The Benefits of Having a Single Engineering Partner
Even amid a difficult economy, ongoing repercussions of a global pandemic, and as yet unresolved supply chain issues, the United States solar industry continues to grow at a rapid pace. From 2000 to 2021, net solar power generation across the United States increased by an astounding 23,000%. And in 2023 alone, solar growth hit roughly 55%, setting a new record for the industry.
The point is: solar isn’t going anywhere. Or, perhaps it’s more accurate to say that solar is going everywhere. As more and more sectors begin to see the long and short-term benefits of investing in renewables, companies across the United States are making the switch to more practical forms of energy production.
However, many people still think of solar in terms of either massive farms or residential units. Yet, in between those two lies utility-scale solar. The term “utility-scale” refers to any project specifically designed to hook up to the larger grid. Essentially, these types of projects help power the community as a whole. By embracing economies of scale, utility-level installations can help reduce the project’s cost-per-unit, thus eliminating one of the biggest complaints about solar adoption.
At the heart of the utility-scale revolution is Doman Energy Group, a national solar engineering firm based in North Carolina. In fact, Doman is the oldest utility-solar-specific firm in the United States, having spearheaded a variety of major utility-level builds across the nation while simultaneously researching and developing novel solar-related projects. But, beyond their obvious expertise, what really sets the Doman team apart is their comprehensive approach to dealing with their clients.
Though they’ve been living and breathing solar engineering for decades, they understand that’s not true of everyone else. Rather than treating engineering like “just another line item,” Doman’s goal is to foster partnerships that cover origination, development, procurement, engineering drawings, construction support, and commissioning. By managing projects every step of the way, Doman maximizes efficiency and cost savings throughout the project lifecycle.
The Changing Face of Solar Consulting
Despite seemingly constant pressure to make the switch from fossil fuels to solar energy generation, there has been little effort to make accomplishing this task any easier. Indeed, any organization that wants to adopt utility-scale solar immediately faces a litany of challenges and regulatory hurdles that they have almost no means to navigate. This has led to a dramatic rise in solar consulting services, with thousands of companies across the U.S. now operating in that space.
These firms provide feasibility studies, design and planning services, technical expertise, insight into regulatory compliance, and environmental impact assessment. Basically, they help “fill in the blanks” for their clients, dotting i’s, and crossing t’s. But while there’s no question that this type of consulting is necessary, organizations looking to pursue utility-scale solar projects need to understand that many of these firms see solar as “just another item on their menu.”
“Big box” solar firms, as they’re often called, sell loads of different energy solutions. The way they see it, it’s smart business to provide an in-demand service like solar and avoid falling by the wayside competition-wise. “The problem with this is that these firms want to remain generalists so that they can maximize their revenue,” says Doman CEO Aaron Burkhart. “Doman is a specialist. Utility-scale solar is all we do, and our unique ability to generate product and cost savings reflects that.”
Challenges Associated with Solar Engineering Projects
Understanding the differences between the two types of firms is extremely important because solar’s rapid growth continually butts up against increasingly complex regulations. “A ‘big box’ firm where solar consulting makes up 5% of what they do isn’t going to be able to provide the same insight and advice as a company like Doman, who has in-depth, solar-specific knowledge about regulatory compliance, due diligence, and environmental oversight,” says Burkhart. “If you’re looking to hire someone to help you navigate a complex project, you don’t want someone who works in solar part-time,” he adds. “Our partnership model acts as an extension of our client throughout the life of their project. We deal with risk assessment, Authority-Having Jurisdictions, and the EPA while reducing costs. This drastically simplifies the process because our clients have just one contact for all their data requirements.”
It’s true that the average solar project consists of handoff after handoff, with little collaboration between each party. This issue has evolved to become a significant barrier to the cost-effective deployment of widespread solar adoption. As more organizations see the logistics laid out in front of them, they begin to have second thoughts. “It’s like trying to build a car by hiring a separate company for each individual part,” says Burkhart. “Over the years, we’ve seen time and time again how this approach leads to delays, skyrocketing costs, and even project cancellations. At the very least, it’s a nightmare for the client and can sour them on the entire industry.”
Aside from the potential compatibility and communication problems, there are many other challenges associated with relying on big box consultants. “We see a lot of scope overlap between multiple groups working on the same project,” Burkhart says. But even that is a small problem compared to how much it can slow down the process. “You get a lot of egos involved, and it just becomes a nightmare,” he adds. “Some groups don’t share data with each other, will refuse to work collaboratively, or be territorial over responsibilities throughout a project’s lifecycle. Meanwhile, the client can’t do anything but sit back and watch.”
Doman Energy’s “Turnkey Engineering:” An All-Encompassing Approach
Doman’s breadth of experience with solar projects is precisely what led the firm to develop its “turnkey engineering” approach. Because they are engineers first, they put the actual design and development of the project at the forefront. “During the consulting phase, most firms can’t see past what they’re doing each week,” says Burkhart. “We know that engineering needs to be there during conceptualization, development, construction, and regulatory compliance. We see the whole project from the very beginning, which allows us to be proactive rather than reactive.”
Again, Doman prefers long-term, mutually beneficial relationships instead of simply contributing one part of the project and passing it on. “All those challenges I discussed pretty much evaporate with a partnership model because it ensures our clients get a highly experienced team of engineers, specialists, and scientists behind them from concept to completion. It’s turnkey in the same way any other business can be. We handle everything and present the client with a completely finished project.”
Aside from helping to negate the challenges associated with having “too many cooks in the kitchen,” Doman’s turnkey solution also has the potential to reduce costs drastically. Burkhart calls this a “quality over quantity” approach. “Our team has been at this so long that we’ve developed proprietary techniques to significantly improve constructability. That translates into millions of dollars in savings on the bigger projects. Part-time solar engineers and consultants simply can’t deliver those same results.”