Thermography inspection of solar plants
Every module checked individually. In one morning.
We fly your PV plant with a radiometric thermal camera and RGB, evaluate every module computationally and deliver a prioritised findings list with module ID and coordinates. Your electrician walks straight to the right table.
Fixed prices · Switzerland, southern Germany and the Alps · binding quote within 24 hours
The inverter sees the string, not the module
A single hotspot module drags down the whole string long before monitoring raises an alarm. It costs yield first, then the module, and above 100 °C it becomes a safety issue. From the ground you see roofs and fields at an angle and incompletely. From the air: vertical, systematic, in minutes.
What you get
Complete, not sampled
A radiometric thermal orthophoto of the whole plant: every module seen vertically from above, with a surface temperature per pixel, not just a colourful picture.
Every finding has a location
RTK ground control points, a module grid and a module ID per finding with coordinate, Tmax, ΔT, class and priority. As PDF, CSV and GeoJSON, ready for GIS or O&M software.
Traceable and honest
Classification and thresholds are in the report, every priority-3 finding is cross-checked against the raw frames, external facts are sourced. We identify suspects; your electrician measures the cause.
Example project: ground-mounted plant, 2.4 MWp, Upper Rhine
Flown at the end of August 2026, thermal flight 10:55 to 12:09 at 547 to 683 W/m². The operator asked not to be named; all figures come from the delivered report.
- 6,092
- modules in 22 rows on 2.2 ha
- 75 min
- thermal flight, 1,805 images, 5 cm per pixel
- 383
- anomalous modules, 6.3 % of the plant
- 132
- of them priority 1 “inspect urgently”
Distribution of the 383 findings
- 132Priority 1, inspect urgently
- 205Priority 2, inspect soon
- 46Priority 3, monitor
- 124 of the 132 priority-1 modules were confirmed in at least two raw frames.
- 91 % of the findings sit in rows 11 to 22: a spatial pattern that makes the follow-up targeted.
- 4 modules reached the camera's 150 °C measuring limit and are reported as minimum values.
- Delivered: 27-page report, radiometric orthophoto, RGB orthophoto, findings as CSV/GeoJSON and all raw frames, three months on our download portal.
How it works
Short questionnaire
Capacity, module type, string plan and your naming scheme, so findings arrive in your language.
Preparation visit
For large plants about four hours on site: site boundary with GNSS RTK, at least four ground control points and two check points, heights and obstacles for flight planning.
Flight day
At 600 W/m² or more with the plant under load. Thermal and RGB: a single-family roof in 30 to 45 minutes, 2.4 MWp in a good hour of flight time.
Analysis
Module grid, comparison of each module with its neighbours in the same row, priority-3 findings checked against the raw frames.
Delivery
Report and data package within a week, follow-up questions included. Annual repeat with comparable figures on request.
Service and prices
Fixed prices net in CHF, plus VAT. Travel from Zürich at CHF 0.90 per kilometre, examples for 45 km. Jobs in Germany are billed in EUR.
| Plant | Basic – images for your own analysis | Pro – with findings report | Pro, example 45 km |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single-family house 5–15 kWp, 20–50 modules | CHF 450 | CHF 750 | CHF 831 |
| Hall, commercial roof 15–50 kWp, 50–150 modules | CHF 900 | CHF 1'400 | CHF 1'481 |
| Large plant, solar park 50 kWp to 5 MWp, roof or ground-mounted | from CHF 3'850 | from CHF 4'600 | CHF 4'762 at 2.4 MWp, CHF 9'730 at 5 MWp |
| Above 5 MWp | Several flight days, quote on request. | ||
Large plants include the preparation visit with ground control points and two trips; effort scales linearly from the 2.4 MWp base. The calculator prices your case in two minutes.
Maintenance partners (installers, O&M): 15 % partner discount from three plants per year, report in your layout on request.
Autumn offer: 10 % off large plants and solar parks for flight dates up to 31 October 2026.
Annual check: as a three-year subscription
The value of thermography grows with repetition: same method, same module IDs, a per-module comparison every year. New hotspots, degradation, the effect of repairs. The annual check includes one flight per year in the irradiance window, the report with year-on-year comparison, scheduling by us and the data package for the whole term. Year 1 at the Pro list price, from year 2 without the preparation visit and with 10 % subscription discount on services. Term 3 years, billed annually, from hall size upwards.
| Plant | Year 1 | from year 2 | 3 years total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hall, commercial roof | CHF 1'481 | CHF 1'341 | CHF 4'163 |
| Large plant 2.4 MWp | CHF 4'762 | CHF 3'591 | CHF 11'944 |
| Solar park 5 MWp | CHF 9'730 | CHF 7'382 | CHF 24'494 |
Net in CHF, examples for 45 km travel. Travel is never discounted.
What is at stake?
Example from the reference project: 132 priority-1 modules produce around 50,000 kWh per year by the rule of thumb of 200 kWh per square metre and year. If they only deliver half, CHF 2,000 to 5,000 are missing every year, depending on the tariff. Add warranty claims: 132 modules that can be claimed before the product warranty expires are worth around CHF 20,000 at CHF 150 per module including installation, and that claim lapses without a finding. 4 modules at the 150 °C measuring limit are a safety issue. The inspection costs CHF 4'762 once.
Assumptions: Swissolar rule of thumb 200 kWh/m²·a for the Swiss Plateau, module area 1.92 m²; 50 % output loss of the affected modules (double for total failure); tariff from 8 centimes/kWh (mean of the SFOE reference market prices for photovoltaics Q1 2026 10.27 and Q2 2026 3.90) to 20 centimes/kWh (older feed-in contracts); replacement value CHF 150 per module including installation. All assumptions for a worked example, not measurements.
What we do not promise
- No inspection to IEC TS 62446-3 by certified thermographers. We deliver aerial thermography with computational analysis; the report says so.
- No electrical root-cause diagnosis. Findings are suspects your electrician measures specifically. Module type, string plan and monitoring data at flight time make the attribution robust.
- No flight in weak irradiance. Without at least 600 W/m² and the plant under load, defects do not heat up; the date therefore depends on the weather.
Frequently asked questions
- Our inverter reports no faults. Why inspect anyway?
- The inverter measures the string, not the module. A hotspot costs yield first and the module later, long before an alarm triggers. In the example project 6.3 % of the modules were anomalous without monitoring reporting anything.
- Why ground control points and an orthophoto instead of plain drone photos?
- Because a finding without a location is worthless. With RTK ground control points and a module grid, every anomalous module gets an ID and a coordinate that leads the technician straight to the right table, even among 6,000 modules.
- What do we have to prepare?
- Nothing on site. The plant should run under load. Module type, string plan and monitoring data at flight time help with attribution; our questionnaire covers that.
- When in the year does thermography make sense?
- From March to early October, on clear days around midday with at least 600 W/m². We schedule by the irradiance window and confirm the day before.
- How fast is the report available?
- Usually within a week of the flight. The data package stays on our download portal for three months; questions about the report are included.
- Do you also fly in Germany?
- Yes, especially on the Upper Rhine and in southern Baden. Prices there are in EUR; the service is the same.
Have your plant inspected?
Estimate online in two minutes, binding quote within 24 hours. Or send us capacity and location and we will come back with a date proposal.
FOCA-registered operatorDJI Matrice 4T radiometric + Matrice 4E, RTKLiability cover CHF 3 millionBased in Zürich