In years past, roll formers enjoyed a
boom of business thanks to the solar industry. As a new and emerging industry,
solar panel manufacturers looked to metal fabricators for expertise in
producing solar mounting and racking components.
But the once-blank slate now is filled up
with standard hot-rolled shapes, cold-rolled basic angles and channels, and
tube. The racking and ground pilings space has become commoditized. Combine
this with a massive consolidation of players, and the solar market is feeling a
bit crowded with little room for future growth.
In spite of a seemingly glass ceiling,
now is the time for custom roll formers to make their play.
What Custom Roll Forming Can Bring to the
Table
Historically, custom roll formed shapes
were a difficult sell in the solar market, due to their perception as high-cost
components. The word “custom” was seen
as a euphemism for costly and unnecessary. As a result, shapes reliant on
standard tooling or hot-rolled
processing were heavily favored.
Now, thanks to roll forming’s sturdy
footing in solar, these businesses have an opportunity to sell both the
flexibility and cost efficiencies of custom shapes.
When done well, a custom shape can be
used in a handful of applications in a solar installation and represent real
value. Broader utilization furthers the
economies of scale achieved through roll forming. Custom shapes contribute to
product differentiation and improve ease of installation, increasing value to
the market and allowing project owners to realize lower total cost of
installation.
This information, paired with roll
forming’s natural benefits of in-line processing and automation, makes a
compelling case for custom roll formed shapes. That said, roll formers must be
able to supply in-house design capabilities and roll forming engineering expertise in order to sell this approach effectively.
The Future of Solar is in Value Added
As solar panel
prices decrease, solar panel and mounting manufacturers must find new ways to
stay competitive. One of the key challenges of the solar industry is reaching
parity with nonrenewable energy technologies.
Lowering the true cost per kilowatt-hour for an installation by any and
all means is required to achieve the desired cost levels. Roll formers looking to continue their
success in the solar market must adopt value-added services—namely, creative
custom shape design expertise—to reclaim dollars lost to commoditization.
Guest blog post authored by Randy Myers, Sr. Technical Director of Product Development at American Roll Form Products.
Guest blog post authored by Randy Myers, Sr. Technical Director of Product Development at American Roll Form Products.
