Solar Energy Consulting

CAPABILITIES

• Performance & Efficiency Assessments

  When solar assets underperform or show signs of reliability risk, you need fast, clear answers. Exponent delivers evidence‑based guidance that resolves uncertainty, protects investments, and strengthens long‑term performance.

  • Commissioning: Verify installation quality, establish accurate power baselines under real world conditions, and verify performance testing results.

  • Post‑handover: Define maintenance and mitigation steps that reduce risk and extend the useful life of PV modules.

  • Performance evaluations: Identify weather, soiling, mechanical, or fabrication drivers of underperformance and provide actionable fixes.

• Fire Risk Assessment & Investigation

  When fire or thermal risks jeopardize your solar assets, Exponent provides rapid response and failure analysis expertise to minimize downtime and restore confidence. We conduct targeted risk assessments of critical components — including connectors and conductor insulation — under real‑world conditions and against standards such as UL 1703, FM 4478, and ASTM E108. When incidents occur, we provide evidence‑based root‑cause investigations, enabling you to take corrective action, protect assets, and move forward. 

• Electrical Evaluations

  Electrical failures and grid instability can shut down operations and trigger costly disputes. Our electrical engineers and scientists model power systems, assess power quality, and evaluate substation infrastructure — from transformers to busbars — to prevent equipment failures before they occur. We conduct targeted risk assessments and design reviews that support compliance with safety standards (e.g., NFPA 70, NFPA 70E, and NESC) and system standards (e.g., IEEE 1547 and IEEE 2030), while identifying vulnerabilities early. When incidents happen, our rigorous failure analysis pinpoints root causes and guides corrective action, giving you the evidence needed to resolve disputes and restore operations.

• Materials Assessments

  Wind, snow, hail, and other site conditions stress solar assets, driving insulation breakdowns, unexpected shutdowns, and costly downtime. Our multidisciplinary team: 

  • Assesses glass and polymer systems for strength and reliability
  • Evaluates material properties in relation to environmental impacts
  • Investigates polymer characteristics of conductors, connectors, and multilayer composites to mitigate these risks at every stage of the project lifecycle. 

  When PV materials fail in high-stakes situations, we investigate failures, helping you understand underlying mechanisms to resolve problems efficiently and safeguard investments and operational continuity.

• Mechanical Evaluations

  Mechanical failures in tracker systems and components can cripple energy output and trigger expensive downtime. Our expertise in structural dynamics, wind loading, and vibration control protects your investment throughout the asset lifecycle.

  Our team evaluates fixed, single- and multi-axis tracker systems, drivetrain, torque tube mechanics, and damper performance to maximize durability and generation capacity. We identify design and environmental vulnerabilities before installation, confirming components are properly sized for site conditions. When failures occur — in racking systems, drivetrains, dampers, or various structural components — our targeted root-cause analysis enables swift resolution, minimizing downtime and preventing incidents from recurring. 

• Environmental Assessments

  Regulatory compliance challenges and environmental incidents can halt projects and trigger penalties. Our environmental consultants provide strategic evaluations across the project lifecycle — from environmental permitting and hazardous materials management to stormwater compliance and battery-related fire risks. 

  Our multidisciplinary approach supports regulatory compliance, helps minimize environmental impact, and protects assets, enabling you to get operations up and running — and maintain them.

• Regulatory Support

  Our regulatory specialists navigate permitting, installation, and operational compliance requirements across FERC, EPA, DOE, state commissions, and local authorities, supporting grid, environmental, and safety standards. We support you in town hall and regulatory meetings, providing clear technical guidance on community concerns. From EMF concerns to toxic material off-gassing to end-of-life recycling, we help you maintain regulatory compliance and avoid costly delays or enforcement actions.

• Manufacturing & Supply Chain Evaluations

  Supplier failures and material defects can cause catastrophic project delays and cost overruns. Our consultants assess supplier reliability, panel material sourcing, and manufacturing process consistency to identify risks before installation — and investigate root causes when defects or failures occur. 

  Early engagement can help mitigate potential design flaws, support component quality, and streamline production, while post-incident analysis enables rapid corrective action and supply chain improvements. By proactively evaluating supply chain vulnerabilities, investigating manufacturing failures, and optimizing procurement strategies, we help you avoid costly surprises and deliver projects that perform. 

• Hydrology Analysis

  Poor water management can expose solar operations to risks including flooding, erosion damage, and regulatory violations, jeopardizing your assets and surrounding properties and potentially leading to costly disputes. Our consultants perform rigorous technical analyses to evaluate site conditions and runoff impacts throughout the solar farm lifecycle, giving you the confidence to navigate complex disputes.

  We provide strategic advice to help you address design phase and post-construction challenges and develop robust water management strategies that protect your investment and maintain compliance. Our multidisciplinary engineers assess site hydrology changes from land use conversion, construction-phase risks like soil loss and erosion, and regulatory requirements for erosion controls and permanent water management features. We also apply our expertise to climate change impacts on solar installation sites, evaluating whether sites may experience more frequent or more extreme storm events than they were designed for, increasing their risk of flooding, erosion, and infrastructure damage. Our consultants help you develop adaptive management strategies to strengthen the resilience of your investments as conditions evolve. 

• Failure Analysis

  When solar assets fail, you need definitive answers to restore operations and prevent recurrence. Our multidisciplinary teams investigate device, module, and system failures — from performance degradation and delamination to material breakdown and system malfunctions. Combining on-site inspections with advanced laboratory testing and computational analysis, we evaluate materials, electrical properties, mechanical factors, and environmental conditions to identify root causes. Our rigorous, evidence-based analysis provides the clarity you need to resolve disputes, implement corrective actions, and protect long-term asset performance.

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• Disputes

  When disputes and complex litigation threaten investments and project outcomes, Exponent delivers the expert insights necessary to help you reach resolution quickly and effectively. Drawing on our deep experience in failure analysis and root-cause investigations and our ability to clearly communicate complex technical findings, we assist you and your legal teams with scientific and engineering facts at all stages, including pre-litigation, fact-finding, expert testimony, and arbitration. We regularly support clients in litigation and arbitration involving:

  • System or PV component failures
  • Construction cost overruns and delays
  • Contractual performance issues (e.g., underperforming power generation)
  • Patent or design disagreements

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