Solar panels are organised into Tiers. The Tier 1 ranking scale is orchestrated by Bloomberg New Energy Finance and is used to rank solar panel manufacturers in terms of their bank-ability or financial stability.

There is no doubt you should choose a Tier 1 solar panel manufacturer. But how to choose between Tier 1 panels as not all Tier 1 solar panels are created equal?

Some panel manufacturers are bigger, more financially stable and more integrated than others. Some have better warranties. We only purchase panels from quality manufacturers who make premium panels with the best warranties and aftersales service.

It is important to distinguish between a manufacturer who ships a large volume and another who ships a smaller quantity of more expensive quality panels, but who is more financially stable. Actually, if a solar panel manufacturer gets too big too quickly, they can fall over. But it is difficult to identify the financial stability of even the largest panel manufacturers. The Altman Z-Score can help indicate solar panel manufacturers who will be around for the long haul to honour their warranties.

The things you need to think about with regard to solar panels are:

1. The quality of the panel. This is indicated by the length of the product warranty. Only a handful of manufacturers have a full 25-year product warranty. Don't confuse this with a 25-year performance warranty which all Tier 1 panels have.
2. The stability and size of the company. The manufacturer should ideally have an Altman Z-Score in the green "safe zone."
3. The temperature Coefficient of max power should be around -0.37% or less (less is better). This means more power is generated at higher temperatures.
4. Look for construction with n-type silicon cells. They are more efficient than p-type cells and they don’t suffer from Light Induced Degradation (LID).

REC Solar Panels

McNae  Electrical Solutions supplies premium REC Solar panels. These are widely regarded as one of the highest quality Tier 1 panels available in the world. They have a full 25 year product warranty and the manufacturer has a very high Altman Z-Score. They have great yield and a better temperature coefficient of max power than many competing solar panels that are available in New Zealand. They also are completely black to give superior aesthetics to your roof. And they are manufacturered in Singapore—not China.

McNae Electrical Solutions is a premium supplier of solar products. We currently offer REC Solar 315W black n-type silicon panels with black anodised mounting systems as standard on all our premium grid-connected installations.

For more please visit https://www.recgroup.com/en/why-choose-rec