Installers fitting solar modules

For solar, photovoltaics and energy engineering

Leads are getting more expensive, customers compare three quotations. How do you still keep a margin?

ivato digitalises the path from enquiry to commissioning: pre-qualification, roof check, quotation with economic viability, grid registration, the Marktstammdatenregister (market master data register), installation and monitoring. Your planning software stays. We make sure your sales team only visits customers who fit, and your office no longer chases grid operators by phone.

Callback from an industry adviser →See the project process ↓

Clients from this industry

Your day-to-day

Do you recognise these sentences from sales, the office and installation?

The days when PV systems sold themselves are over. Today the winner is whoever delivers a good quotation faster, spends less on unsuitable leads and has the paperwork under control. That is exactly where we start.

You recognise 0 of 8 statements

Tap the statements you recognise from your day-to-day work.

The pattern behind it: too much time for enquiries that don't fit, and for paper nobody pays for.

Talk about it ↓

From enquiry to commissioning

Where in your project process do you lose time, customers or margin?

Click on a stage. You will see how it works in many solar businesses today, what ivato implements there and what changes as a result. Usually two to four stages have the greatest leverage. Which ones those are for you, we clarify in the initial consultation.

Today

Expensive leads, many of them unsuitable

Enquiries come in via portals, website and referrals. Each gets a callback and often an on-site appointment, even if roof, budget or schedule don't fit.

With ivato

Pre-qualification before the first call

  • Online roof check with address, photos and consumption
  • AI assesses suitability and estimates system size
  • Automatic reply with a guide price within minutes

What changes

Sales only talks to suitable customers

Fewer wasted trips, less dependence on portals and a faster first impression for the customer.

The descriptions show typical processes. We calculate the concrete effects in hours and euros for your business in the business case.

Case examples

What does this look like in a solar installer or energy engineering business?

Four examples from residential PV, commercial PV and energy engineering, each with starting point, solution, result and calculation. What they all have in common: the existing planning and quotation software stayed, and after 8 to 12 weeks the solution was running in daily operations.

  • Residential PV & storageSaxony25 employeesDetached houses, storage, wallbox

    Fewer portal leads, more closings per on-site appointment

    Starting point
    Most enquiries came from purchased portal leads, each with an on-site appointment. Many roofs were unsuitable, and many customers were only comparing prices.
    Solution
    Online roof check on the company's own website: address, photos of roof and meter cabinet, electricity bill. AI estimates suitability and system size, the guide price arrives immediately, appointments only for suitable projects.
    Result
    More own enquiries via the website, significantly fewer trips to unsuitable customers, portal budget reduced.
    Investment
    €24,000
    Funding
    €9,600
    Own contribution
    €14,400
    Payback
    5 months

  • Residential PV & storageBavaria45 employeesFull-service provider with own crews

    Grid registration and MaStR automatic, customers see their project status

    Starting point
    Two office staff solely for grid registrations, documents and follow-ups with grid operators. Customers kept calling to ask when the meter would be installed.
    Solution
    Forms and data sheets are filled in from the project data, deadlines and reminders run automatically. A customer portal shows every step from quotation to MaStR registration.
    Result
    Status calls almost gone, no forgotten deadlines, one office employee free again for sales support.
    Investment
    €31,000
    Funding
    €12,400
    Own contribution
    €18,600
    Payback
    7 months

  • Commercial PVBaden-Württemberg30 employeesPlanning & installation, hall roofs

    Economic viability calculation for commercial customers in 2 days instead of 2 weeks

    Starting point
    Every commercial enquiry needed load profile analysis, self-consumption rate and payback in Excel. Only the project manager could do that.
    Solution
    Load profile data is imported and analysed, variants with and without storage are calculated, and the quotation is produced as a clear report for the customer's management.
    Result
    More commercial quotations with the same team, the project manager reviews instead of calculating, quotations also convince the customer's controller.
    Investment
    €36,000
    Funding
    €14,400
    Own contribution
    €21,600
    Payback
    8 months

  • Energy engineering & serviceLower Saxony60 employeesMaintenance, storage, charging infrastructure

    Faults detected before the customer calls

    Starting point
    Over 2,000 systems under care, monitoring in five different manufacturer portals. Faults were mostly noticed only through customer complaints.
    Solution
    Alarms from the manufacturer portals come together centrally, AI sorts by urgency, service ticket and technician appointment are created automatically. Maintenance contracts with term and scope in the CRM.
    Result
    Failures are fixed earlier, maintenance contracts have become plannable revenue.
    Investment
    €42,000
    Funding
    €16,800
    Own contribution
    €25,200
    Payback
    9 months

More case studies from Energy & utilities · Funding programmes

Solutions

Which tools does ivato use in the solar and energy sector?

Proven building blocks, adapted to your business, whether you equip detached houses or cover hall roofs. You do not get software you have to set up yourself, but a finished solution for sales, office and installation.

