There are many requirements to a Solar Installation including many terms used by the industry professionals to describe the services provided, required and standards.

These include definitions of appliance vs. fittings, L.V. vs E. L.V., Prescribed Electrical Work (PEW) and Record of Inspection (ROI). Along with installation standards AS/NZS 3000, AS/NZS 5033, electrical safety standards for fittings like AS/NZS 4777.1 or other requirements for Battery Energy Storage Systems (B.E.S.S) that have been introduced more recently.

A quick overview of these requirements is included here by following this link to the SEANZ website.

Certification requirements for Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Systems From MBIE: Energy Safety

Agrivoltaics : Agriculture & Photovoltaics (Solar Panels).

It's nothing new, farming, we've been doing it for thousands of years now. Solar panels have been around since the 1980s. But now yields per square metre matter and power prices continue to rise and our need for resilience from power outages and the independence that brings with today's modern monitoring technologies is price-less.

Imagine being able to run farm equipment off solar you've generated, imaging if the diesel mechanic no longer needed to visit for routine maintenance of your tractors because those were electric. Imagine having access to shade in your fields for cattle or that the shade meant you didn't need to irrigate the crops so often because the plants had better water retention because they didn't dry out. Or that the panels could provide shelter from hail storms. (solar panels can do that, yes).

Studies in Spain have found that a small reduction in light for crops like lettuce was beneficial when the solar array was installed with sufficient spacing for light. In fact, only a small reduction in yield was found as the gaps were closed and broad leaf vegetables only needed 50% of the usable light in the day for photosynthesis.  Additionally, the soil could hold more moisture meaning a reduction in water consumption. Any reduction in growth yield was easily met by the benefit of selling back power to the national grid. That didn't even account for the savings the farmer would make if they were to use the generated free power themselves.

If you are grazing animals, especially lighter animals than a cow then a pole-mounted solar array is a simple addition to your land. Sheep will keep the grass maintained around the array meaning little to no maintenance and the shade provided could have a positive impact on the health of the animals. 

You might even be able to offset some of your carbon emissions are work towards a carbon zero operation. You certainly are in a better position with a solar solution than you are without one and the possibility of storing your energy for use later has many benefits.

Element 82 has always maintained a distributor and reseller network. Some products are easier to sell this way than others. Times also change and resellers are embracing new sales channels and move online to focus on national sales rather than their regional focus. It has brought about many interesting questions we have to regularly ask ourselves. Are we an importer, distributor or retailer.

We are an importer of quality products, we also provide technical support, warranty and handle inquiries directly with the factory for many of our products. Over time this has led to many customers and OEM's requiring us to provide them with equipment directly or indirectly via group purchasing agreements or products by association. We endeavor to maintain a distribution and reseller relationship with many of our products but are sometimes limited to the available businesses in an area. Or ability for some organisations to carry the required range of products to best support a brand (maybe an example would be to carry the range of accessories required that support a product). Which means sometimes we end up dealing with customers directly. We understand that makes our business a Business to Consumer sales channel while we try hard to maintain a business to business channel. This is no different to any of our competitors offering a trade counter anyway or regional offices that work directly with local businesses.

Regardless New Zealand is a small place and someone always knows someone at the other end of the country that they used to work with or deal with. We can't change that, nor would we want to. We are all in this great space together so from time to time we may be dealing with someone in your area or field. We didn't choose this way of operating, it chose us. New Zealand has always been a find out the best place to get something from, or look for the best price, or deal direct with the person that knows the product best.