As solar power continues to improve in its efficiency, surely we should be finding every opportunity to deploy it all over the world everywhere we can. It’s the ideal solution for many of the world’s remotest locations that are not connected to main power grids. The problem? Solar power may be green, but it’s also very heavy. Even if you have a way to move all those panels to their required location, you also need huge teams of people with the right technical skills to make it all work.
UK-based Renovagen has come up with innovative solutions that should be able to help combat this problem. The company’s MD John Hingley was inspired by his own travels to remote places around the world to create the Rapid Roll “T” System.
What is Renovagen’s Rapid Roll “T”?
The “T” in this product’s name stands for “trailer” or “tactical” and that’s exactly what it is. The system includes a trailer-based unit weighing up to 3,000kg in total with the trailer, making it towable by many 4×4 and other off-road vehicles. It can also be initially transported rapidly to various locations via helicopter before being deployed.
With the unit deployed, the tow vehicle can then be used to drive on and unfurl the huge rolled-up solar panel sheet that is housed within. After setting up, each unit can start generating power within just a few minutes. Rapid Roll “T” models can be configured with independently variable solar and battery capacity. Models are designated, for example, RAPID ROLL 11\48 – indicating 11kWp solar capacity and 48kWh battery capacity.
What’s more, you won’t need solar engineers on-site to help connect the system and get it working. It activates at the flick of a switch, and connecting devices to the power hub is a simple “plug and play” kind of interface.
Applications of the Rapid Roll “T”
We mentioned already that bringing power to the remotest parts of the world can be made a lot easier using the system, but there are many more urgent and relevant applications that are also needed right now. For instance, after natural disasters when field hospitals and rescue centers are hastily established, how will they be powered, especially if the same disaster has taken out other local power supplies? Within a day, a roll-out solar unit can be airlifted in, and then it just takes minutes to unfurl and start supplying pop-up hospitals, refugee camps and more with essential power.
It can also be used in less negative situations, such as for outdoor events, as well as music and film production. Imagine filming for a new TV series in the remote highlands of Scotland or the deserts of Arizona. It can be hard to hook into local power, but you won’t need to with the Rapid Roll “T”.
More products from Renovagen
Another recent introduction from Renovagen is the FAST FOLD Solar Mat, which is a scaled down version of the Rapid Roll “T” that offers a large surface area of PV power, but deployed by hand from a much smaller and lightweight package. The FAST FOLD Solar Mat comes in a simple transport bag containing 2 mats totalling 1.5kWp each.
Renovagen has another rapid roll-out solar system under development, this one called the Rapid Roll “I” system. This is a rapid roll system housed within a side-opening ISO shipping container, offering rolls up to 10 meters in width and 200 meters in length. It will be able to provide as much as 10 times more power than competing products.
Source: Renovagen
