POWER PEAK TM ASSEMBLY ISTRUCTIOS step-by-step assembly and installation Version 1, Rev D P/ 5803028
The Power Peak TM A few words about this product The Power Peak is designed to mount on standard I-Beams which are commonly pile driven directly into the soil to reduce ground work and associated labor cost. The Power Peak is designed per specific site conditions and arrives on site with fewer preassembled components for a simpler and faster assembly. In the design phase, the entire array is selectively broken down into individual structures. Each individual Power Peak structure mounts the modules two rows in portrait where the number of modules in each row matches the specified string size for easier wiring and reduction in materials. The Power Peak mounting system also features the RAD Lock-in-Place clamping system for a fast and secure installation. I-Beam size and foundation requirements are based on several factors including the array surface area, maximum design wind speed, exposure category, snow loading, tilt angle, soil type and front edge clearance. Pre-configured Components For ease of assembly and to address the wide range of modules available, the Power Peak ships pre-configured to meet job specific requirements. The positions of several components have been strategically placed on the Strongback to meet the dimensional requirements of the PV Modules in use while also positioning the Strongback Assembly (in the -S direction) on the mounting post. For foundation and I-Beam size recommendations on a specific installation, please contact us at: Phone: 800-260-3792 Email: info@power-fab.com WARIG STAILESS STEEL HARDWARE CA GALL WHE TIGHTEED TOO QUICKLY. ISTALLER SHOULD USE A SILVER GRADE ATI-SEIZE COMPOUD PRIOR TO ASSEMBLIG AY STAILESS STEEL HARDWARE. DO OT USE A IMPACT DRIVER. ALL OTHER DRIVER TYPES SHOULD BE SET TO LOW SPEED SETTIGS. WARIG: Follow the procedures and precautions in these instructions carefully. Assembly Instructions These instructions include information on assembling the product and are intended to be used by individuals with sufficient technical skills for the task. Knowledge and use of hand tools, measuring devices and torque values is also required. Included in these instructions are various otes, Cautions, and Warnings that are intended to draw your attention and assist in the assembly process and/or to draw attention to the fact that certain assembly steps may be dangerous and could cause serious physical injury and/or damage to components. Follow the procedures and precautions in these instructions carefully. Required Tools 1/2" wrench or socket for 5/16" module clamp hardware 15/16" wrench or socket for 5/8" hardware Torque wrench Ratchet wrench Ratchet extension bar String Framing square Tape Measure Inclinometer RAD is now patented. 1 of 15
1 2 3 Power Peak Parts Identification 4 5 6 7 5 6 5 7 9 6 7 7 10 11 7 7 8 8 2 of 15
Step 1: Set I-Beam Posts Using a preferred method, drive/set the I-beams per the project specifications while keeping the relative height tolerance to each other at ±1/4". Step 2: Install the Strongback to the I-Beam The Strongback is installed on the I-beam using two 5/8-11 x 2" Hex Bolts and hardware. When installing the Strongback s to the I-beams, each one must be attached to the same side of the I-beam (e.g., all on the east side or all on the west side of the I-beam). A. Align the mounting holes of the Strongback to the holes in the I-beam. For each mounting hole, insert one 5/8-11 x 2" hex bolt, two flat washers, one lock washer, and secure with a hex nut. Allow the slotted holes of the Strongback to rest on the bolts. Hand tighten for now. (See Figures 2-1, 2-2) Strongback Rest Slotted holes on Bolts I-beam Figure 2-1: Aligning the Strongback Strongback 5/8" Hex ut 5/8 Lock Washer 5/8" Flat Washer I-beam 5/8" Flat Washers 5/8-11 x 2" Hex Bolt Figure 2-2: Installing the Strongback 3 of 15
