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 ideal solar panel manufacturer is one who invests heavily in research and ships a large volume of cutting edge panels—and who is also financially stable.

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. Don't choose a solar panel that only has a 10 year product warranty and 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 -0.34% or less (less is better). This means more power is generated at higher temperatures.
4. Look for low degradation over time. Better solar panels will still be producing 87% or more of their nameplate power after 25 years.

High Efficiency Solar Panels 

 McNae Energy and Solar installs premium SunPower solar panels. SunPower has led the solar industry for over 30 years in technology, warranty, research & development, and cell and panel efficiencies. We supply super high efficiency 410W panels that come with the SunPower 25 year Complete Confidence Panel Warranty—the industry's most comprehensive warranty coverage.

SunPower performance panels are the most deployed shingled solar panel in the world with patents to protect the technology. This means more generation if shade passes over the array.

SunPower panels have very low degradation over time - less than 2% in the first year, and just 0.45% for each year after that. This means more lifetime power generation than other panels.