EVO is a technology platform designed by Soltec that integrates advanced functions into the tracker control system to optimize the performance and management of photovoltaic plants. The solution combines hardware, proprietary software, and advanced data analytics in a single environment, enabling centralized equipment control, improved operational monitoring, and more efficient operation of the facilities.
Soltec EVO is a proprietary development that forms part of the company's new innovation strategy, focused on strengthening the technological capabilities of solar trackers. With this initiative, Soltec expands its value proposition beyond photovoltaic structures and control electronics. The latter is transformed into a technological platform with advanced functions designed to address the critical needs of operators, maintenance personnel, and owners throughout the plant's lifecycle.
Intelligent management of solar plants
The EVO architecture has been designed to house an updated suite of Soltec's intelligent algorithms, aimed at maximizing the plant's energy performance, protecting assets, and optimizing operations and maintenance.
SolBoost is an algorithm designed to improve the return on investment for photovoltaic installations through a machine learning solution that optimizes production based on the circumstances affecting the solar modules. Its capabilities include avoiding shadows, even on uneven terrain, at the beginning and end of the day—times when electricity prices are typically highest—optimized capture of diffuse radiation in cloudy conditions, and specific strategies to minimize photovoltaic generation losses in windy conditions.
With a dynamic protection approach, SolDefense adapts the behavior of the trackers in real time to adverse weather conditions. The solution allows for the application of specific strategies against events such as hail, helping to protect the integrity of the plant and reduce the operational risks associated with extreme weather events.
In the area of operation and maintenance, SolCare incorporates advanced tools for monitoring, predictive maintenance, operational planning and performance analysis.
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The platform facilitates centralized management of the trackers and consolidates alarms, events, and historical data into a single digital environment, enabling faster, more efficient, and more accurate decision-making. It also includes specific functionalities for task scheduling—in normal, night, and rain modes—advanced data analysis, and optimization of daily plant operations.
Robust, scalable, and cybersecure
Soltec EVO's architecture stands out for its robustness in two key areas. First, its design has been conceived to evolve over time, allowing for the easy incorporation of new functionalities, applications, and algorithms as they are developed. Second, it guarantees the reliability of wireless tracker communications even in complex environments, a capability already validated in the first plants in Spain and Brazil where the solution has been installed.
In fact, one of EVO's main advantages over previous control electronics lies in its ease of deployment and adaptability to technological evolution. Thanks to its architecture based on microservices and Docker containers, the platform allows for independent updates, scalability of functionalities, and specific developments for each client or project. This approach is highly backward compatible; it simplifies the incorporation of new capabilities throughout the plant's lifecycle and facilitates retrofitting existing installations, integrating with already implemented systems without operational interruptions.
The final pillar of the platform is cybersecurity. Designed using a Cybersecurity by Design approach, Soltec EVO integrates advanced network segmentation mechanisms, communication encryption, and access control, minimizing exposure to threats and ensuring a secure environment for managing critical energy generation assets.
About Soltec
Soltec is a technology company specializing in solutions for utility-scale photovoltaic plants. With over 20 years of experience in the renewable energy industry, Soltec designs and supplies solar trackers, control electronics, software, and advanced algorithms aimed at maximizing energy production, optimizing plant operation, and strengthening their resilience to environmental challenges.
Its project portfolio, exceeding 22 GW spread across five continents, along with a long track record in developing innovations, has established Soltec as one of the international benchmarks in solar tracking technology.
By Matías Medinilla
By Emilia Lardizabal