Step 3: Install the Strut Assembly on the I-Beam The Strut Assembly slides over the top of the I-beam straddling its southern flange. The vertical position of the Strut on the I-beam determines the tilt angle of the array and therefore its position must be measured and marked on each of the vertical I-beams. A. Mark the vertical position of the Strut on the I-beam. Referring to the site specific drawings, locate the dimension for the vertical placement of the Strut from the top edge of the I-beam to the top edge of the installed Strut. Using this dimension, mark the vertical placement on each of the I-beams. Tab in Upward Direction Strut Slide over I-beam Strut I-beam Figure 3-1: Strut Orientation to I-beam CAUTIO: This is a two person activity. While one person holds the Strongback Pre- Assembly in place, the second person aligns its attachment points and secures it with the required hardware. B. Use care in properly orienting the Strut Assembly to the I-beam. The strut mounting tab must be pointing upward. Slip the Strut over the southern flange of the I-beam. Slide the strut attachment down the I-beam aligning the top edge of the strut attachment to the mark made in Step 3-A. (See Figures 3-1 & 3-2) C. For now, finger tighten the four sets of hardware. Align with mark made in Step 3-A Step 4: Install the Strongback Pre-Assembly Figure 3-2: Installing and Aligning the Strut The Strongback Pre-Assembly attaches to the Strongback on the upper end and the Strut on the lower end using 5/8-11 x 4" hex bolts and hardware. A. Align the holes of the Strongback Slide to the Strongback mounting hole and secure with 5/8-11 x 4" hex bolt, two flat washers, lock washer and hex nut. Hand tighten for now. (See Figure 4-1) 4 of 15
5/8" Hex ut 5/8" Lock Washer 5/8" Flat Washer Strongback 5/8" Flat Washer Slide 5/8-11 x 4" Hex Bolt Figure 4-1: Installing the Strongback Pre-Assembly B. Align the Strut mounting holes to the Strut mounting hole and secure with 5/8-11 x 4" hex bolt, two flat washers, lock washer and hex nut. Hand tighten for now. (See Figure 4-2) 5/8" Hex ut Lock Washer Flat Washer Strut Strut 5/8" Flat Washer 5/8-11 x 4" Hex Bolt Figure 4-2: Attaching the Strut 5 of 15
OTE: It s very important to align the Rail Base surfaces to within 1/8" of each other before installing the Rails. Step 5: Align the Rail Base Surfaces via the Strongbacks Before installing the Rails, align the tops of the Strongbacks to one another, in doing so the Rail Base surfaces with level out to one another. The Rail Bases may also require a -S adjustment/alignment as well. Both of these adjustments are easily made. Alignment is done by pulling a string on top of the two outermost Strongbacks and then sliding the Strongback s up or down the I-beam to align each of the Strongbacks with one another. (See Figure 5-1) A. Pull a string on top of and between the east and west most Strongbacks. Align the string with the center of the I-beam, see inset in Figure 5-1. B. On those Strongbacks that need adjustment, loosen and slide the Strongback up or down the I-beam to bring the Strongback within 1/8" of the string. C. To adjust the -S alignment of the Rail Bases, loosen the Strongback Slide and slide the Strongback in the appropriate direction to align the Rail Bases. Torque to 85 ft.-lbs. D. Tighten the Strongback s securely to the I-beam. Torque to 85-90 ft.-lbs. -S String (pulled tight) Slide s Strongback Align String to center of I-Beam - Loosen Strongback (s) to level Strongbacks to one another. - Loosen Strongback Slide (s) to make -S adjsutments and align Rail Bases to one another. Figure 5-1: Aligning the Strongback 6 of 15
CAUTIO: This is a two person activity. During the tilt adjustment, one person must hold the southern end of the Strongback while a second loosens the hardware and then re-tightens the hardware after the desired tilt has been achieved. Step 6: Verify/Set the Final Tilt Angle Although the site specific tilt angle is preset, it is recommended that the tilt angle of each Strongback be verified and that any variance between Strongbacks be set within a tolerance of ± 3. Using an inclinometer, check the tilt angle of each Strongback and adjust as needed by sliding the Strut s up or down the I-beams to bring their respective tilt into compliance. A. Place the inclinometer on the Strongback. B. Loosen the hardware securing the Strut to the I-beam. C. Slide the Strut up or down the I-beam to bring the tilt to the desired angle. D. Re-tighten the hardware securing the Strut to the I-beam. Torque to 85-90 ft.-lbs. Inclinometer Slide Strut up or down to set Tilt Angle Figure 6-1: Verify and Set the Strongback Tilt Angle 7 of 15
