18 February 2020
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Servicing Australia’s growing solar farm industry, ECOTECH is the only
NATA/ISO 17025 laboratory in Australia accredited to calibrate pyranometers
As reliance on solar farms continue to grow, and communities increase their reliance on solar energy, ECOTECH continues to provide the only NATA accredited pyranometer calibration service in Australia.
According to ECOTECH’s Field Services Technician, Stephen Tonniges, who is based in Dubbo, NSW, it is paramount to get your pyranometer calibrated every year. When working correctly, pyranometers will provide accurate indications of solar output and alert operators to solar panels that may not be working as efficiently as they could be.
Regular calibration ensures optimal performance
With time, pyranometers sensitivity can change and drift, so regular calibration is part of a quality management system that provides verification that your solar irradiance sensor is stable and operating accurately.
Pyranometers can be used not only for solar farms, but also for agricultural, ecological and hydrological weather networks.
“Dubbo is the perfect place to test pyranometers as it has the perfect balance between high solar intensity and cloudless days. It’s no coincidence that the Dubbo area also has a large concentration of solar farms,” Stephen said.
“Continuous and high levels of solar intensity (sunshine) are essential to ensure your instrument has been precisely calibrated to the highest standard.”
Analysing data in a NATA Accredited Calibration Service Centre (CSR)
As the optimal time for calibrating a pyranometer is during the peak season of sunshine (in Australia that is October to April), downtime can be an issue. For that reason, despite a relatively fast turnaround, wherever possible, ECOTECH can supply a loan unit to make sure that solar farms continue to measure their solar radiation successfully while their own pyranometer is being calibrated.
Likewise, ECOTECH’s pyranometer calibration services are a logical solution for northern hemisphere-based solar farms. Solar farms in the northern hemisphere can now get their instruments calibrated by ECOTECH during their low season, without interruptions to their high season operations.
ECOTECH can calibrate and service all brands of pyranometers and analyse data in the NATA/ISO 17025 accredited Melbourne-based calibration service centre. The instruments are then sent to Dubbo for extensive field testing and retesting prior to being returned to customers.
Learn more about ECOTECH pyranometer calibration services or contact Horacio Viana, ECOTECH Calibration & Services Manager on +61 (0)3 9730 7800 or calibrations@ecotech.com