Solar Maintenance (O&M) and Asset Management Best Practices

March 18-19, 2024 | Online :: Central Time

0224-solar-maintenance

Now that solar installations have long past merged into the generation mainstream, maintenance, operations (O&M) and asset management best practices are front and center. A comprehensive solar maintenance and asset management program combines preventive, corrective and predictive best practices to minimize system downtime, maximize uptime, and optimize performance.  

Over the span of a decade, the technology has matured so rapidly that a solid body of best practices is now fully informed from the lessons learned. This course offers a comprehensive and in-depth treatment of solar maintenance (O&M), asset operational processes and management practices that solar owners, operators, EPCs, utilities and other asset stakeholders will find essential. It will:

• Address the scope, scale and responsibilities associated with utility-scale solar projects
• Delve into key system components and how their selection influences solar maintenance
• Detail operational controls management, forecasting, performance engineering and analyses, training and risk assurance metrics
• Spell out maintenance measures and best practices by function
• Define risk exposures, with their commensurate remedies
• Offer guidance on key contract terms

Learning Outcomes 

Attendees will cover materials and engage in discussions that will allow them to:

• Define the solar maintenance (O&M) roles and functions with regard to various types of owners and stakeholders 
• Review the scope, scale and responsibilities of O&M for utility-scale solar installations, including those with associated storage
• Examine the O&M requirements for six primary system components
• Discuss operations best practices associated with:
  • Controls
  • Alarms
  • Forecasting
  • Performance engineering and analysis
  • Compliance and training
• Assess grid interface and off-taker requirements
• Evaluate and apply best practices associated with eight critical maintenance metrics
• Employ the proper risk measures to manage access, outage, natural resource, real estate and other exposures

Monday, March 18, 2024 : Central Time

 

9:00 – 9:20 a.m. :: Overview & Introductions

9:20 – 10:30 a.m. :: Laying the Proper Solar Maintenance and Asset Management (O&M) Foundation

• Thinking strategically about O&M early in the project planning life cycle
• Asset owner engineering and design team
• Scoping O&M
• Asset owner self-perform (in-house)
• Contracted third-party expertise
• Turnkey EPCs
• Records-keeping and reporting accountability
• Training

10:30 – 10:45 a.m. :: Morning Break

10:45 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. :: Selection of Key System Components & Their Impact on Solar Maintenance and Asset Management (O&M)

• Trackers
• Cabling
• Modules
• Inverters
• Transformers
• Storage

12:15 – 1:00 p.m. :: Lunch Break

1:00 – 1:45 p.m. :: Geography Considerations Influencing Solar Maintenance and Asset Management (O&M)

• Effects of latitude and climate
• Weather variations
• Terrain
• ISO/RTO coordination

1:45 – 2:45 p.m. :: Operations – the “O” in Solar Maintenance and Asset Management (O&M)

• Asset diagnostics, performance and management
• Analytics
• Monitoring
• Alarms
• Remote operations center
• Benchmarking against comparable solar operations
• NERC general owner/operator (GO/GOP) obligations and compliance
• Storage asset(s) integration and management
• Software
• Outage planning and coordination
• Curtailment
• Useful life and life expectancy

2:45 – 3:00 p.m. :: Afternoon Break

3:00 – 4:45 p.m. :: Operations – the “O” in Solar Maintenance and Asset Management (O&M) continued

• Asset diagnostics, performance and management
• Analytics
• Monitoring
• Alarms
• Remote operations center
• Benchmarking against comparable solar operations
• NERC general owner/operator (GO/GOP) obligations and compliance
• Storage asset(s) integration and management
• Software
• Outage planning and coordination
• Curtailment
• Useful life and life expectancy

4:45 p.m. :: Course Adjourns for Day

Tuesday, March 19, 2024 : Central Time

 

9:00 – 10:30 a.m. :: Maintenance – the “M” in Solar Maintenance and Asset Management (O&M)

• Preventative
• Corrective
• Vegetation management
• Erosion control
• Panel washing
• Site access – internal and external
• Wildlife control
• Spares inventory and supply chain management

10:30 – 10:45 a.m. :: Morning Break

10:45 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. :: Linking PV Plant Design Considerations to Solar Maintenance and Asset Management (O&M)

This segment explores linkages between key decisions made during the initial design phase and their impact on life cycle operations and maintenance (O&M) costs to better inform “thinking with the end in mind.” Given the accelerating investment in solar PV by electric utilities — and their emphasis towards holistic costs over the life of the plant, as compared to maximizing return on upfront capital expenditures — this is an increasingly important aspect in optimizing solar power plant design.   Yet, sound advice is not always followed.  Therefore, the discussion will also consider the consequences on an operating basis of how to deal with plant condition and performance issues when the design and development team didn’t/doesn’t follow O&M team guidance.  And, it will examine how the O&M team can effectively communicate its preferences to the design and development team in a fashion that can circumvent the internal minefields that sometimes bedevil inconvenient truths. 

