Production of solar panels: business relevance + what are solar panels + advantages of installing solar panels + production technology + necessary raw materials and equipment + organizational aspects of starting a business + start-up capital and business profitability + an overview of creating a mini-production for the production of solar panels.

Solar cell production- this is undoubtedly an innovative type of business, especially in Russia. Although in other countries, for example, Turkey, Spain and Germany, alternative methods of generating electricity are in demand, and therefore the production of such panels is no longer a novelty for them.

Of course, opening such a business in Russia is somewhat risky, since so far people are wary of such innovations. But, given the fact that this business niche is still free from competitors, and solar panels are indeed a very promising way to generate electricity, the launch of such an enterprise can be called a profitable investment.

In this review, we will tell you how to organize the production of such batteries, where it is best to do it, how much you need to invest in order to succeed in this area of ​​entrepreneurial activity.

Is it rational to establish the production of solar panels in Russia?

One can argue for a long time about whether such production will become in demand on the territory of the country. Indeed, on the one hand, this is indeed a very promising direction, which can eventually completely replace the electricity we are accustomed to.

But, on the other hand, solar panels will be more in demand in solar regions, since the Sun is the main component of this alternative method of generating electricity.

If we consider the production of solar panels purely as a type of business, then, of course, this area of ​​entrepreneurial activity is very, very profitable.

Several factors contribute to this at once:

• The market for the production of solar panels in Russia remains among the most "empty", which indicates the absence of competitors on the way of building a business.
• In any case, oil and gas reserves are not infinite, and it is high time for people to think about alternative methods of generating electricity.
• Demand for solar panels is driven not only by the decline in natural resources. Also, people are stimulated by high prices for utilities, the costs of which can be significantly reduced by resorting to the use of solar energy.

In addition to these factors, solar panels also have a wide range of applications, so that they can be used in a wide variety of areas.

The most popular directions in this regard are used by the following:

• Battery charge for various equipment - portable electronics.
• Electric vehicle production.
• Providing residential buildings with electricity, which can be used for heating and lighting.

Of course, batteries for power supply of houses are in the greatest demand, therefore in this article we will consider exactly the organization of the production of batteries for these purposes.

In any case, the production of solar panels is a very popular niche that will become much more popular in Russia in a few years. And to try your hand at this business now is the most appropriate time due to the fact that until you meet too many competitors on your way.

What are solar panels and how are they produced?

In simple terms, a solar battery is an installation that is capable of converting solar energy into electric current, which is used to supply power to residential buildings.

In order to understand in general terms what a solar battery looks like and how its mechanism works, it will be enough to look at the figure:

Solar panels are alternative sources of electricity, similar to water and wind installations, which were used by our ancestors in order to obtain electricity.

Today, it is these batteries that are considered the most economical way to provide electricity to residential buildings, since their installation and installation are not as expensive as other devices, moreover, it is not possible to use the received electricity immediately.

Since the battery transforms the energy of the Sun "in excess", modern technologies allow it to be stored in special batteries and used at a time when solar activity is minimal, that is, in the evening or at night.

In order to install a solar panel and get energy, you don't even have to live in the sunniest place in the country. New developments make it possible to use installations even in those climatic zones where the sun is much smaller.

And by themselves, solar panels, as a source of electricity, have a lot of advantages, the main of which are the following:

1. Solar energy is the safest and cleanest energy available.
2. You can install a solar panel and. On average, the installation of a battery will cost up to 50 thousand rubles. Moreover, this includes not only the initial set itself, but also the installation of the battery.
3. In order to install the device, you do not need to change anything in the existing engineering networks, because such installations can be easily mounted into existing networks.
4. Solar panels have a very long lifespan and do not need constant quality checks or repairs.
5. Batteries can be mounted on almost any building, which means that this method of generating energy is suitable for both large cities and small villages.

In short, solar panels are a really working option that will help not only get clean energy, but also significantly reduce utility bills.

The only thing worth paying attention to is the direct scope of application of solar panels.

The fact is that many people confuse the concept of solar panels and collectors, the purpose of which is completely different. If solar panels are a device for generating electricity, then a collector is the receipt of thermal energy from the Sun, which is directed to other needs, such as, say, heating and heating water.

