In-House VS Outsourced Solar Design: A Guide for Installers
Does this sound familiar? You’ve just closed a new residential deal. The homeowner is excited, your crew is ready, but everything grinds to a halt. You’re stuck, waiting on solar plan sets. Maybe your in-house designer is swamped, or worse, the plans they created just got rejected by the permit office for the second time. Every day of delay is a day you’re not installing, and that’s costing you money and frustrating your customers.
The pressure to manage everything—sales, installation, inventory, and design—can feel like trying to personally wire every light on the Las Vegas Strip. It’s a massive undertaking, and a single weak link in the chain can cause a cascade of problems. For many growing solar installation companies, that weak link is drafting and design.
Keeping PV design in-house seems like the ultimate form of quality control. But what’s the true cost of that control? Between salaries, software licenses, training, and the inevitable bottlenecks during peak season, in-house design often becomes a significant operational drag. There is a better way to streamline your projects, ensure accuracy, and get your teams on the roof faster. It’s time to consider outsourcing your PV design to a dedicated expert partner like Avila Solar.
The In-House Drafting Dilemma
Managing an in-house design team comes with a host of challenges that often go overlooked until they start impacting your bottom line. It’s not just about hiring a solar drafter; it’s about supporting an entire specialized department within your business.
1. The High Cost of Overhead
The most obvious cost is salary. A qualified solar designer requires a competitive wage. But the expenses don’t stop there. You have to account for benefits, payroll taxes, and workers’ compensation. Then there are the tools of the trade: expensive CAD software licenses that need annual renewals, powerful computer hardware, and ongoing training to keep up with changing codes and regulations. According to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), managing these overhead costs is a critical component of running a successful construction-related business. When you add it all up, a single in-house designer can represent a substantial fixed cost, whether you have ten projects in the pipeline or just one.
2. The Bottleneck Effect
Your business has seasons. One month you’re overwhelmed with new projects, and the next, things might be slower. This feast-or-famine workflow is a nightmare for resource planning. When you’re busy, your in-house designer becomes a bottleneck. Projects pile up, approval timelines get pushed back, and your installation schedule is thrown into chaos. When work is slow, you’re paying a skilled professional to sit idle. This lack of scalability means you’re either turning down work or wasting money.
3. The Burden of Expertise
The solar industry is anything but static. National Electrical Code (NEC) standards evolve, local jurisdictions (AHJs) have unique and often quirky requirements, and new technologies like energy storage and EV chargers introduce new design complexities. Is your in-house designer an expert in every single one of these areas? Do they have deep knowledge of California’s specific compliance rules? Keeping one or two people fully trained on this ever-changing landscape is a significant and continuous investment of time and money.
In-House vs. Outsourced Solar Design: A Clear Comparison
Let’s break down the real-world differences between managing your own designs and partnering with a specialist like Avila Solar.
| Factor | In-House Solar Design | Outsourced with Avila Solar |
| Cost Structure | High fixed costs (salary, benefits, software, hardware, training) | Pay-per-project variable cost. No overhead. |
| Scalability | Limited. Creates bottlenecks during busy periods and waste during slow periods. | Instantly scalable. We match your workload, whether you have 1 or 100 projects. |
| Turnaround Time | Dependent on a single person’s or small team’s workload. | Guaranteed fast turnaround, typically 3-4 business days with complete info. |
| Expertise | Limited to the knowledge of your in-house staff. | Access to a dedicated team of solar experts versed in codes and regulations nationwide. |
| Core Business Focus | Diverts management time and resources away from sales and installation. | Allows you to focus 100% on your core business: installing solar. |
| Risk of Errors | Higher risk if the designer is inexperienced or overworked. Rejection costs time & money. | Minimized risk. We guarantee accurate and complete plan sets for fast approvals. |
| PE Stamps & Services | Requires finding and managing a separate engineering relationship. | Streamlined process. We facilitate Professional Engineering (PE) stamps. |
The Avila Solar Advantage: Your Expert Partner
Choosing to outsource isn’t just about offloading a task; it’s about upgrading your capabilities. When you partner with Avila Solar, you’re not just hiring a drafting service—you’re integrating a team of dedicated solar experts into your workflow. We’re built to help you succeed.
