ersol takes first steps as contractor on 955kWp rooftop project

Marking the company’s first foray into the general contracting business, ersol has begun construction of the 955kWp rooftop PV plant on the Bosch parking structure at the New Trade Fair Centre, Stuttgart. Working with airport management company Flughafen Stuttgart GmbH, ersol will act as general contractor in the first large-scale solar project since the company’s takeover by the Bosch Group.

Consisting of 4,247 monocrystalline solar modules installed on an area of about 7,000m2, the parking structure is situated close to Stuttgart Airport and is scheduled for completion and connection to the grid in December this year.

ersol’s rebranding as Bosch Solar Energy AG is imminent, and will be well timed with the completion of this project. Currently the largest Bosch logo in all of Europe, the 55m-wide logo on the side of this parking building will be illuminated by electricity generated by ersol/Bosch modules upon completion of the installation.

“This is an exceptional reference project for the future Bosch Solar Energy AG,” said Holger von Hebel, CEO of ersol, “Bosch acquired the rights to display its name on the parking structure, thus supporting the construction of the New Trade Fair Centre, Stuttgart.”

An artist’s impression of the project (right) shows the rooftop as it will look after installation of all 4,247 modules. Particularly challenging for the ersol planning team is the fact that the two roofs of the six-storey car park are constructed in such a way that there is a 12.6% roof gradient longitudinally and a 7% gradient in a transverse direction. The foundations of the installation will need to be made flat prior to installation using specially designed module holders.