“Our aim has always been to innovate at the helm of technology and clean energy.”

Neeraj Kumar
(Founder and Director – Technology, Skilancer Solar)

Airborne dust particles, plant sap, bird droppings, and soot lichen, are just a few of the things that can contribute to the build-up of dirt on solar panels which eventually prevents sunlight from reaching the cells which further leads to poor system performance and loss of financial returns. This calls for washing the dust and dirt off the solar modules to maintain their efficiency. While traditional manual cleaning which involves using water, can take too long and damage the cells, renowned companies like Skilancer Solar are designing advanced technologies like a self-cleaning robotic system to ensure the most effective and time-saving cleaning of the solar panels.

Skilancer Solar is a highly acclaimed cleantech firm that was incepted in 2017 with a strong commitment to maximising the energy production from solar panels. The company designs, and manufactures automatic, self-powered, water-less Solar Module cleaners for decentralised, rooftop, and utility-scale solar power plants. The robots are tested and certified by independent labs like UL and tier 1 module manufacturers like Trina, Jinko, and JA solar for an operating life of 25 years.

THE BRAINS BEHIND SKILANCER SOLAR

Skilancer Solar is the brainchild of IIT Jodhpur alumni Neeraj Kumar with 7 years of rich work experience in the solar industry and Manish Kumar Das, an instrumentation engineer with 12 years of experience.

Neeraj is an experienced Planning Manager with a demonstrated history of working in the Solar Engineering Procurement and Construction (EPC) and O&M industries while the Co-Founder of the company, Manish Das has shown his strategic intelligence in the renewable and environmental industry.

“Through Skilancer Solar, we want to bring the benefits of water efficiency and power efficiency to the everyday lives of people who are already opting for the alternative energy route,” says the Co-Founders with affirmation.

AUTOMATED CLEANING SYSTEM

When solar plants are used on a large scale, the cleaning cannot be done manually. The cleaning which takes place generally in 15 days is highly ineffective and results in generation loss due to dust deposition for a long period of 15 days.

To solve this unfeigned problem, Skilancer Solar designs and manufactures a state-of-the-art robotic system that can remove 99% of soiling on a daily basis using a combination of three factors –

A special microfiber that gently wipes soiling away
Controlled airflow over the panel surface
Gravity to ensure soiling is moved downwards and off panel rows

Here are some perceptible characteristics that make this technology a preferred choice:

Autonomous & Artificial Intelligence Enabled
Safe & Reliable
Internet Connected
Energy Independent Operation
No Water Required
Daily Cleaning of PV Modules
No misalignment issues
Only four direct drive motors on the entire assembly
The system runs directly on the array frame structure
The tilt angle gives cleaning benefits

If a water-less robot is used, a solar plant saves around 14,000 litres of water per MW per month for a typical utility plant of 200 MW i.e., 3.3 million litres of water annually. Apart from that, Skilancer Solar is enhancing the efficiency of a solar power plant by more than 20% which is an indirect contribution towards the renewable energy requirement of India.

THE CLIENTELE

Skilancer Solar deals with various prominent names in the business industry like TATA power, Renew power, Adani renewables, Aditya Birla renewables, and many more to list.

Skilancer Solar is committed to building long-term relationships with its clients and therefore delivers best-in-class after-sales service to all its country-wide dealer and distributor network with TAT of just 48 hours.

In Neeraj’s words, “Client’s confidence in a company is the cornerstone to loyal and trustworthy relationships. Hence, Skilancer Solar strives to gain clients’ confidence by delivering great client service.”

FEATHERS IN THE CAP

Skilancer Solar has been the recipient of many highly prestigious honours for its innovative technology, quality of services, and outstanding performance. Some milestones and awards achieved by the company are:

Incubated by IIM Lucknow’s incubation program L-incubator
Another incubation from the Ministry of Qatar with physical office space in Doha
Winner of Andhra Pradesh Energy Innovation Summit 2019
Felicitated with ‘Best Solar Panel Cleaning Robotics OEM of the Year’ by Re-Assets India Award 2022, Solar Quarter

A LONG ROAD AHEAD

A company that started in 2017 is establishing itself as a trailblazer via the invention of groundbreaking robotic technology. Skilancer Solar is all set to become a pioneer in solar automation and efficiency enhancement using technology.

“I wholeheartedly credit the success of Skilancer Solar to my highly competent and strong team of 45+ people comprising of mechanical engineers, embedded engineers, Business development team and most importantly site engineers,” mentions Neeraj with pride.

By far, Skilancer Solar has designed and deployed more than 100 robots for reputed names in the industry and is projected to deploy many more in the near future.

To date, Skilancer Solar has raised 3 funding rounds from very reputed Venture Capitalists, Angle Investors and Industry Leaders like Alpha venture, IIM Lucknow, Venture Catalyst and Indo Autotech Limited. With the latest funding round closed in June 22 of USD 1 million, the total valuation of the company has reached around USD 5 million.