[RE-wrenches] Proposal Sketching Tool/Software

Thu Jun 19 07:02:21 PDT 2014

Very nice Jason!

I’ll certainly take a look at that plugin. I should mention the 2hr sketch was including the detailed roof measurements and placement of all the roof obstructions. I’m not as fast as you still, as the simple best case layout would still have taken me the better part of 45min to get it where I would want itJ

Daniel Young, 

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 <http://www.dovetailsolar.com> www.dovetailsolar.com

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From: RE-wrenches [mailto:re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org] On Behalf Of Jason Szumlanski
Sent: Wednesday, June 18, 2014 7:47 AM
To: RE-wrenches
Subject: Re: [RE-wrenches] Proposal Sketching Tool/Software

That's easy to talk through. We tell the prospect in advance that we make an initial assessment based on aerial imagery to show the maximum possible (trees can be cut usually, and plumbing can be moved). When we arrive, if there are any obstructions, we talk about that with the homeowner. It's really quite simple. No embarrassment.

The opposite of what you describe is often the case - we assume that there is a serious shading issue, only to arrive and find out that tall trees have been cut since the images were taken. Some conversation at initial lead intake can reduce that possibility.

Fortunately, around here we usually have pretty crisp and recent imagery so at least we know if there will be an obstruction in advance. Like you said, the location and height is hard to pinpoint on a drawing in advance.

It's incredibly easy to revise the drawings according to what is discovered at the site visit. Usually we will will do an electronic presentation on an iPad, then revise the drawing if necessary before emailing the PDF to the homeowner.

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On Wed, Jun 18, 2014 at 4:20 AM, William Miller <william at millersolar.com> wrote:

Jason:

Very impressive.  Thanks for sharing.

If you do your design from a satellite image, aren’t you afraid you might miss a plumbing vent or other obstruction, or the shade from a tree that you cannot judge the height of accurately?  One foot can make the difference of 3 modules on a 3 row install.  Is it embarrassing to sell the customer x number of modules and arrive to find out you can only fit <x?

William

Gradient Cap_mini
Lic 773985
millersolar.com <http://www.millersolar.com/> 
805-438-5600

From: RE-wrenches [mailto:re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org] On Behalf Of Jason Szumlanski
Sent: Tuesday, June 17, 2014 2:17 PM

To: RE-wrenches
Subject: Re: [RE-wrenches] Proposal Sketching Tool/Software

Rather than sharing individual presentation examples, I did a screen recording of preparing a model in Sketchup Pro and Layout from start to finish. This is me preparing a real presentation package that will be used tomorrow at an in-house presentation by a sales rep. I ignored roof obstructions in the interest of time, but you can see in the video that I completed a viable presentation package in 10 minutes showing the maximum PV possible on a roof. The magic happens at 2:25 when the Instant Roof script does it's work. Here is a link to the video:

http://youtu.be/vs3ypUOe2_c

This is not sped up. I did take some minor liberties in the interest of time - I would typically spend about 5 minutes extra making sure dimensions are as accurate as possible. This particular address didn't have the sharpest imagery from Google Earth, but it was passable. I'll be well within 1' on all roof dimensions based on my past experience, and a few measurements from the ground can confirm accuracy level. I used Bing Maps to estimate a roof pitch of 5:12, which is pretty typical of the neighborhood I know this house to be within. Google street view is not available in this gated community. I assumed an 18" eave, which I generally use as a generic dimension unless I know homes in a neighborhood to have different overhangs. This home had a raised entryway and a lower beam height for the garage, so it was not the easiest home to model, but far from the hardest. I took a few minutes to set up my rendering scenes and elevations because I am anticipating this actually being used eventually for construction and permitting docs in Layout, but that's totally optional. I skipped some minor steps in Layout, too, like changing the quantity of modules in the legend. I'll go back and clean things up before sending to the sales rep. I showed off some of the shading analysis capabilities, even though it wasn't necessary for this unshaded roof.

You can see the mouse clicks, but what you don't see is my keyboard presses - I have shortcuts set up for most tools and actions to speed my workflow.

Preparing models from PDF or DWF plans results in a mode every bit as accurate as AutoCAD. I use essentially the same techniques. That can really blow away a homeowner (and sometimes an architect). 

Hopefully that answers your questions about the viability of Sketchup for doing solar energy presentations!

Jason Szumlanski

Fafco Solar

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