Imagine having a design team as reliable and iconic as the Golden Gate Bridge, ready to support your projects without the massive cost of building it yourself. That’s what we offer.
Guaranteed Accuracy for Fast Approvals
A rejected plan set is a project killer. It can set your timeline back by weeks and damage your reputation with the homeowner. The primary reason for permit rejection is simple: errors and omissions. This can range from incorrect setbacks and wire sizing to missing information on the single-line diagram or site plan.
We eliminate that risk. Our team of solar experts is obsessed with detail. We know the codes, we understand what AHJs are looking for, and we guarantee the accuracy and completeness of our solar plan sets. Our designs are engineered to sail through the approval process on the first submission, ensuring your project timeline stays on track. A smooth permitting process is vital, as noted by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), which advocates for streamlined permitting to lower solar costs.
Speed and Efficiency When You Need It
Our entire process is designed for speed. Once you submit a complete intake form with all the necessary site information, our clock starts. We deliver premium quality, permit-ready plan sets in a typical turnaround time of 3-4 business days. This speed allows you to shorten your project cycles, improve cash flow, and book more installations per month.
Unmatched Expertise and Comprehensive Services From a straightforward residential PV system to a complex PV and energy storage combo, a ground mount, or an EV charger plan set, we have the expertise to deliver. We are deeply familiar with the unique requirements of various states, including the stringent California solar compliance standards.
Please note our service area limitations: We do not take projects within APS jurisdiction in Arizona or any projects in LA County, California. This focus allows us to maintain the highest level of expertise in the regions we serve.
Let Us Focus on the Blueprints, You Focus on Building
Your greatest strength is installing solar systems. Every hour you or your managers spend wrestling with design revisions, permit applications, or software updates is an hour you’re not focused on revenue-generating activities.
Outsourcing to Avila Solar frees you to do what you do best. Concentrate on sales, customer service, and flawless installations. We provide the rock-solid foundation of expert plan sets that makes it all possible, helping you save time, reduce costs, and grow your business with confidence.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does outsourcing solar design actually save my business money?
Outsourcing converts the high fixed costs of an in-house designer (salary, benefits, software) into a predictable, variable cost. You only pay for the design services you need, when you need them. This eliminates wasted spending during slow periods and prevents the costly project delays and permit rejections that stem from an overworked or inexperienced in-house team. By ensuring faster approvals and smoother installations, we help you complete jobs quicker, improving your cash flow and profitability.
What is included in a typical residential solar plan set from Avila Solar?
Our comprehensive residential solar plan sets are designed to meet all AHJ requirements for a smooth permit approval. A standard plan set includes a detailed site plan showing array layout and setbacks, a single-line electrical diagram, mounting and racking details, system specifications, and all necessary safety placards and labels. We ensure every component, from the electrical calculations to the structural details, is accurate and compliant.
Can you handle projects that require a Professional Engineering (PE) stamp?
Absolutely. We offer Professional Engineering (PE) stamps for residential projects to ensure your designs meet all local structural and electrical engineering requirements. We streamline this process for you, coordinating with licensed engineers so you receive a fully compliant, stamped plan set ready for submission. This saves you the headache of finding and managing a separate engineering firm.
Ready to Streamline Your Solar Designs?
Stop letting design bottlenecks and permit delays control your business. It’s time to partner with an expert who can deliver accurate, guaranteed solar plan sets with the speed and reliability you need to grow. Let us handle the drafting so you can focus on what you do best: installation.
Call Avila Solar today at 971-410-0655 or fill out our online inquiry form. Let’s discuss your project needs and show you how a partnership with us can transform your workflow and boost your bottom line.
