Finalist of the Victorian Premier’s Design Awards
Solpod is proud to announce we have been listed as a Finalist of the Premier’s Design Awards. Solpod entered our re-deployable ‘Solpod’ product in the Product Design category, to showcase our highly innovative rooftop arrays. Solpod has the potential to be a game changer in the commercial rooftop solar industry.
The Victorian Premier’s Design Awards was established in 1996 to “recognise and reward Victorian designers and businesses that display excellence in the way they use design.”
James Larratt, CEO and co-founder of Solpod, notes: “We are honoured to be recognised through these awards. We are delivering globally relevant innovation with a local team of designers and engineers. We are grateful for the value our advisors have brought including Studio Periscope, Tensys Engineers, MEL Consultants, and Clean Technology Partners.”
Solpod is described in our Premier’s Design Awards entry as having developed “the world’s first re-deployable commercial rooftop solar product.” Solpod’s’ unique design and function means that the solar pods can be efficiently installed and removed, and re-deployed elsewhere. Solpods are fully Australian Made and designed, manufactured in a factory in Dandenong, Melbourne.
Solpod’s Product Design
Each Solpod is a prefabricated 10 solar pv panel pod, with two folding and unfolding 5 solar panel wings. As the pods are prefabricated rather than assembled on rooftops, Solpods are efficiently installed by cranes in a fraction of the time that a standard solar installation requires.
Solpods are able to be removed from rooftops and moved elsewhere, without disturbing the roof sheet. This unique design feature opens the commercial and industrial solar market to renters and customers who can only make short term commitment to solar.
A Solpod installation offers distinct safety advantages compared to a standard solar installation: less workers are required to work on rooftops at heights, and the method of securing Solpods to rooftsheets is ergonomic.
More information about Solpods can be found on our Solpod Roof product page.
Good Design in Victoria
Danny Pearson, the Minister for Creative Industries says: “Design has always been important but as we emerge from the pandemic, designers are playing a vital in helping to shape new COVIDSafe ways to live.”
The Premier’s Design Awards recognises that design is a major contributor to the Victorian economy. “In Victoria, more than 85,000 people are directly employed in design-related roles, with the sector generating revenues of $5 billion annually including an estimated $400 million in design-related exports.”
Larratt recognises the value of innovation in making the shift to a renewable economy, both achievable and competitive. Larratt says: “Whenever there is great economic change you tend to also see great innovation. The transition to renewables is underway. Solpod was established to ride this wave, and through innovative design and manufacturing, unlock the potential of solar for business.”
The following video is included on the Premiers’ Design Awards page for Solpod:
Mr Pearson says: “Congratulations to the talented designers and architects who have been shortlisted this year. Their collective work is an impressive showcase of Victoria’s reputation as a place of innovation with creativity at its core.”