Procedures for photovoltaic system design review and approval

The Florida Solar Energy Center (FSEC) has developed a process to evaluate complete photovoltaic (PV) systems. It was developed in order to provide consumers, installers, and other stakeholders with a level of assurance that accepted systems have been well-designed and meet safety and quality requirements as detailed in this evaluation. This process has been used as a requirement for subsidies in both the Florida PV Buildings Program and PV for Schools Program, and is currently being used by the USDA's rural utilities service. FSEC is also in the process of updating the Florida administrative code so that all PV systems installed in Florida require this evaluation. The design review and approval process covers both utility-interactive and stand-alone photovoltaic systems. These system evaluations are based on the complete design and documentation packages that accompany the application for design review. Items evaluated include safety and code compliance of the overall design, individual components and their interactions with one another, and completeness of instructions, diagrams and schematics for system installation, operation and maintenance. To date over 70 grid-connected systems from six different manufacturers have been approved through this process.