OTE: Step 7 only applies to systems requiring Strap Plates. CAUTIO: For shipping purposes, the southern Strap Plate is only partially attached to the Strongback. Additional hardware must be repositioned and properly tightened to complete its installation and fully secure it to the Strongback. Step 7: Secure the Southern Strap Plate & Slide The standard Power Peak configuration ships without Strap Plates. This Step applies only to those systems requiring Strap Plates due to site conditions. If Strap Plates are not included with the Strongback assembly then they are not required. Skip this step and go to Step 8. Where Strap Plates are required, the steps below are necessary to install and secure the southern Strap Plate, which will be only partially installed/secured at the factory. The northern Strap Plate requires no additional procedures. Inspect the Strongbacks for Strap Plates The Strap Plates will be found on each of the Slide s located at the southern and northern ends of the Strongback. For reference, see Figures 7-1 through 7-3. Secure the Southern Strap Plate Hardware that has been temporarily stored and secured on the Strongback will be used to complete the installation of the southern Strap Plate. This stored hardware (bolt, nut plate, square washer, lock washer and hex nut) has been temporarily situated on the bottom side of the Strongback adjacent to the northern Strap Plate/Slide (this temporary position permits the folding of the Strut against the Strongback for shipping purposes). This stored hardware must be loosened, repositioned and secured onto the southern Strap Plate. (See Figure 7-1) *Stored Hardware orthern Strap Plate orthern Slide Slide Stored Hardware to Southern Strap Plate Loosen this 5/8" Hex ut *To be used on southern Strap Plate Figure 7-1: Loosen Stored Hardware and Reposition 8 of 15
A. Loosen stored hardware and slide to reposition it onto southern Strap Plate. B. Position stored hardware onto Strap Plate making certain that the Square Washer is resting on Strap Plate. (See figures 7-2 & 7-3) C. Re-tighten the hardware, securing the Strap Plate to the Strongback. Torque to 85-90 ft.-lbs. Southern Strap Plate Position Hardware onto Strap Plate (See figure 7-3) Stored Hardware Southern Slide Figure 7-2: Position Hardware onto Southern Strap Plate Southern Strap Plate Square Washer rests on Strap Plate Tighten and Torque to 85-90 ft.-lbs. Figure 7-3: Hardware Position on Southern Strap Plate 9 of 15
CAUTIO: This is a two person activity. Each person must hold an end of the Rail while placing it onto each Rail Base of the Strongback. One person should continue to hold the Rail in place while the second person secures it with the Rail Clamp. OTE: If Splice Plates are installed prior to Strongback installation, it needs to be a three person activity taking care not to damage Splice Plates during Rail installation. OTE: The location of the Rail Bases are preset at the factory. If alignment with the Rails is a problem, simply slide the Rail Bases along the Strongback's to align with the Rails. Step 8: Install the Rails Rails are oriented E-W and mount on top of the Strongbacks. The Rails are secured via the pre-assembled clamping system (Rail Base & Rail Clamp) which are attached to the Strongbacks. Cantilever distance between the outermost Strongback and the Rail end must be set per specifications. Additionally, and depending on the Rail lengths, a Splice Plate may be required to splice sections of Rail together and achieve longer Rail lengths. Splicing Rails If necessary, Rails are spliced using a Splice Plate and self tapping hardware. Splicing can be done either before or after the Rails are installed on the Strongbacks. A. Butt the ends of the two Rails together. Position the Splice Plates as shown in Figure 8-2. B. Drive the eight 1/4" x 3/4" self drilling screws into the sections of Rail. Tighten to seat the Splice Plates against the Rails while being careful not to strip the threads. Torque to 8 ft.-lbs. = Offset screw locations from one Splice Plate to the other. Installing the Rails Rails attach to the Strongbacks via Rail Bases and Rail Clamps. The preset position of the Rail Clamps provides clearance for the Rail to rest on and engage the Rail Base, after which the Rail Clamp is rotated 180 and tightened. (See Figure 8-3) ote Position of Rail Clamp Rail Base 2 Loosen Engage Flange Rail Lip ut with Rail Base Rail Orientation Rail Clamp Figure 8-1: Rails and Clamps Figure 8-2: Splicing Rails 1 3 Rotate Rail Clamp 180 and tighten Flange ut Figure 8-3: Installing Rails A. Referring to the site specifications, locate the cantilever measurement for the Rails. Measure and mark this distance on those Rails which extend beyond the outermost Strongback. B. Place the Rail onto the Rail Base, engaging the Rail into the lip of the Rail Base. 10 of 15
