Standard Energy Solutions
9520 Gerwig Lane, Ste. Q-T , Columbia, Maryland, United States

Company History

Solar pioneers Neville Williams and Lee Bristol formed Standard Solar of Gaithersburg, Maryland in 2004. Neville had spent many years bringing solar to remote regions of the world with his non-profit, Solar Electric Light Fund (SELF). Lee, an MIT educated engineer, had his own local company, LBA Renewable Energy and decided to partner with Neville to create Standard Solar. Their vision was to help empower homeowners with clean, renewable solar power.  The company quickly grew into a premier solar solutions company serving the Mid-Atlantic region. Standard Solar diversified beyond residential and small commercial into large industrial and utility scale projects, which led to rebranding Standard Energy Solutions as the business unit focused on solar and energy efficiency for the residential and small commercial markets.  In 2015 Standard Energy Solutions was acquired by Steve Welsh. With over 30 years of Construction Industry experience, Steve’s entrepreneurial spirit, passion and belief in clean energy became the core guiding principle engrained in the business.

Our Team

Today, the Standard Energy Solutions team includes many of the key professionals who helped grow and develop the business over many years.  Collectively we have over 75 years of combined experience in energy management, efficiency, solar photovoltaics & storage; from auditing, design and construction to operations and maintenance.  We are proud of our tradition and remain driven in our mission to empower our customers with smart energy solutions.

Our Mission

To be the Premier Provider of Smart Energy Solutions & Services; Empowering our Customers to Achieve Energy Independence and Enhanced Quality of Life.

Your Best Interest Is Our Focus

• Comprehensive. Our primary objective is to listen, evaluate, and provide solutions to help our customers achieve long term success. At Standard Energy Solutions (SES), we will attack your energy use with the most efficient and cost effective tools available. Solar tends to garner the majority of attention, but any home or business should employ basic efficiency measures in advance of, or in conjunction with solar. The simplest and most cost effective path to savings is to use less.

• Responsible Design. The solar resource of any home or building is extremely unique. Many times, solar is not justified due to shading, roof obstructions, and orientation. All of us at SES take our responsibility of designing and installing systems to the highest level of integrity and code of ethics. We will spend the extra time and resources to perform onsite shade analysis’ to confirm a building’s solar resource or simply refuse to place panels oriented and sloped away from direct sunlight. This is a responsibility we have to ourselves, to our customers and to the solar industry.

• Committed. The actions taken by our customers to positively impact their lives and the world are ongoing, long-term endeavors. SES understands this and is committed to stand alongside our customers to ensure their success. The partnership starts at project implementation and is just the beginning of the relationship. Supporting what we sell is paramount. System operation and uptime is our Service team’s primary goal. As technology, regulations and energy policy change, our goal is to be your energy advisor, providing you the solutions and guidance to navigate and maximize value.

Inspection & Test

The beauty of solar is that it doesn’t require regular or routine maintenance but having a preventative inspection of your system will ensure peace of mind and will help preempt future problems.  Our on-site inspection includes the following:

• Visual inspection of PV system and operation
• Review system performance and output
• Inspect modules for damage, remove debris and clean modules, if necessary
• Inspect inverters/controllers; clean fans and vents
• Check fuses and replace, if necessary
• Visual check of wires and conduits
• Inspect system monitoring, if present

System Monitoring Upgrades 

Monitoring technology has come a long way over the last 5 years.  If your system doesn’t have web based monitoring or you’re interested in upgrading, let our service team consult with you to put the information at your fingertips.   Easily track your daily, weekly, monthly and annual performance on your mobile device from anywhere.

What Is the Process?

Our number one goal is to make sure that you are aware and understand all of your options and how they can help your business. Once you contact SES, you will meet with an energy consultant who will provide you more information and discuss your goals. Once you establish those goals and a budget, SES will identify the solutions that will work best for your company.  If one of those goals includes a solar solution, SES will start with performing a feasibility study to determine site quality and expected yield, and then generate a financial analysis. The next step is a thorough site inspection, followed by a complete system design — which includes project planning, an interconnection plan, structural & electrical review, power production modeling, and financial analysis. Upon acceptance, SES will provide a complete solution from permitting, installation, commissioning, and utility acceptance to monitoring and maintenance.  Other goals may include addressing the business’s energy efficiency. This includes SES performing a comprehensive audit to identify areas that need improvement such as poor insulation or outdated lighting systems. SES will manage and perform all retrofits from start to finish with little interruption.