An unmaintained array quietly loses 15–25% of its output — and most owners only find out at audit
Planned maintenance, monitored performance and defined response times for commercial, council and industrial solar across NSW. We service systems we didn't install, including orphaned assets whose original installer has closed.
- Three service tiers with contracted response windows
- Electrical testing to AS/NZS 3000 and AS/NZS 5033, documented every visit
- Performance reported against modelled yield, not against last month
Loss range reflects typical soiling, string dropout, inverter derating and unnoticed fault conditions on unmonitored commercial arrays. Your figure is measured at audit, not assumed.
Service coverage
Six failure modes that cost real generation, none of which trigger an alarm
A commercial array rarely fails outright. It degrades in ways that are invisible from the ground and invisible on a bill that also moves with occupancy, tariffs and weather.
String dropout
One string of twenty offline is a 5% loss that no one notices. Common causes are MC4 connector failure, rodent damage, isolator water ingress and blown DC fuses. Found by string-level current testing, not by looking at the roof.
Inverter derating and faults
Overheating from blocked filters or poor ventilation causes silent power limiting. Fault logs frequently hold months of history nobody has read, and repeated restarts often precede outright failure.
Soiling and shading creep
Dust, salt, bird fouling, lichen and pollen; then vegetation growth and new plant or structures shading rows that were clear at commissioning. Cumulative, gradual, and entirely recoverable.
Hot spots and cell degradation
Micro-cracks, PID, delamination and diode failure show as thermal anomalies well before they show as yield loss. Infrared survey catches them while they are still a warranty claim.
Mechanical and mounting issues
Loosened clamps, corroded rails, penetration seals failing, cable ties perished by UV so DC cable rests on the sheet. This is where a generation problem becomes a roof leak and a safety problem.
Warranty and compliance drift
Most manufacturer warranties require evidence of maintenance. No records, no claim. Labelling, isolation, signage and shutdown documentation also drift out of compliance as sites change.
Three tiers — pick the one your asset value justifies
All tiers are delivered by licensed electricians with CEC accreditation, documented to the same standard. The difference is visit frequency, testing depth, response speed and who carries the parts risk.
Essential
Sub-100 kW · single site · budget-constrained
One scheduled visit a year
- Visual inspection, array and mounting
- Inverter fault log review and firmware check
- AC and DC isolation and switchgear check
- Labelling and signage compliance
- Written report with photos and recommendations
- Business-hours fault response, best endeavours
Priced per site, annual. Rectification and parts quoted separately.
Managed
100 kW – 1 MW · council, commercial, multi-site
Two scheduled visits a year
Everything in Essential, plus:
- String-level current and voltage testing
- Insulation resistance and earth continuity testing
- Infrared survey of modules, strings and switchboards
- Cleaning where soiling loss justifies it
- Remote monitoring with alarm triage
- Quarterly performance report against modelled yield
- Contracted response windows by severity
- Warranty claim administration on your behalf
Priced per kW per year, banded by site count. Minor consumables included.
Assured
1 MW+ · portfolios · availability-critical sites
Quarterly scheduled visits
Everything in Managed, plus:
- Availability and performance-ratio commitment
- Priority response, after-hours included
- Critical spares holding — inverter, fuses, connectors, optimisers
- Annual thermographic survey of the full array
- Vegetation and shading management
- Battery and EV charger servicing where installed
- Named account engineer and annual asset strategy review
- Board-ready annual performance and abatement report
Priced per portfolio. Performance commitment defined per site at audit.
Response commitments by severity
Severity is assessed on safety and generation impact, not on how the call was made. Windows below are business days unless the agreement includes after-hours cover.
| Severity | Trigger | Acknowledge | On site | Make safe / temporary | Permanent rectification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S1 — Safety | Fire, smoke, arcing, exposed live conductors, storm or structural damage, water ingress at switchgear | Immediate by phone | Same day metro, 24/7 | On attendance — isolate and make safe | Scoped within 2 business days, subject to parts and access |
| S2 — Total outage | Whole system offline, inverter failure, main isolation tripped, no export or generation | Within 2 business hours | Next business day | Remote diagnosis first; bypass or partial restoration where safe | 5 business days, or on parts lead time with written notice |
| S3 — Partial loss | String or MPPT offline, one inverter of several down, output below threshold, recurring fault codes | Within 1 business day | Within 5 business days | Not applicable — asset remains safe and partly generating | 10 business days |
| S4 — Monitoring, minor, cosmetic | Comms or portal dropout, sensor fault, labelling, minor mechanical, vegetation | Within 2 business days | Next scheduled visit | Not applicable | Bundled into the next scheduled visit |
What each tier commits to
| Commitment | Essential | Managed | Assured |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scheduled visits per year | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| S1 safety response | Same day, business hours | Same day, business hours | Same day, 24/7 |
| S2 attendance | Best endeavours | Next business day | Same or next business day, priority |
| Remote monitoring & alarm triage | — | Included | Included, daily review |
| Performance reporting | Annual, per visit | Quarterly vs modelled yield | Monthly, plus board-ready annual |
| Availability commitment | — | Reported, not guaranteed | Contracted, defined at audit |
| Critical spares holding | — | Consumables only | Inverter and key components |
| Warranty claim handling | Advice only | Managed on your behalf | Managed, with escalation to distributor |
| After-hours cover | — | Optional add-on | Included |
Final windows depend on site location, access constraints, height and switchboard arrangements, and are contracted per agreement. Response clocks start at acknowledgement, and every acknowledgement is logged in the CRM so the report is generated from the record rather than written from memory.
