meteocontrol at the Intersolar 2016: innovative monitoring and effective system check
New service: Pit Stop
As part of its comprehensive quality-assurance portfolio, meteocontrol will present the new Pit Stop service at its booth. The professional system check for a fixed price comprises an expert inspection of components and a valid report that outlines faults and recommends solutions. “Our new service has been very well received by the market,” says Robert Pfatischer, Managing Director of meteocontrol. “The objective assessment of the actual system quality allows operators to identify hidden defects and increase yields. The service is immensely helpful for investors on the secondary market. Risks can be minimized and profits maximized when buying or selling systems.”
Efficient monitoring from the world’s market leader
Further refinements to the blue’Log X series of data loggers focus on new functions that enable status information to be quickly and easily processed. These enhancements include configuration of the status inputs, real-time visualization of status changes and alerts from current status alarms. With the MX Module AO add-on module, system operators can use analog outputs to react even more flexibly to the needs of grid operators. The goal of the company is to maximize the efficiency of operation management, even for large system portfolios. “Thanks to virtually automatic processes, the operation manager can concentrate on essential system-management tasks such as analyzing performance and managing incidents,” says Martin Schneider, Managing Director of meteocontrol, in explaining the benefits of the system.
meteocontrol currently monitors around 41,000 systems around the globe that produce a total output of approximately 11 GWp. This places the independent provider of monitoring systems in first place worldwide in the overall ranking of a new market study published by GTM Research and SoliChamba Consulting.
VCOM – the modern monitoring platform for PV portfolios
Guided by the motto Innovation by Experience, meteocontrol is further refining its VCOM (Virtual Control Room). Functions such as the heat-map diagram, keyboard shortcuts for faster operation and analysis diagrams for ticket evaluation underscore the company’s commitment to providing an effective monitoring platform. The improved alarm system with user-defined alarm rules is another highlight. Improved usability is found, for example, in a new feature that optimizes the further processing of incoming alarms by filtering and prioritizing them on a system-specific basis.
Condition monitoring – avoiding errors and yield losses before they ever occur
meteocontrol would like to set standards in developing condition monitoring, too. Drawing on its wealth of experience and comprehensive operating data from the systems it monitors, the Augsburg-based PV specialist is developing new types of alarm algorithms to help identify or predict the causes of faults. Operation managers and investors benefit from the self-learning alarm system: They save time and money thanks to efficient monitoring and trouble-free system operation.
SCADA Center for utility-scale environments
For operation management and managing large PV power plants, meteocontrol has developed a high-performance SCADA system that it continuously adapts to meet market requirements. Because this system does not depend on having a stable Internet connection and features a flexible user interface, it can be used anywhere and adapted to suit local requirements. Data is stored on a high-performance industry server and available on location for analyses. High-resolution live values allow errors to be located quickly and easily. “At the same time, the SCADA Center provides everything needed for operation management in the control room,” says Schneider. “For on-site and VCOM-based system monitoring, we are supplying the SCADA Center to the biggest private solar power plant in Jordan, which produces an output of around 11 MWp with its three individual units.”