compares to the bids (defined as the costs and labor hours were projected for a specific project). We recently...
How much time does it take? Often the question an estimator finds themselves pondering. There is a whole world wrapped into that question. So today, we are going to unpack that. I actually pointed to this topic a little in my last solar estimating conversation...
Greetings fellow readers! Today marks episode 4 of my delving into cost codes series. This time we are going to talk about strategy. Cost coding can be a powerful tool, if used right. They can be a complete waste of time if not. Take a quick look back at my...
Cost codes again! Last week I took a pause to talk about Intersolar. This week I want to talk about job costing strategies. Such strategies will be greatly impacted by the software your accounting team uses. Construction specific software like Masterbuilder tracks...
Last week I found that a search for “what are cost codes,” turns up descriptions from a dozen different types of companies. So I felt it was time for me to highlight the solar specific aspects of cost codes. Before we dive deeply into solar cost codes, however,...