What is SCADA? More than 43 GW of new utility-scale solar capacity is planned for 2026 in the U.S., which would represent a 60% increase over the previous year, according to the Energy Information Administration. Every one of those plants runs on a… Continue reading “What is SCADA?”
What Does It Take to Level Up in Solar + Storage Operations and Maintenance? Amanda Bybee has spent years building the systems, standards, and training that keep solar and storage assets running. As CEO of the Amicus O&M Cooperative, the creator of the Tech 1 and Tech 2 courses, she knows exactly what separates… Continue reading “What Does It Take to Level Up in Solar + Storage Operations and Maintenance?”
What is the SEIA/ANSI 301 Standard and Why Does It Matter for Solar and BESS O&M Technicians? Job titles, pay scales, and expectations for O&M technicians have historically varied widely from one solar company to the next. A Level 2 technician at one employer might be doing completely different work than a Level 2 at another. For… Continue reading “What is the SEIA/ANSI 301 Standard and Why Does It Matter for Solar and BESS O&M Technicians?”
What is Root Cause Analysis? Why is It Important for O&M Techs? When something goes wrong on a solar or battery energy storage system, the fastest fix is not always the right one. Hitting a reset, swapping a component, or clearing a fault code without understanding why it happened in the first… Continue reading “What is Root Cause Analysis? Why is It Important for O&M Techs?”
New Course: Basics of Commissioning on Utility-Scale Solar Commissioning is where a solar construction site becomes a power plant. It’s also where schedule delays get expensive fast, defects cost more to fix than they did during construction, and the utility, owner’s engineer, lender’s engineer, and equipment vendors all… Continue reading “New Course: Basics of Commissioning on Utility-Scale Solar”
Don’t Have the Exact NABCEP Documentation Required? Here’s What to Do This can be a common challenge for utility-scale solar professionals pursuing NABCEP Board Certification. If you’re working toward your NABCEP PV Installation Professional (or most NABCEP Board Certifications), you’ll need to submit your decision-making role experience before you can sit… Continue reading “Don’t Have the Exact NABCEP Documentation Required? Here’s What to Do”
New Course: SCADA Communication Systems for Utility-Scale Solar The U.S. added 34.7 GW of utility-scale solar capacity in 2025, according to SEIA and Wood Mackenzie’s Solar Market Insight Year in Review. That’s a lot of plants being commissioned, handed over, and turned over to O&M teams, many of… Continue reading “New Course: SCADA Communication Systems for Utility-Scale Solar”
New Course: Pre-Construction in Utility-Scale Solar The subcontractors you select, the contracts you put in place, and the commercial foundations you establish before construction starts will shape every aspect of project execution. A well-run pre-construction (pre-con) process is one of the highest-leverage things an EPC can… Continue reading “New Course: Pre-Construction in Utility-Scale Solar”
New Course Announcement: Transformer Specification & Applications for Inverter-Based Resources As many residential solar designers move up into larger C&I and utility-scale projects, the work starts to look pretty different from a rooftop install. Transformer specification is one of those areas where the learning curve shows up fast and where… Continue reading “New Course Announcement: Transformer Specification & Applications for Inverter-Based Resources”
What is an Energy Market Forecaster for ESS? If a battery energy storage system is going to make money in a wholesale energy market, it needs to know something the market hasn’t told it yet – where prices are headed. That’s the job of an energy market forecaster.… Continue reading “What is an Energy Market Forecaster for ESS?”
What Tools Do You Need When Troubleshooting Ground Faults? Ground faults are one of the more frustrating issues a solar technician can run into in the field. They can range from hard faults with a clear voltage signature to resistive or intermittent faults where voltage won’t show up on a… Continue reading “What Tools Do You Need When Troubleshooting Ground Faults?”
Why Your Solar Service Department Looks Unprofitable (And How to Fix It) If your service department looks like a money pit on paper, you might not have a service problem – you might have an accounting problem. In a recent HeatSpring PRO Circle discussion with Amanda Bybee, CEO of the Amicus O&M… Continue reading “Why Your Solar Service Department Looks Unprofitable (And How to Fix It)”
What is String Sizing in PV Solar Design? Sean White Explains String sizing is one of the most critical and foundational calculations in PV system design. At its core, string sizing is about understanding how solar modules behave under different temperature conditions and ensuring your system operates safely within the voltage… Continue reading “What is String Sizing in PV Solar Design? Sean White Explains”
Solar & Storage Conferences Happening in 2026 The 2026 conference circuit isn’t slowing down, despite the market and policy challenges facing the industry. These events remain one of the most direct ways to see new products, understand policy changes, and connect with the people driving the market… Continue reading “Solar & Storage Conferences Happening in 2026”
The State of Solar Jobs 2025 Where are solar jobs today? Which market segments are hiring? And what do the latest employment numbers tell us about where the industry is headed? We turned to the Interstate Renewable Energy Council’s (IREC) newest National Solar Jobs Census to… Continue reading “The State of Solar Jobs 2025”
Taking a Look at Ground-fault Path Scenarios: Positive Ground Fault on a Transformer-Based Inverter When it comes to solar PV systems, understanding ground fault scenarios is crucial for both safety and proper system operation. This video excerpt from our comprehensive “Solar PV Ground-fault Troubleshooting: Theory, Tools, and Field Application” course demonstrates why mastering the… Continue reading “Taking a Look at Ground-fault Path Scenarios: Positive Ground Fault on a Transformer-Based Inverter”
Diversify into Solar Service with HeatSpring’s Solar Service PRO Badge Millions of solar systems are already installed across the US. These systems will operate for 25+ years, and every single one will need maintenance, troubleshooting, and occasional repairs. Yet many solar companies have historically focused exclusively on new installations while… Continue reading “Diversify into Solar Service with HeatSpring’s Solar Service PRO Badge”
A Look at Two Types of Battery Installations: Front of the Meter and Behind the Meter Where you install a battery system – and which side of the electricity meter it sits on – fundamentally changes how it operates and who benefits from it. There are two primary configurations for battery installations: front of the meter… Continue reading “A Look at Two Types of Battery Installations: Front of the Meter and Behind the Meter”
Inverter Topologies and DC System Grounding When it comes to troubleshooting ground faults in solar systems, understanding inverter topologies is absolutely essential for both safety and efficiency. These fundamental topology differences don’t only affect how power flows through your system – they completely change how ground… Continue reading “Inverter Topologies and DC System Grounding”
New Free Course Announcement: Introduction to Software for Battery Systems While utility-scale solar and battery systems are transforming our energy infrastructure, finding comprehensive, accessible education on the software that powers these systems can be challenging. Most available training focuses on hardware components or high-level energy concepts, but there are limited… Continue reading “New Free Course Announcement: Introduction to Software for Battery Systems”