Just how much money in direct and indirect costs does the permitting process add to the final cost of a residential solar energy system? According to experts, the antiquated building permit application process costs 1 dollar per watt. For an average sized system, that’s $7,000 or roughly equal to a third of the system cost!

There is a solution. SolarAPP is free for municipal permitting departments, and it will save cities money too with automation! Plan review of typical systems takes about an hour, but these simple designs get buried behind more complicated projects taking days, weeks, or months for review approval. If no corrections or back and forth is required, the permit may be issued but if any corrections are needed, the application is back in review. By automating this process, the application may not be submitted unless all the information is compliant, saving time and money for everyone.

SolarAPP was developed with input from building code body experts, UL, municipal permitting departments, and the solar energy contractor community to ensure that the highest safety standards are maintained.

• Uses standardized compliance checks to catch typos, and errors: returning corrections to the applicant instantly
• Eligible rooftop solar applications get approved permits to build instantly, while ineligible projects flow through a typical permitting review. Stale or incomplete applications never require action.
• Produces an inspection checklist replicating the application details for inspectors to utilize and confirm