“Job story”“Job story”Bobcat

Serving solar energyA Bobcat T2250 telescop-ic handler, 323 excavator and S185 skid-steer loader have all been widely used in the con-struction of solar energy parks in Puglia.

After a significant delay compared to other European countries, there has been a surge of investment over the last few years in the electrical energy industry in Italy and in solar energy projects in particular.The delay, although substantial, has been due to a range of factors from waiting for the legislative framework to make invest-ments more tax friendly, to the growing interest of companies and individuals through to public administrative bodies becoming more informed.Although the number of plants constructed has increased significantly throughout all the Italian regions, the south, given its climate, has seen the highest number of new plants. Puglia, in particular, has had a significant number of plants constructed

and has been able to attract a high number of investors from throughout Italy and also from abroad. This success is due to the region’s environment and energy policy

By Lucio GAROFALO

implemented thanks to the so-called Pear plan (Regional environmental energy plan), which also introduced more favourable legislation (Regional Law 31 of 21 October 2008). To date, Puglia boasts 57 wind farms with a total production capacity of 946 MW and numerous solar energy plants in addition to hundreds of private plants.

SAEM: track record as leaderBased in Altamura in the province of Bari, SAEM (part of the Kerself Group which also includes DEA, Ecoware, Helios Technology and Nuova Thermosolar) is renowned for its enormous contribution to the develop-ment of this technology in Puglia, where it has completed one of the biggest and most important solar energy plants on an

industrial scale in Italy.SAEM is also known na-

tionally through its in-volvement in all phases of installation; it is highly regarded for its work in constructing large solar energy plants which en-tail sourcing and survey-ing land sites, the con-struction of the support systems and also all the plant engineering.The company’s Manag-ing Director, Francesco Maggi, stated: “In Puglia alone, we have construc-ted plants with an overall power capacity of 28 MW, but that figure does not reflect our full strength as it does not include

the numerous plants under construction and the hundreds of smaller plants constructed for private clients. We use panels that are manufac-tured by Helios Technology, which is part

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of our group, the Kerself Group, because they guarantee stability over time and they are made using only the best qual-ity raw materials and polycrystalline silica technology: this means they can lower the power output by +/- 2%, thus being able to minimise mismatch losses.Our panels also guarantee an optimum spectral response and an excellent per-formance at low insulation levels thanks to advanced cell and module production technology.The high quality of the components and installation means that we can extend our warranty to twenty five years on plants that we have constructed. This is a cru-cial aspect for us because we understand that big plants require significant invest-ment and can offer outstanding results if performance is optimum and the mainte-nance costs (usually low) stay low. Thanks to the high quality of our panels and instal-lation work, we can offer a five year war-ranty on materials and manufacturing de-fects and a power capacity of no less than 90% over 10 years and more than 80% over 25 years.”The installation of a large solar energy plant must ensure it has perfect exposure, backed by construction of a support sys-tem that is able to withstand the elements over the years and a network of cables connecting the current to the inverter (this is required to transform the continuous current generated by the panels for trans-

mission to the grid). In fact the plants are con-structed on agricultural land which does not have any existing infra-structure. The construc-tion of these large MW output plants (working on a three to one ratio: three hectares to one hectare of panels) entail planning, the construc-tion of fencing, the po-sitioning of the metal structures, the digging of tunnels for the cable ducts and devising an internal access road for heavy goods vehicles.

SAEM chose BobcatThe need to transport large quantities of materials over a vast area, to dig hundreds of metres of tunnels and to position the panels requires logistics that need to take into account the requirements of the en-tire construction site.That is why the vehicles and machinery used play such an important role and can make a huge difference to the project in general. At Poggiorsini, in the province of Foggia, where SAEM constructed a solar energy park with a MW capacity, and where it is in the process of constructing another plant with the same capacity, we

met the logistics and SAEM site plant and vehicles manager, Paolo Minnini: ”Even though it may look straightforward, the

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Published: november - december 2009 - Presenza Tecnica

building of a solar energy plant requires a series of steps and the vehicles and machinery used in these steps are key in terms of meeting set delivery terms and also for the maintenance of the plant once it has been constructed. That is why we have developed specific products to help us in positioning and erection work, for the supporting foundations for the struc-tures or for example, to clean the panels using high pressure water jets. In terms of transporting materials in the yard and on site, we have identified the telescopic handler as the most useful product. We chose Bobcat and in particular, the T2250 for specific reasons. The capacity to lift 2 tonne up to 5.2 metres and 1 tonne using the maximum reach of 3.1 metres is more than enough to meet our needs. The com-pact size ensures easy manoeuvrability in the tight areas between the panels with-out any problems.

Thanks to the optimum traction, the vehi-cle can also work on uneven ground: this

happens a lot when we have to work in open spaces after heavy rainfall. This versatil-ity, the option of using a bucket and above all the precision of the controls make the telescopic handler the ideal choice for this type of work. In view of the structural quality and the performance of the T2250 and also the strong relation-ship with the dealer Caldarola, we went on to buy a Bobcat 323 compact excava-tor and S185 compact loader. These machines have proven to be ideal for all the works we

carry out such as digging and laying the cable ducts, digging tunnels and basins and fencing which are all fundamental in the construction of the plants.”