Collectors have a slightly different form and principle of operation, so these two terms should not be confused in any way.

Since we figured out the very concept of solar cells, we can go directly to the process of their production.

And here it is important to immediately note that for a future businessman there are two main ways in which he can develop this business:

• The first method consists in a full production cycle, that is, "from A to Z" - from the manufacture of components to their assembly into full-fledged batteries.
• The second method involves the purchase of ready-made materials and the installation of batteries from them.

Each of the methods has the right to exist, as well as its pros and cons.

For example, by making all batteries yourself, including their components, you can be sure of the quality of the final product. Also, due to this, you can significantly reduce the cost of each battery. But the organization of such a production will require significant investments, which is the main disadvantage of this method.

As for the second option, it will cost you less, but the cost of production due to purchased materials will be much higher.

In order to analyze in detail both the one and the other option, first we will consider the entire production cycle, as well as the way to organize it for starting a business.

At the end, we will also give an example of organizing a mini-production, when all parts have already been purchased, and all you need to do is learn how to assemble, assemble and sell them.

Solar Cell Technology: A Step-by-Step Guide

In order for solar panels, first you need to figure out what the technology of their manufacture looks like, and what stages you will have to face.

So, in order to produce a ready-made solar battery from the purchased raw materials, you will need to carry out the following steps:

1. Cut the silicon wafers and clean them for further processing.
2. Etch the surface of the silicon wafers and structure it.
3. Apply phosphorus to the plate and then burn it out.
4. Metallize the surface.
5. Dry the silicon wafers.
6. Connect the electrical contacts on the front side of the plate.
7. Align the plates.
8. Frame the plates with aluminum frames.
9. Test the finished installation.

As a result, we get a solar panel that looks like this:

What is needed to organize production: what kind of raw materials and equipment to buy?

In view of the fact that we are analyzing the production of solar panels "from scratch", it is worth noting right away that to start a business, you will need a lot of everything: both raw materials and equipment.

In addition, it is important to take into account that the production of such batteries is a very knowledge-intensive process, therefore it is better to look for and purchase the necessary components, having first consulted with an intelligent physicist or electromechanic, who will ultimately help to establish the production process.

By the way, it will not be so easy to find a suitable specialist, as well as all the necessary materials, since such production in Russia has not yet been established. It is better to look for all the necessary items and even specialists abroad.

On average, buying only raw materials will cost you about 100 thousand rubles, but buying only raw materials is, of course, not enough. Equipment is also needed to make the production of batteries possible.

Since we are talking about a large-scale enterprise with a full production cycle, it implies the purchase of an automated line for creating batteries, which will ensure the production of the highest quality products.

The entire production line will consist of a sufficiently large number of machines, which are much more rational to buy from one supplier.

And there are a number of reasons for this:

• Firstly, when buying a whole range of components, you can get some percentage of the discount.
• Secondly, often such equipment suppliers will not only sell it to you, but also help with installation and further operation.

And remember that the production of solar panels in Russia has not yet been established at all, so the equipment will most likely have to be bought abroad.

The cost of the production line will differ depending on the country of origin, and may range from 500 thousand rubles. up to 10 million rubles.

Equipment	Purpose	Cost, rub.)	Sample
Total:			1,348,000 rubles
Cutting Laser Machine	For cutting different mesh sizes with a fiber laser	From 190 thousand
Laminator	For lamination of solar modules with organic matter to protect against environmental influences	From 650 thousand
Framing Machine	For gluing tape edges and framing solar modules	From 315 thous.
Glass cleaning machine	For cleaning and drying glasses	From 126 thous.
Table for moving elements	For moving batteries using aluminum rails	From 12 thousand
High voltage test machine	To test a module for suitability	From 55 thousand

In the end, if we take the average prices for equipment as an example, the minimum set will cost you 1.3 million rubles.

But, in addition to the production line, you will also need to purchase hand tools and equipment (batteries, inverters) for installing batteries. As a result, the total cost of the equipment will be about 1.5 million rubles.

In addition to the costs of equipment and the purchase of raw materials, you will have other costs for various organizational issues, which we will discuss in more detail below.