  • Online roof check & enquiry journey

    Customers enter address, photos and electricity consumption. AI estimates suitability, system size and guide price. Your sales team receives pre-qualified enquiries instead of portal leads.

    To Sales & CRM automation →

  • Quotation with economic viability

    Variants with storage, wallbox, heat pump and dynamic tariff calculated transparently. For commercial customers with load profile analysis and a report for the decision-maker.

    To the tariff calculator →

  • Form automation for grid & MaStR

    Grid connection request, data sheets, commissioning report and registration are prepared from the project data. Deadlines and reminders run by themselves.

    To Scaling with AI →

  • Customer portal with project status

    Your customer can see at any time where their project stands: quotation, grid operator, installation date, meter installation. Fewer calls, more trust and better reviews.

    To Implementation →

  • Installation planning & crew app

    Scaffolding, materials, DC crew and qualified electrician in one plan. Photo documentation and acceptance report on the smartphone, handover to the customer digital.

    To Reducing costs →

  • Monitoring & service tickets

    Alarms from various manufacturer portals in one place, sorted by urgency. Ticket, technician and maintenance contract are linked automatically.

    To Securing succession →

Planning software & CRM

Do we have to replace our planning or quotation software?

No. Your PV planning, your quotation or trade software and the manufacturer portals stay. We connect them so that data is not typed in three times: captured once, it flows into the quotation, the grid registration, the installation planning and the monitoring.

Your systems stay

  • Connection to common planning, CRM and trade software via existing interfaces
  • Monitoring data from several inverter and storage portals in one place
  • Electricity bills and customer data are processed in compliance with GDPR
  • Customer data stays on servers in Germany
EEGMaStR

Can you explain the new rules to your customers in two sentences and factor them in correctly?

Since the Solarspitzengesetz (in force since February 2025), new systems receive no feed-in tariff during hours with negative electricity prices, and without control technology feed-in is limited. Storage, energy management and self-consumption therefore become more important. In addition, registration in the Marktstammdatenregister is required within one month of commissioning. Both belong in the quotation and in the process, not in the heads of individual employees.

As of: 10/2026 · simplified presentation, not legal advice, please check details on limits and exceptions

Clarify in a conversation ↓

Process & prices

How do we start without installations piling up?

With a 30-minute conversation. After that you decide step by step. Your effort is a few appointments with management, sales and office. We take care of the rest, gladly during the quieter winter months.

  1. Step 1

    Initial consultation

    30 minutes with an adviser who knows PV projects. We discuss where things get stuck for you and tell you honestly whether and where digitalisation pays off.

    free of charge

    Request a callback ↓

  2. Step 2

    Strategy

    We look at your project process from enquiry to monitoring, calculate the business case in euros and set a roadmap.

    Fixed price depending on scope · eligible for funding

    To Strategy →

  3. Step 3

    Implementation

    We implement the most effective building blocks, connect your software and train sales, office and crews until it runs.

    from €20,000 net · 8-12 weeks

    To Implementation →

Estimate your funding

Funding rate
Funding
€12,000
Your contribution
€18,000

Simplified calculation. Rate and maximum amounts depend on the programme, federal state and company size. Consulting can additionally receive a grant of up to €5,600.

projects successfully supported
1,000+
projects successfully supported
years of experience with mid-sized companies
25+
years of experience with mid-sized companies
funding for implementation
up to 60%
funding for implementation
dedicated contact person on the project
1
dedicated contact person on the project

Frequently asked questions

What owners of solar and energy businesses want to know beforehand

Your question is not here? In the initial conversation we take 30 minutes for your specific topic.

Precisely then. When fewer enquiries come in, each one counts. Whoever delivers a good quotation faster and spends less on unsuitable leads gains market share. The project can also be carried out in quieter phases without pressure from installation.

That is up to you. Many businesses reduce portal leads gradually once their own website with a roof check brings in more enquiries. And portal leads, too, can be sorted better with pre-qualification before anyone drives out.

In most cases yes, via existing interfaces or data exports. We check this in the initial consultation, before you commit.

Yes. Businesses with several energy topics in particular benefit, because enquiry, quotation and project status run in one process for all products. The customer gets one overall quotation instead of three separate ones.

For the consulting, a grant of up to €5,600 is possible; for implementation up to 60%, depending on federal state and programme. We check the suitable programmes in the initial consultation and take care of the application documents. As of: 10/2026, programmes change regularly.

Nothing. It takes about 30 minutes. Afterwards you receive a short summary with the two or three points where we see the greatest leverage.

Read on

Contact

Exchange ideas with one of our specialists from your industry.

30 minutes, free of charge. You describe where things get stuck, and we tell you openly which two or three points are worthwhile for you and roughly what that costs.

  • Callback within one working day
  • Gladly early or after installation

Request a callback

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