Install solar energy systems
Little of this can be handed to software today.
This happens in the physical world, so software agents do not touch it. Automation here means robotics and machinery, which is a different market from the one mapped on this site, on a much slower clock.
| How automatable | Barely automatable |
|---|---|
| Kind of work | Physical, manual and inspection work |
| Jobs that do it | 3 occupations |
| Tool categories that apply | None |
| O*NET activity | Handling and Moving Objects (4.A.3.a.2) |
What this looks like on the job
Not our paraphrase. These are real task statements recorded against this activity, spread across the 3 occupations that perform it.
- Design active direct or indirect, passive direct or indirect, or pool solar systems.
- Attach solar panels to existing roofs, according to specifications and without damaging roofing materials or the structural integrity of buildings.
- Assemble solar modules, panels, or support structures, as specified.
- Identify plumbing, electrical, environmental, or safety hazards associated with solar thermal installations.
- Install photovoltaic (PV) systems in accordance with codes and standards, using drawings, schematics, and instructions.
- Install flat-plat, evacuated glass, or concentrating solar collectors on mounting devices, using brackets or struts.
- Identify and resolve any deficiencies in photovoltaic (PV) system installation or materials.
- Install heat exchangers and heat exchanger fluids according to installation manuals and schematics.
- Identify electrical, environmental, and safety hazards associated with photovoltaic (PV) installations.
- Install solar collector mounting devices on tile, asphalt, shingle, or built-up gravel roofs, using appropriate materials and penetration methods.
- Program, adjust, or configure inverters and controls for desired set points and operating modes.
- Install solar thermal system controllers and sensors.
- Install active solar systems, including solar collectors, concentrators, pumps, or fans.
What we would actually use
Nothing in our landscape addresses this work. That is the honest answer rather than a padded list: this activity needs a person present, or a machine rather than a software agent.
Nothing on this site applies. Automation here is robotics and machinery, a different market on a much slower clock, and no software subscription moves it.
Chosen for the cheapest thing that does the job, not the best funded. Nothing on this site is sponsored, and the full landscape is there when you want to disagree with us.
How people actually do it
No workflow names this activity yet, but these automate the same kind of work, with the prompts to paste and what to keep for yourself.
Who does this work
3 occupations in the O*NET database perform this activity. Each one has a full breakdown of its other tasks.
Work that goes with it
O*NET groups these under “Install energy or heating equipment”. In practice they tend to be done by the same person, in the same sitting.
| Activity | Jobs |
|---|---|
| Install energy-efficient heating, ventilation, or air conditioning (HVAC) equipment | 3 |
| Install heating, ventilation, or air conditioning (HVAC) equipment | 2 |
Method. The activity, its taxonomy placement and the occupations that perform it come straight from the public-domain O*NET 30.3 database. The automatability band is ours: we map each of O*NET’s 41 generalized work activities to how much of its output current software can produce, assuming a person still reviews and owns the result. It is a coarse three-way judgment on purpose. A precise-looking percentage here would be invented.