Submit your projects to our Project of the Year awards

I started to sum up our July/August issue by saying “it’s all about innovation!” and nearly barfed. Ugh. Innovation. You know what I mean? For one, it’s a word overused to the point of being meaningless. But my gag reflex is caused more by the aura around it. Everyone wants to innovate. It is an overly sought-after objective, in my book. So much time is spent trying to innovate that we don’t invest enough time and energy perfecting what’s already working and maintaining what we all actually need. Like, endless funds and brainpower get pumped into building a car that drives itself while the plan for maintaining and improving the infrastructure underneath is left to rot.

Solar innovation is different though. It’s not just innovation for innovation’s sake. Much of the new technology and concepts have the possibility to evolve and strengthen our existing infrastructure.

The most prime example of solar’s practical innovation (SEGUE) is our Project of the Year awards. Past winners have included a large craft brewery trying to be eco-friendly, a school looking for a shading solution, a utility-scale project that provided clean power on tribal land. All of them a refreshing blend of practical problem-solving led by, well, you know what.

Submit your project this year

Any PV project, big or small — we want to hear about it. Was the installation innovative in some way? Did it help a community? Does it just look really awesome? If it stands out, it’ll qualify for our Project of the Year awards. To nominate a project (construction completion date must fall between Oct. 1, 2017 and July 31, 2018):

Step one: Click here.

Step two: Fill out the form by Aug. 31, 2018.

That’s it. From there we compile the entries and put them up for an online vote in the following categories:

• Residential (pending enough submissions)
• Commercial & Industrial
• Utility-scale
• Solar + Storage

Projects with the most votes win each category, but ALL nominees are also eligible for Editor’s Choice awards. All winners are then featured in our year-end magazine and on the site. Head here for more details and to enter.

— Solar Builder magazine

[source: https://solarbuildermag.com/news/submit-your-projects-to-our-project-of-the-year-awards/]