It’s time to start the voting for HeatSpring’s Solar Startup Alley competition.
***QUICK REMINDER: A vote means that you’re ACTUALLY interested in scheduling a sales call or demo with the company that you choose!***
On December 1st, 2014, we introduced our online solar startup competition. We received more than 30 submissions and during December we picked the best 6 to go to the next round based on specific criteria.
We’re excited about this competition for two reasons: First, we like to keep our readers up to date with the latest innovations in the industry. Second, we’re excited to help new businesses get some more business.
The winner of the competition will get access to our Solar Startup Accelerator, a free product/service training on our website and some guest articles.
Our competition is slightly different than normal competitions in that we’re not using judges. The company that gets the most votes will win the competition. A vote in our competition is a company scheduling a demo or sales call with a specific company. We feel that this provides a much more accurate picture of the usefulness of these new products in the industry.
The entire competition and prizes are built around connecting these new companies with potential buyers. (Remember: When you vote you are scheduling a sales call/demo with the company.)
Rules and Timelines
- See below for the details on each company.
- Vote at the end of the article. Remember, a vote is you scheduling a product demo or sales call with the company. This means you should be really interested in the product. It also means that we’ll be collecting your work and contact information.
- Voting starts today and will end on Friday, February 6th.
The 6 Solar Startups Finalists
- GridShare
- Faze1
- Greenlancer
- Aurora Solar
- QuickSolar
- Energy Tariff Experts
Each company has submitted a few pieces of addition information for you to review:
- 5-minute video
- Picture or description of their product or service
- Their team bios
- A client testimonial or case study
The Solar Startups’ In-Depth Submissions
Faze1
VIDEO:
PRODUCT PICTURE:
TEAM:
The 3 co-founders all have backgrounds selling and building renewable energy projects.
Marc Guy, center, CEO, previously worked at SunEdison in their DG division and started Empower Solar Consulting in 2008, where he focused on developing and financing commercial rooftop solar projects throughout North America. Marc holds a BA from St. Lawrence University and a MBA from Babson College.
Adam Hanna, right, CTO, has a background in systems integration, GIS, and data architecture with a focus on assessing the potential of utility-scale wind projects with Black & Veatch and PG&E. He holds a BA from the Colorado School of Mines and an MBA from Harvard (exp. 2015).
Eliot Goodwin, left, CCO, has spent his career designing sales and marketing strategies. He was an early employee at GroSolar and was part of their residential sales division that was acquired by SolarCity. He holds a BA from Marlboro College and an MBA from Babson College.
Greenlancer
VIDEO:
PRODUCT PICTURE:
TEAM:
Our team of 10+ is comprised of 2 cofounders (CEO & CTO), a COO, CFO, sales team, engineering team, and 100+ Greenlancers (Green Energy FreeLancers) in our network.
CLIENT TESTIMONIAL(S):
“GreenLancer provides me the highest quality and fastest delivery times at the most competitive price.” – Dylan Kautz, KC Green Energy
“We use GreenLancer because they provide the best design support available. Their prices are predefined so I know exactly what I’m going to get, when I’m going to get it, and how much it’s going to cost before I ever place an order.” – Jason Loyet, Clean Power Design
QuickSolar
VIDEO:
PRODUCT PICTURE:
PRODUCT DESCRIPTION:
QuickSolar is easy-to-use, web-based software that empowers solar professionals globally to discover the costs and benefits of going solar for their prospects, quicker and more accurately than ever before.
As you drag & drop solar panels onto a satellite image of your prospect’s home, QuickSolar simultaneously performs all of the necessary calculations to display the solar system’s anticipated energy production, cost savings, tax credits, net cost, break-even time, and environmental impact, among other key metrics. From this design, QuickSolar instantly generates a graphic-rich proposal that’s easy for you and your prospect to understand.
TEAM:
Alex Landau, left. CEO & Co-Founder Age: 28 Education: Master & Bachelor of Architecture, Tulane University School of Architecture (2009) E-mail: alex@quicksolar.com Alex is CEO and co-founder of QuickSolar. Alex graduated from Tulane University’s School of Architecture in 2009 with a Masters Degree in Architecture (M.Arch) and a Bachelors Degree in Architecture (B.A.). His Master’s Thesis entitled “Solarscapes: Integrating Solar Energy into the Built Environment” explored the usage of existing and developing solar technology as aesthetic and energy-producing components of building and urban design. As a Senior System Designer for 3 years at South Coast Solar (2009-2012), he designed thousands of residential and commercial rooftop energy systems using remote imagery and drafting tools such as AutoCAD. After searching endlessly for a practical software based solution for solar design for his colleagues to employ and finding nothing he decided to develop his own vision for a simpler method of design. Thus, QuickSolar was born. In addition to CEO and co-founder of QuickSolar, Alex is also the lead graphic designer of the site, working proficiently in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop.
