Swiss startup Solarstream has launched project management software for both traditional PV installers and electricians serving the solar market. Meant to improve productivity and accuracy, the software is suitable for large-sized commercial, industrial, and residential projects.
The start up of the company in early 2024 was triggered by the founders’ understanding that solar adoption was being slowed by the administrative effort required for each project.
Solarstream is focused on the small-medium sized (SME) segment which covers pure-play solar installation companies but also electricians that serve the solar market, according to Solarstream CEO and co-founder, Manuel Ganter.
“There are lots of different pdf templates and other documents, which are often completed manually, poor integrations, and a scattered software landscape – we wanted to change this,” Ganter told pv magazine.
Every feature developed during the product concept phase was iterated with installation companies. “Through that we made sure that we are on target right from the start, which was crucial for us, especially since we are self-financed,” said Ganter, noting that there is a potential user base of several hundreds of solar installers across Switzerland.
The software automates document and file management, taking local Swiss requirements into account, such as regulatory compliance tasks and support of the country’s national languages. “Besides several integrations to a lot of existing software players to automize data exchange we leverage AI to make installation companies more efficient,” said Ganter.
“Our task manager continuously monitors the project progress and makes suggestions for status updates to make sure everything is up-to-date, which is crucial to detect potential bottlenecks or problems as early as possible,” he added.
There are integrations with customer relationship (CRM) and enterprise resource (ERP) software packages used by Swiss SMEs, such as Bexio software, and automated data exchange features. There is an integration with the Swiss Pronovo platform and the ElektroForm digital platform for administrative forms required by the cantons, municipalities, grid operators, and other digital sources. The focus on integrating existing systems is meant to reduce manual input errors and save time, according to the company.
“We further use AI to classify and store required documents autonomously so that installers have all information in one place. That saves a lot of time and helps in the future when it comes to service management,” explained Ganter, adding that the AI referred to is large language models (LLMs) to access the content and context of documents, enabling efficient handling of the documents.
The package has built-in messaging to stay in contact with customers and project partners. “Another feature our customers are excited about is the automated customer communication for the project process. Similar to receiving a parcel delivery the end-customer receives email updates about the current project progress, plus a personal status page, which summarizes all relevant information,” said Ganter. Status reports and customized overviews are also supported.
The software is available on a subscription basis. Potential customers can test it on a trial basis on the Solarstream website.
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