Premier PV adds AWM Solar LOTO to PV harnessing solutions
Solar electrical balance of system (eBOS) provider Premier PV announced the “widespread use” of Affordable Wire Management (AWM)’s Solar LOTO across Premier PV harnessing solutions supplied nationwide.
“At Premier PV, we are serious about connector reliability and energization safety. AWM’s Solar LOTO is our top connector cap choice for several reasons,” said Ryan Schofield, Vice President at Premier PV.
According to HelioVolta’s 2024 SolarGrade PV Health Report, wiring and connector issues were found on 83% of PV projects inspected, causing more problems than any other component. The Solar LOTO (lockout / tagout) prevents these complications. The Solar LOTO certified to IP67D and also utilizes a specialized disconnect tool which prevents accidental removal.
“AWM’s Solar LOTO’s lock-in-place device is easy to install, and stays on during construction. It requires a tool to disconnect, ensuring worker safety, and diminishing the risk of the cap falling off,” Schofield says. “As Premier PV continues to gain market share, increase capacity, and deploy more product to EPC customers, the risk of safety for installers becomes more important by the day. We all have families to go home to every day, and it is extremely important to myself and the Premier PV team that those installing our product are kept safe during the process.”
What is Solar LOTO
For decades, solar crews have utilized basic dust caps, party balloons, or plastic bags to cover disconnected strings during construction and maintenance to protect them from environmental conditions. These pre-existing solutions have an inherent flaw—they regularly fall off and allow dust to infiltrate the connector.
When wires are later connected, any foreign object can lead to reliability issues and ongoing electrical challenges. Additionally, these dust cap predecessors cannot prevent the risk of electric shock during energization.
AWM’s Solar LOTO improves connector reliability during installation and protects construction crews and O+M workers during energization and maintenance of solar projects.
Solar Builder interviewed AWM CEO Scott Rand last year about a slew of utility-scale eBOS products. Here is what he had to say about Solar LOTO:
Rand: “The Solar LOTO is actually a locking dust cap that basically mates with the solar connector itself. The main intent for the solar lockout is to prevent the misenergization of strings. The dc designs in solar now are highly sophisticated and require extra details when commissioning projects, because there’s not as many disconnects that can safely energize these sites.
“There are a few other applications once the power plant is constructed. We see a lot of dust caps that fall off with certain modules, so our Solar LOTO can be used as a long-term dust cap that goes over the connector. It can also be used to eliminate what are called super strings. When installers connect modules together, it forms a string, right? If they connect too many together, then that can exceed the rated capabilities of the module and cause failures in the field.”
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