What we actually do on site
Published in full so you can compare it line by line against any other quote. Testing is to AS/NZS 3000 and AS/NZS 5033, with results recorded per string, not per system.
Electrical
Licensed electrician, tested and recorded.
- String open-circuit voltage and operating current, per string
- Insulation resistance and earth continuity
- Polarity and DC isolator function
- DC fuse and surge protection device condition
- AC switchgear, breakers, RCDs and terminations
- Thermographic scan of switchboards and connections
- Inverter fault history, firmware, ventilation and filters
- Metering and CT verification
- Labelling, signage, shutdown procedure and site documentation
Mechanical, monitoring and reporting
Condition, performance, and the record you keep.
- Module condition — cracks, delamination, discolouration, hot spots
- Mounting, clamps, rails, fixings and penetration seals
- Cable management, UV degradation, conduit and cable tray
- Roof condition around the array, drainage and debris
- Soiling assessment and cleaning where loss justifies it
- Shading and vegetation review against commissioning baseline
- Monitoring platform check, alarm configuration, comms integrity
- Performance ratio calculated against modelled yield
- Report: test results, photographs, defects register, priced actions
We take on systems someone else installed — including orphaned ones
Installer closed, warranty paperwork missing, monitoring login lost, no as-builts. This is normal, and it is fixable. Here is the process and what it costs you to find out.
Document recovery
We reconstruct what exists: equipment identification from nameplates, original CEC compliance certificates where traceable, STC registration records, DNSP connection approval, warranty status directly with the manufacturer or distributor.
Deliverable: Asset register and warranty position statementBaseline audit
Full electrical and mechanical inspection to the scope above, with per-string testing and thermal imaging. Establishes what the asset is actually doing versus what it should do at this site, orientation and age.
Deliverable: Condition report, performance ratio, defects registerCompliance and safety gap review
Labelling, signage, isolation, shutdown documentation, rooftop access and anchor points, switchboard compliance. Non-compliances are separated into safety-critical, contractual and cosmetic.
Deliverable: Prioritised compliance gap listRemediation proposal
Priced, prioritised and split into what must be done to safely maintain the asset, what will pay for itself in recovered generation, and what can wait. Warranty claims pursued before you pay for anything a manufacturer owes you.
Deliverable: Priced remediation schedule with payback per itemOnboarding to an agreement
Monitoring access re-established under your ownership, not ours. Baseline locked as the reference for future reporting, service tier selected, schedule issued for the next twelve months.
Deliverable: Signed service schedule and monitoring handoverSafety, access and site compliance
What you receive before anyone goes on your roof.
| Item | What you receive | When |
|---|---|---|
| Safe work method statement | Task-specific SWMS for rooftop electrical work, heights and EWP use | Before first attendance |
| Licences and accreditation | Electrical licence, CEC accreditation numbers, heights and EWP tickets per attending technician | With the service schedule |
| Insurances | Public liability, workers compensation and professional indemnity certificates of currency | On agreement, annually thereafter |
| Site induction and permits | Completion of your induction, permit to work, hot work and isolation permits as required | Per visit |
| Isolation and switching | Documented isolation procedure, lock-out tag-out, switching sheets countersigned by your representative | Per visit |
| Roof access assessment | Anchor point and fall-arrest review; if access is unsafe we stop and report rather than improvise | First attendance |
| Incident reporting | Notifiable incident procedure, near-miss reporting, corrective action record | Within your stated timeframe |
| Waste handling | Panel, cable and packaging recycling; nothing left on site | Per visit |
Asked by facilities and asset teams
Including the ones about where our O&M experience is still building.
Book a baseline auditMaintenance & O&M · NSW
Find out what your array is actually doing
Ask for a baseline audit and we will tell you what the system is producing against what it should be, before you commit to a service contract.
- Baseline audit report you keep, whether or not you go ahead with us
- String-level and inverter data compared against design expectations
- Warranty positions checked while they are still claimable
- Response within one business day, and a fixed price before any work starts
Your details are used to prepare and send what you have asked for. We do not sell lists, and you can opt out of anything else at any time.
Start with the audit, not the contract
A baseline audit tells you what your array is really producing, what it is losing and what it would cost to recover — whoever installed it. Priced separately, credited against year one, and yours to keep either way.
Or call 1800 38 50 38. System down right now? Go to emergency support. Tendering a maintenance package? See the compliance matrix.
Crown Solar — trading name of Urban Environmental Revolution Australia Pty Ltd · ABN 34 612 046 885 · NSW electrical contractor licence 378172C · NETCC Approved Seller · CEC-aligned design and installation · ISO 9001:2015. Service levels, coverage and generation-loss ranges on this page are indicative. Contracted response windows, inclusions and any availability commitment are defined per site following a baseline audit.