Scott Oman, right. CMO & Co-Founder Age: 40 Education: B.S., University of New Orleans E-mail: scott@quicksolar.com Scott Oman is a licensed Electrical Contractor in Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi, and Tennessee and is also a NABCEP Certified Solar Installer (Certificate #031409-105). Along with 20 years of experience in the electrical trade Scott brings an extensive database of distributor, installation, training, and government contacts. Scott’s experience as Chief Technology Officer and Chief Operations Officer at South Coast Solar involved customer interaction, PV system optimization and monitoring, online lead generation, sales management, website development, and search engine optimization and marketing. In addition to QuickSolar, Scott has earlier experience in the management, development, and operation of complex database driven web applications as well as in the creation and rollout of online marketing and search engine optimization campaigns.
TESTIMONIAL:
From Justin Schram, American Solar Direct:
Hi Alex,
I would like to provide some feedback on your product, QuickSolar. It is one of the most intuitive and user friendly solar products I have used! The production estimates are extremely accurate and your design makes it very easy for customers to visualize and understand what their home will look like, and how moving panels to different roof slopes will affect their production and long term savings. The customer service from you and your team is top notch and very professional.
Thanks for all you do!
Gridshare
GridShare is an independent online funding platform for renewable energy projects and cleantech companies. It is totally free to post your renewable energy project or cleantech company on our platform. A hosting fee will be due only when you actually raise money.
VIDEO:
PRODUCT PICTURE:
TEAM:
The GridShare executive team is made of renewable energy business and legal experts. Jack Jacobs (left) is the President of GridShare. He also founded and is managing partner of a global mid-sized law firm and has served as in-house counsel for a leading solar company. Jon Norling (right) is COO and General Counsel. Jon is an accomplished renewable energy advocate and leader and has developed numerous renewable energy projects.
TESTIMONIAL:
“For too long, large banks have controlled which solar projects can be financed. Finally, project developers like Samba Energy can rely on GridShare to offer high quality solar investments to investors nationwide. Samba Energy can now complete more installations, and private investors can gain strong, predictable returns from solar power projects.” – Michael Hidary, Managing Director, Samba Energy
Aurora Solar
VIDEO:
PRODUCT PICTURE:
TEAM:
TESTIMONIAL:
I have been using the Aurora software modeling and design program for some weeks now with success.We have sold several roof top systems without doing a site visit prior to proposal. This has cut our costs and has served (and will serve) to lower our carbon footprint. Further, our customers have a much better idea now what their system will look like.
-Jim, CEO CalPaso Solar
Energy Tariff Experts
VIDEO:
PRODUCT:
Energy Tariff Experts provides expert consulting, analysis, and data services for retail electric rates. We provide insight into the avoided costs of generation from solar or other renewables based on the value of avoided kWh, demand charges, net metering rules, and other rate tariff elements. We replace fuzzy 3% YoY projections with robust scenario analysis supported by references.
TEAM:
Jim Bride has over a decade of experience in the energy and environmental industries and has spent his career advancing sustainable business solutions to the challenges facing society. In November 2012, Jim launched Energy Tariff Experts, LLC to address an unmet need in the marketplace for accurate utility rate and tariff information to enable more informed energy investment decisions. Prior to Energy Tariff Experts, Jim spent over four years as a leader in EnerNOC’s world class SupplySmart consulting practice where he advised large energy consumers on energy price risk management decisions. At EnerNOC, Jim served as a subject matter expert on North American power and natural gas markets and developed a deep expertise in utility rates and energy cost drivers. Before transitioning into the energy sector, Jim worked as a Geologist at Tetra Tech EMI focused on remediation and restoration of hazardous waste sites for public and private sector clients. Jim has a B.S. degree in Geophysics from Boston College, an MBA from the Johnson School at Cornell University, and holds dual U.S. – EU citizenship (Irish).
It’s Time to Vote!
Please fill out the below google form to submit your vote (remember: a vote means that you’re ACTUALLY interested in scheduling a sales call or demo with the company that you choose!)
I just watched all of these videos and am so impressed by all of them. Some things jumped out and stuck with me:
– Watching the houses disappear on the Faze 1 demo blew my mind. As a salesperson I can’t think of anything better than a short list of really good prospects.
– Greenlancer taps into every macro trend I read about, and it makes total sense that cloud based engineering design has a place in the world.
– Watching panels appear on the roofs, then disappear again is the lasting image I have for QuickSolar.
– Gridshare, like Greenlancer, seems like an inevitable solution who’s time has come.
– Aurora’s memorable moment for me is looking at the team. So much Stanford in one place! With Stanford’s brand being so strong right now, it’s hard to see this company not succeeding.
– For Energy Tariff Experts, the delta in solar project valuations based on assumptions and inputs is the most compelling number I can imagine when you’re trying to catch the eyes of an investor or customer. That’s a big opportunity!
Those are some really quick thoughts. I’m mostly just impressed and curious to see who will win.
There is no Google form. Only the Energy Tariff video a second time.
Meleah,
Sorry for the trouble.
I just checked on a few browsers and I could see the form. What browser are you using?
If anyone else is noticing this, please let me know.
I am using Chrome. The form is there today. Thanks.
Just gave my vote to Aurora Solar. Very impressed by their impressive 3D software renderings, better than anything I can do on AutoCAD or SketchUp! #solar
Thank Luis!
FYI @greenlancer your @heatspring video is set to private when viewed with my browser (IE)