12:15 – 1:00 p.m. :: Lunch Break

1:00 – 3:00 p.m. :: Key Solar Maintenance and Asset Management (O&M) Contractual Matters

• Scope of services and responsibility
• Tenor (duration)
• Cost model pricing scheme
• Base coverage
• Additional services fees
• Site staffing
• One-off or multiple project sites
• Performance guarantees
• Availability guarantees
• Warranty compliance
• Risk accountability and assignment

3:00 p.m. :: Course Adjournment

Lynsey Tibbs is Vice President of Asset Management at Silicon Ranch. She has a decade and a half experience as an engineer in the energy sector.  Skilled in power generation with a focus on solar energy, specifically managing nearly a gigawatt of installed solar.  Ms. Tibbs is versed in project and contractor management having overseen one-half billion dollars of solar installations.  Besides her role in solar project implementation, she also has served the company as a solar project engineer and forecast analyst.  Before joining the organization, she was Solar Operations Project Manager at Southern Power Company.

 

We will be using Microsoft Teams to facilitate your participation in the upcoming event. You do not need to have an existing Teams account in order to participate in the broadcast – the course will play in your browser and you will have the option of using a microphone to speak with the room and ask questions, or type any questions in via the chat window and our on-site representative will relay your question to the instructor.

• Microsoft recommends downloading and installing the Teams app if possible. You may also use the Edge browser or Chrome.
• You will receive a separate email with a unique link to a personalized landing page which will include links to join all sessions of this event.
• If you are using a microphone, please ensure that it is muted until such time as you need to ask a question.
• The remote meeting connection will be open approximately 30 minutes before the start of the course. We encourage you to connect as early as possible in case you experience any unforeseen problems.

Please Note: This event is being conducted entirely online. All attendees will connect and attend from their computer, one connection per purchase. For details please see our FAQ

If you are unable to attend at the scheduled date and time, we make recordings available to all attendees for 7 days after the event

REGISTER NOW FOR THIS EVENT:

Solar Maintenance (O&M) and Asset Management Best Practices

March 18-19, 2024 | Online

Your registration may be transferred to a member of your organization up to 24 hours in advance of the event. Cancellations must be received on or before January 19, 2024 in order to be refunded and will be subject to a US $195.00 processing fee per registrant. No refunds will be made after this date. Cancellations received after this date will create a credit of the tuition (less processing fee) good toward any other EUCI event. This credit will be good for six months from the cancellation date. In the event of non-attendance, all registration fees will be forfeited. In case of conference cancellation, EUCIs liability is limited to refund of the event registration fee only. For more information regarding administrative policies, such as complaints and refunds, please contact our offices at 303-770-8800

Credits

EUCI is accredited by the International Accreditors for Continuing Education and Training (IACET) and offers IACET CEUs for its learning events that comply with the ANSI/IACET Continuing Education and Training Standard. IACET is recognized internationally as a standard development organization and accrediting body that promotes quality of continuing education and training.

EUCI is authorized by IACET to offer 1.2 CEUs for this event

Instructional Methods  

This program will use PowerPoint presentations, case studies and group discussions. 

Requirements for a Successful Completion of Program  

Participants must log in each day and be in attendance for the entirety of the course to be eligible for continuing education credit. 

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Upon successful completion of this event, program participants interested in receiving CPE credits will receive a certificate of completion.

Course CPE Credits: 13.5
There is no prerequisite for this Course.
Program field of study: Specialized Knowledge
Program Level: Basic
Delivery Method: Group Internet Based
Advanced Preparation: None

EUCI is registered with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) as a sponsor of continuing professional education on the National Registry of CPE Sponsors. State boards of accountancy have final authority on the acceptance of individual courses for CPE credit. Complaints regarding registered sponsors may be submitted to the National Registry of CPE Sponsors through its web site: www.nasbaregistry.org

 

Who Should Attend

• Solar asset owners, utilities, developers, IPPs, EPCs and financial parties
• Solar development and renewal energy project managers, estimators, and contract managers 
• Supply chain and cost accounting professionals for utilities, corporate off-takers and other energy contracting organizations
• Generation project developers and engineers who need an understanding of solar plant maintenance, costs and asset management
• Investors and financial advisors
• Regulatory agency staff 
• Consultants and engineering firms that work within the solar development sector