Searching for premises, recruiting personnel and other subtleties of organizing a business for the production of solar panels

You also need to find suitable premises and hire staff, which is also important, so we will consider each of the moments of the organization in as much detail as possible.

1. Registration of the company.

If you are planning to start a business in the field of production, at the same time, it is planned to produce solar panels from scratch, then an LLC is more suitable for registering you as an entrepreneur.

To start the registration procedure, you will need to collect a certain list of documents and submit it to the Federal Tax Service Inspectorate at the place of business registration.

This list will include:

• Application form R11001.
• Founder's decision to establish an enterprise (if there is only one founder) or minutes of the meeting of participants (if there are several founders).
• LLC Charter.

Before you submit the documents, you will be required to pay the amount of the state fee, which today is 4 thousand rubles. The receipt for its payment is included in the liver of mandatory documents.

But not only the payment of the receipt will have to be spent when registering a business.

There are other expenses ahead of you:

• Opening a bank account - 2 thousand rubles.
• Production of a seal - 1 thousand rubles.
• Payment of the authorized capital - 10 thousand rubles.
• Payment for notary services - 1 thousand rubles.

In total, for the legal registration of entrepreneurial activity, you will need to spend about 15-18 thousand rubles.

Also, do not forget about the mandatory receipt of permits from the fire and sanitary-epidemiological service after passing the registration procedure.

And one more important detail - when filling out the application, you will need to indicate the code of your activity according to OKVED. In this case, it is numbered 27.20.3.

2. Search and equipping of premises for production.

Since a full cycle of battery production is planned, the selected room should be sufficient to accommodate all the necessary equipment, and also allocate two small warehouses: for storing components and for preparing ready-made batteries for installation.

On average, the area of ​​the premises should be at least 300 square meters, otherwise it will be impossible to manufacture solar panels due to lack of space.

Having chosen a suitable room, you need to take care of its repair, which in a situation of such production is very important, because we are talking about creating very precise and fragile parts.

The room must certainly contain:

• Ventilation system.
• Water supply.
• Heating.
• Power supply.
• Installed disinfection installations.

Without all this, neither the fire service nor the sanitary and epidemiological service will give you the necessary permits to start production.

3. Staff recruitment and organization of delivery and installation.

Due to the fact that almost the entire solar cell production process will be automated, you will need to hire a small staff.

The total number of employees will be about 6-8 people, of which you will need to hire:

• 1 specialist physicist-electromechanic.
• 2 shop workers.
• 2 workers for installation.
• 1 driver.
• 1 sales manager.
• 1 marketer.

At first, you can perform the duties of a director and an accountant on your own, this will allow you to control production more and understand the essence of your own business.

The most difficult thing in this situation will be to find a good specialist and shop workers, because due to the fact that the production of solar panels in Russia is not yet very developed, there are few such specialists in the country.

As for the transportation and installation of batteries, it is best to hire a driver for this work with his own car, or buy at least one truck.

4. Marketing and search for distribution channels for finished products.

At first, it is very important to have at least one marketer on your staff who will help with advertising and promoting solar panels in the region of production.

Since solar panels are a necessary, but still not very familiar product for people, you need to constantly tell and show that having solar panels on your roof is much more profitable than paying large sums for utilities.

• print flyers,
• let's announce,
• create a website that will be filled with useful information, and which will demonstrate examples of already made solar panels with their subsequent installation.

You can cooperate with both large enterprises and individuals. It all depends on how much your products are in demand in the region.

How much start-up capital will be required to start producing solar panels, and when will the business start to be profitable?

It turns out that to launch an enterprise for the production of solar panels in Russia, an impressive amount will be required, which exceeds 2 million rubles.

But don't think that such an investment will take too long to pay off. On average, such a production can start making a profit after 1.5 - 2 years.

It turns out that for each installed battery you will receive a net profit. about 10-15 thousand rubles... And taking into account the fact that you will produce and install from 5 to 10 such batteries per month, your net monthly profit will be from 75 thousand rubles.

The profitability of the business with the right organization will be at least 100%.

But, in any case, 2 million rubles. - this is a lot of money, which not everyone can invest in. Is it possible to open a similar production, but at a lower cost?

Solar cell production. How it works?

