Component lifecycle stages

The component lifecycle

We aim to provide our customers with reliable component data to ensure the plausibleness of their PV system designs. New components undergo a thorough review process to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the information they offer.

The lifecycle of a component can be summarised into the following stages:

1. Component creation - you create a component and provide basic component data. You can create components manually or by importing.

2. Component editing stage - you complete the component data entry in multiple iterations until completed

3. Component validation - the data of the component is validated every time you save the component. If all data is correct, the component is marked as Validated. Otherwise, the component remains in the draft stage and can be edited unlimitedly until validated.

4. Sending component for a review - you can send your component for a review by field experts to improve its confidence classification. This step must also be executed if you intend to publish your component to the public catalog.

5. Component review - review is performed by the PVCC team of experts. They will compare the data with the provided data sheets and other relevant materials. The component can be approved and its new confidence classification determined, or it may get rejected and sent back to you to rectify the mistakes in the data entries.

6. Publishing the component - you can publish the component after the successful review by the PVCC experts. The publishing stage also includes creating new versions of the component.

After the successful validation, the component is eligible to be privately used in a simulation. As the component in this phase was not yet reviewed by PVCC and the entered data have not been verified, it will only have a “C” confidence class.

The component progress status

Every component has its progress status to indicate its previous stages and the possible next steps. This status is visualized on the component details page.

The button under the progress bar always starts the progress to the next stage in the component’s lifecycle. Use it if you want to proceed to the next stage.

Component lifecycle examples

Here are examples of typical scenarios you may duplicate based on the required outcome:

Example 1 - I want to run a quick simulation

1. add component data,

2. edit data (optional),

3. validate

After the component is validated it can be used in any integrated simulation tool, e.g., via API - with C confidence class.

Example 2 - I want to run precise simulation with verified component

1. add component data,

2. edit data (optional),

3. validate (Confidence class “C” obtained after validation),

4. send component for a review,

5. PVCC makes a review and approves the data,

   • PVCC also assigns a new Confidence class to the component.

After the component is validated, it can be used in any integrated simulation tool, e.g., via API - with C, B, A, or A+ Confidence class.

Example 3 - I want to publish component information

1. add component data,

2. edit data (optional),

3. validate,

4. send component for a review,

5. PVCC makes a review and approves the data,

   • PVCC also assigns a Confidence class to the component,

6. publish the component.

After the compliment is published it can be seen by any uses of the PVCC or any simulation tool integrated with PVCC.