What We Can Do

Enerworks can provide many commercial solar thermal solutions including:

Healthcare

Government

Agriculture

Manufacturing

Educational Facilities

Hospitality

Multi-Family

Restaurants / Breweries

From Start to Finish back to top

The “Typical” Project

While each project has its own unique parameters and requirements, the “typical” project includes the following steps:

Feasibility

• An energy user, building owner or an Enerworks Project partner identifies a potential project for which solar heating or cooling may be advantageous.
• We can work with you to identify and develop novel options for funding and can tailor financing to meet the needs of your project.
• Enerworks requests a set of input data required to make the assessment.
• Based on the data submitted, the Applications Engineering Team will make a recommendation on the economic and financial feasibility of the project that will help you to make an informed decision on whether to proceed.
• This stage is typically completed within a few days, depending upon the efficiency of the data exchange required for the Application Engineering Team member to understand the project’s scope.

Firming Up the Project

• Once there is a decision to proceed, the Applications Engineering Team will do a computer performance simulation to determine the optimum sizing and expected energy output.
• The energy outputs, along with other data, and a set of assumptions are sometimes used in an economics modeling tool that outlines key indicators such as Return on Investment, Net Present Value, Payback or Equivalent Energy Price.
• Next, a firm proposal is prepared, including all Enerworks equipment required for the project and a short description of the entire optimized system to enable contractors and engineering firms to understand their involvement.
• The Applications Engineering Team may also suggest additional equipment, such as large custom tanks or adsorption chillers for cooling, which, while not supplied by Enerworks, is required for the project’s success
• With this equipment cost as a base, the Project Partner or General Contractor will develop a fully installed cost quote. Often members of the Application Engineering Team will offer guidance and suggestions on the details of the execution, such as optimum placement of equipment, routing of the collector loop piping and sizing of the solar storage tank.
• The Project Partner or General Contractor will then present the customer with a complete, all inclusive proposal for the project.
• This stage is typically completed in a week or two, again depending upon the quality of information available from the site.
• Sometimes project financing can be a significant barrier to overcome. Enerworks may be able to provide assistance identifying and securing funding through a variety of innovative mechanisms.

Project Execution

• Once the Project Partner receives approval from the customer, a purchase order is placed with Enerworks for the required equipment.
• While the equipment is being built by the Enerworks Manufacturing Team, the civil and mechanical engineering firms, with assistance from the Applications Engineering Team, will prepare technical documents such as the structural and mechanical drawings often required for permits and installations by tradespeople.
• The Project Partner or General Contractor will also coordinate the timing of the required steps to maximize efficiency, as well as control costs and ensure deadlines are met.
• The Project Partner or General Contractor will hire the appropriate tradespeople, such as pipe fitters for the collector loop, certified plumbers for the water connections, assemblers for collector installation, roofers for anchors and seals and electricians for the electrical hook-up.
• When the equipment is being shipped, the Project Partner or General Contractor will organize the receiving and storage at the site.
• Once it has arrived, the Project Partner or General Contractor will direct all work at the site to minimize any impact on the building’s occupants, ensure the work proceeds efficiently and coordinate the various installation steps. Applications Engineering Team members can offer guidance and advice throughout this process, answering technical questions and consulting to ensure the project’s success.

Project Commissioning

• Critical to the successful installation, commissioning is conducted jointly with the entire team, including the customer.
• On the day of commissioning, a system review – often called a “pipe walk” – is done using a check list to ensure that all system components are in place, correctly sized and installed properly.
• Pipe flushing is performed to ensure the elimination of any debris that could clog the collectors, filters, heat exchangers or other sensitive components.
• Electrical and leak/pressure testing takes place.
• The system is charged with fluid and turned on. If it is a sunny day, the system will instantly start generating heat.
• Any malfunctions that may occur are addressed by the appropriate team member.
• For the first couple of projects commissioned by an Enerworks Project Partner or the General Contractor, a member of the Applications Engineering Team is on site on the commissioning day to assist until the partner can complete this crucial commissioning on their own.

Operator and Maintenance Crew Training

• Together with the Project Partner or General Contractor, Enerworks will organize a training session for the system’s operators or maintenance crew. While the reliability of a properly installed system is very high, the few simple maintenance steps outlined during this training will ensure a long and trouble-free operation.

Post Project Installation

• After the project installation is complete, a “post mortem” teleconference with the customer and the Project Partner or General Contractor may be organized.
• This feed-back tool is particularly useful when the Project Partner or General Contractor is first starting to work with the Enerworks systems, when the project has unusual parameters or when it incorporates elements that are new even to the Applications Engineering Team as additional applications of solar thermal are explored.
• During this typically one-hour session, any difficulties are reviewed and suggestions for future product or process improvements made; costs are discussed and suggestions for future cost reductions are also made.

Performance Monitoring

• System performance monitoring tools are currently available and new ones in development — which allow Project Partners, General Contractors and system owners to “see” what the system is producing and to also be notified if any malfunctions occur.