Installation diagram. Advantages and disadvantages.

Mini solar cell production: advantages, disadvantages and organization method

Mini-production for the manufacture of solar panels, first of all, involves such an organization of the enterprise, in which ready-made components for batteries will be purchased. Of these, you, as an entrepreneur, will only have to adjust the assembly, transportation and installation process.

This method is much more economical than the option of manufacturing from scratch, since in this case you will not have to spend money on raw materials, equipment, numerous staff and registration of a legal entity.

But the cost of panels with this method will increase significantly, since buying ready-made components is more expensive than producing them yourself.

As a result, we can say that this method will be most appropriate in two cases:

1. When you don't have enough start-up capital to start a large production.
2. When there are absolutely no competitors in your area who are ready to offer batteries at a price much lower than yours.

Having decided on the advantages and disadvantages, we turn to the main question - how to organize a mini-production?

So, to start such a small business, you don't need to register an LLC first. In this case, registration of an individual entrepreneur will be enough.

Registration of an individual entrepreneur is much easier and costs much less, which will also allow you to save a lot.

To apply for registration with the Federal Tax Service Inspectorate, you only need basic documents:

• Application for registration of individual entrepreneurs.
• Passport of a citizen of Russia.
• TIN code.
• Receipt for payment of state duty.
• Application for the transition to a simplified taxation system.

The cost of the state duty for such an operation is 800 rubles. But in addition to this amount, you will also have to pay for opening a bank account (2 thousand rubles) and making a seal (up to 1 thousand rubles).

In total, state registration will cost you only 3-4 thousand rubles.

Now let's talk about the premises, the purchase of components and equipment for mini-production.

You will not need a large premises to launch an enterprise - it is enough to rent an area of ​​100 sq. m., where you will allocate a room for the assembly of batteries, a warehouse for components, and also organize a small showroom for visitors.

In principle, with a small volume of orders, even your own spacious garage may be suitable for you. But do not forget that the requirements for the room will also be high, because you still have high-precision work.

It is better to order components for the production of batteries from direct suppliers abroad. Although you can search on the territory of Russia. The main thing is that the quality of the materials is at a high level, and at the same time they do not cost exorbitant money.

As for the equipment, then automated lines with this method of organizing production will not be needed. Actually, because of this, large areas will not be needed either.

As the main equipment, only simple tools are required:

Equipment	Quantity	Cost, rub.)	Sample
Total:			52,000 rubles
Drill	2	10 thous.
Screwdriver	2	6 thous.
Set of tools	2	10 thous.

Since there is less work to be done than with a full production cycle, and it is easier to manage such a mini-enterprise, only 3-5 people can be hired on a permanent staff.

Namely, we are talking about such personnel:

• 2 people will assemble the goods.
• 2 people will install the batteries.
• 1 person will be the driver (preferably with his own car).

At first, you can only hire three workers, and then get a couple more people.

With a small production, you can perform the functions of a manager, accountant and marketer yourself.

However, the marketing plan will remain the same. Your main consumer is an individual, so you need to constantly inform him about your product by creating a website and placing advertisements in newspapers, on TV and radio.

Now let's calculate how much cheaper this mini-production method will cost:

• Registration of individual entrepreneurs - 3 thousand rubles.
• Premises rental - 100 thousand rubles.
• Purchase of components - 50 thousand rubles.
• Purchase of equipment - 52 thousand rubles.
• Salary for employees - 75 thousand rubles.
• Website development and other marketing services - 55 thousand rubles.
• Running costs - 25 thousand rubles.

In total, the initial investment for launching a small enterprise will amount to 360 thousand rubles. , which is a much smaller amount compared to the organization of production facilities "from scratch".

Considering that the sale and production costs of batteries will slightly increase with this method, the net profit may be slightly lower. But at the expense of much smaller investments and with a constant flow of customers (at least 5 people per month), you will be able to recoup your business after a year of operation on the market.

So, we analyzed two main ways of organizing a business in the manufacture of installations for generating electricity from the energy of the Sun.

In conclusion, we recall that the production of solar panels in Russia is still a completely free niche, which, having occupied it now, you can get a good return in the future, since the demand for alternative methods of generating energy will increase every year.

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