‘Esdec makes sure to visit the site prior and after installing’
Zonnestroom Nederland has very deliberately opted for Esdec. Not only due to the excellent quality of its mounting systems, but also thanks to the outstanding guidance. “On our request, an expert from Esdec checks personally at delivery whether the solar panels are installed as per the Esdec guidelines”, explains Pieter Hofstede, Senior Project Leader at Zonnestroom Nederland. “And that’s really good service.”
Zonnestroom Nederland is a newcomer to the energy market. Roel Lok and Marthijn de Jong, two entrepreneurs from the sustainable energy field, founded the company in April 2018. Thus Zonnestroom
Nederland is a young yet experienced firm – thanks to the expertise of the founders. In terms of the ambition to accelerate the green revolution in the Netherlands, they have already covered thousands of square meters of roof with solar panels. In its brief existence, Zonnestroom Nederland has already realized major projects with surface areas of 10,000 to 20,000 m2. One of the most recent projects of Zonnestroom Nederland is a large logistics center in Heerenveen. Some 5,800 solar panels are mounted to the roof, together good for a surface area of 9,570 m2 for generating solar energy. “We chose an east-west setup for the solar panels here”, explains Pieter Hofstede. “This setup allows us to get a higher yield in comparison to the common setup. The compact mounting systems of Esdec make it possible to place the panels closer together. And that means we make more efficient use of the available space and therefore also of the available sunlight.”
DUTCH QUALITY
Zonnestroom Nederland opted for the mounting systems of Esdec, not only due to the dimensioning which – literally – creates space for an optimal distribution of the solar panels, but also owing to the fact that the product is made in the Netherlands. “It’s great quality and the manufacturer is close by – which we also consider a major plus point. Besides, this works in favor of the guidance they offer. We had direct contact. Our contact person at Esdec visited the site personally. He came during the last phase to check whether the solar panels had been mounted as per the calculations in the building plan. It’s not a far-distant company, from which we only receive mounting systems. From the moment the systems are ordered, up to fitting, there is regular contact”, explains Hofstede.
BALANCED BALLAST PLAN
Before the solar panels are mounted to the roof, Hofstede has already had regular contact with the project engineering department at Esdec. “After all, you can’t just fill a roof with panels. You add weight as per the requirements thus you have to factor in the bearing strength of the roof. And there’s a limit to that. Esdec helps to determine the correct number of panels for the roof and draws up a building ballast plan”, explains Hofstede. There was a lot of guidance for this project due to the specific setup of the solar panels on the roof. Zonnestroom Nederland doesn’t just focus on the technical realization of solar energy projects, but also provides financing and advises on funding and subsidies. The young company aims to grow over the coming years into an important party on the market for solar energy.
