2022 in Review + 2023 Goals

2022 was an incredible year for PVpallet as we aggressively pursued our mission to eliminate waste streams through innovative, reusable packaging solutions. We kicked off 2022 by introducing our product prototype to the solar community at Intersolar North America, began selling our commercial-ready PVpallet Series X product in the US in June, expanded to the EU in August, and  wrapped up the year with that satisfied feeling you get after a really great roller coaster.

Here are our 2022 highlights.

Q1 2022

• Product Debut. Introduced the PVpallet concept to the solar industry at Intersolar North America. The product was met with an overwhelmingly positive response, reinforcing the many decisions made throughout the R&D process. We also saw our innovative pallet design in action during the 2022 Solar Games. Watching expert installers use PVpallet underscored its usability and gave us new ideas for future features.

• Team Growth. Co-founder Philip Schwarz officially joined PVpallet as CEO; Vanessa Benkert joined the team as Director of Marketing and interim Inside Sales Manager.

• Molds Finalized. Applied product sample testing feedback to the final mold for PVpallet Series X. 

Q2 2022

• Intersolar AWARD. Intersolar Global named PVpallet one of nine total finalists for the 2022 Intersolar AWARD. Intersolar honors companies that push innovation forward and make substantial contributions to solar power and its worldwide successes (Read Press Release). 

• The Smarter E Europe. Presented our solution to the European market at The Smarter E Europe, Europe’s largest energy industry platform. Over the 3-day conference, we met with key potential partners and did preliminary research to determine the timeline for expanding into the EU. The event exceeded expectations with 1,356 exhibitors from 46 countries and more than 65,000 visitors from 149 countries.

• Third-Party Testing. Completed third-party vibration testing and compression testing on PVpallet Series X. The test results met expectations and set the baseline for safety recommendations.

• Production. Manufactured the first commercial-ready production run of 1,000 PVpallet Series X units.

• Distribution. Paired Power officially becomes the first owner of a PVpallet Series X, followed closely by Stateline Solar and several Greentech Renewables branches.

• Team Growth. Craig Morse joins PVpallet as the Director of Sales, bringing over 30 years of sales and sales management experience to the team.

Q3 2022 

• Additional Products. Added bulk bins and handheld containers to PVpallet’s products offerings, including the ability to cube out a PVpallet with nesting totes. This product line allows us to provide reusable packaging options for other equipment and components in the solar industry beyond solar modules.

• Breakage Case Study. Completed breakage case study with leading US solar distributor Greentech Renewables, reducing their solar module breakage by 100% over the course of the study and saving an estimated $8,000 monthly (Read Full Study). This case study legitimizes our breakage reduction claims, lending credibility to our customer value proposition.

• BayWa r.e. Partnership. Signed a national distribution agreement with BayWa r.e., a leading renewable energy developer, services, and systems provider. PVpallet Series X is now available for purchase directly from BayWa r.e. Americas to US-based customers (Read Press Release).

• European Expansion. Began distributing PVpallet Series X in Europe.

• RE+ Debut. Exhibited at RE+, the largest solar energy event in North America, where we shared our breakage case study and introduced the market to other reusable bins and totes beyond PVpallet Series X. Our booth saw constant traffic throughout the 3-day event. The show set record attendance, bringing more than 27,000 attendees and 800 exhibitors to Anaheim, California.

• Core Values. Implemented an action-oriented operational strategy centered around hiring and rewarding a team that believes in our newly established core values: Boldly Innovate, Deliver Excellence and Value, Promote Authenticity and Transparency, Act with Integrity, and Have Fun.

Q4 2022

• New Form Factors. Two additional PVpallet form factors, Series R and Series U, engineered for residential and utility scale PV modules respectively, are currently in the design phase with a projected Q1 2024 launch.

• Team Growth. Adam Bailey joins PVpallet as Inside Sales Manager.

• Global Expansion. PVpallet Series X trialed in New Zealand.

Plans for 2023

• Progress the R&D efforts for Series R and U and launch product in Q1 2024

• Conduct a lease model case study with a major module manufacturer

• Complete a breakage study and carbon emissions study

• Increase warehouse operational efficiency with strategic assembly automation

• Continue to strategically grow our team to meet the needs of our customers

If you look back at the plans for 2022 we outlined in this post, you will see that we accomplished all our goals and more including debuting PVpallet at Intersolar North America in January, making final mold modifications and entering full production, hiring five additional key staff members with a focus on management, sales, and supply chain, and securing channel sales agreements with key solar industry product distributors.

Thank you for being part of this journey with us; it’s a roller coaster in the best possible way. Every day brings a new adventure and we couldn’t do it without you.