Solar Lighting & Off-Grid Technical Guides
Practical, vendor-neutral guidance for contractors, EPC teams, consultants and procurement staff who specify solar street lighting and off-grid power. We write these from the buyer’s side of the table: what to specify, what to check, and what to ask suppliers for.
Preparing a tender
Start with the documents that decide whether your tender attracts serious suppliers.
Choosing a product family
Both keep the panel separate, but the battery lives in a very different place.
Unreliable sunshine
Most under-sized systems are sized on the best month, not the worst week.
Comparing quotes
Two quotes at the same price are rarely the same product.
Browse guides by goal
1. Procurement & tendering
2. Design & sizing
3. Core components
4. Controls & smart features
5. Reliability, installation & O&M
6. Solar home systems
Standards commonly cited in tenders
These are public standards, not claims about any particular supplier. If your specification cites them, ask every bidder for the document that proves compliance for the exact model offered — not for the product family or a generic certificate.
| Standard | What it covers | What to ask the supplier for |
|---|---|---|
| IES LM-79 | Electrical and photometric measurement of LED luminaires | A test report for the exact model offered |
| IES LM-80 + TM-21 | LED lumen maintenance testing and projected depreciation | LM-80 data for the LED used and the TM-21 projection applied |
| ANSI/IES RP-8 | Recommended practice for roadway and street lighting | The lighting-class calculation behind the proposed pole spacing |
| IEC 61215 / IEC 61730 | PV module design qualification and safety | Module certificates matching the module on the datasheet |
| UN 38.3 | Lithium battery transport testing | The test summary — required by carriers for shipping |
| IEC 62133 / IEC 62619 | Lithium battery safety, portable and industrial | Cell and pack level certificates |
| IEC 60529 (IP) | Ingress protection against dust and water | The claimed IP rating and which part of the product it applies to |
| IEC/EN 62262 (IK) | Impact resistance of enclosures | The IK rating for the luminaire housing |
| IEC 61000-4-5 | Surge immunity | The surge rating claimed and the surge protection fitted |
| ISO 1461 | Hot-dip galvanizing of steel | Coating thickness in microns and the galvanizing report |
| EN 40 / EN 1090 | Lighting columns and execution of steel structures | A pole design calculation for your local wind speed |
How we can help
- Review a specification, BOQ or tender document and flag what is under-specified or self-contradictory
- Match a product and configuration to your site conditions, rather than upselling the largest model
- Source from qualified manufacturers and manage quality from order to shipment
- Carry out pre-shipment inspection and supply the documentation your tender submission needs
If you are preparing a tender, BOQ or specification and want a second opinion on product selection, contact us — we are happy to review your documents.