OTE: After aligning, inserting and squaring the 1st rail into the bases, the remaining rails are inserted into the Rail Base's without the need to re-square the entire structure. C. Align the cantilever mark with the outermost Strongback. Use a squaring tool to square the Rail to the Strongback. D. While one person holds the Rail in place, the second person loosens the 5/16" Flange ut securing the Rail Clamp and rotates the Rail Clamp 180 resting the lip of the Rail Clamp onto the northern edge of the Rail. Re-check for squareness with Strongback and tighten the Flange ut. E. Square the remaining Strongbacks to this Rail and tighten the Rail Clamps. F. Place the remaining Rails on the Rail Bases, one Rail Base at a time. Using the cantilevered measurement from the end as the starting point, insert and tighten the Rail Clamps as you go down the Rail, taking care as to not disturb the squared alignment of the 1st Rail when setting the remaining Rails in place. Step 9: Square the Rack and Tighten Hardware Mark Cantilever distance on Rail The system is extensively adjustable by design. As such, adjustments can be easily made to compensate for misaligned I-beams and other variables that could lead to components being out of alignment. This adjustability also provides the means to square the Rails to the Strongbacks. Rail Cantilever (site specific) Strongback Figure 8-4: Cantilever Marking The design of the Strongback and Strut s allows the Strongback to pivot 5 in both directions to facilitate alignment of the Strongbacks to Rails while also compensating for misaligned I-beams. This hardware must be hand-tight only so that the Strongback can pivot. Tighten securely after alignment and squaring is complete. Figure 9-1: Strongback Pivot Ability 11 of 15
During the squaring and alignment process, the main adjustment feature is the east/west articulation of the Strongback via the Strongback and Strut s. Originating from the Strongback, the Strongback will pivot up to 5 to the east or west. This movement is used to square the Strongbacks to the Rails. (See Figure 9-1) Step 10: Tighten and Torque Figure 10-1 summarizes the torque values for each set of hardware connecting the various rack components. Rail Clamps Torque 12-15 ft.-lbs. Strongback Torque 85-90 ft.-lbs. Strongback Torque 85-90 ft.-lbs. Strut Torque 85-90 ft.-lbs. Rail Clamps Torque 12-15 ft.-lbs. Strut Torque 85-90 ft.-lbs. Strap Plate Torque 85-90 ft.-lbs. Strut Torque 85-90 ft.-lbs. Figure 10-1: Tighten & Torque Summary 12 of 15
CAUTIO: This is a two person activity. In addition to the difficulties associated with working on a sloped rack, PV Modules are heavy. One person should hold and align the modules while a second person secures modules with clamping hardware. Failure to do so could lead to serious personal injury and/or damaged components. Step 11: Install the Modules Modules are secured to the Rails using Mid and End Clamps. The clamps are preassembled units that are attached to the Rails via our RAD hardware and temporarily held in place during module installation by a rubber tube spacer. The importance of correctly installing End and Mid Clamps: There is only one correct method of installing End Clamps and Mid Clamps. Failure to follow the correct method could lead to personal injury, structural failure, and/or damaged components. See Figure 11-1 for proper method of installation for an End Clamp and Figure 11-2 for the Mid Clamp. Refer to these figures during the installation of the Modules to prevent any problems associated with an improper installation. CORRECT End Clamp Installed with Module butted against rubber spacer Maximum Clamp force on Module Module Frame Rail WROG End Clamp Visible Gap between rubber spacer and Module Minimal Clamp force on Module Module Frame Rail Figure 11-1: Correct Installation of End Clamps CORRECT Tabs WROG Mid Clamp is not square to Modules Installed with Modules butted against Mid Clamp Tabs Module Frames Visible Gaps between Mid Clamp Tabs and Modules Figure 11-2: Correct Installation of Mid Clamps 13 of 15
Pre-loading End Clamp Assemblies The design of the End and Mid Clamp Assemblies provides the ability to pre-load the Clamps in the Rails before installing the modules. This is achieved by the combined actions of the RAD bolt and the foam rubber spacer. As the head of the RAD bolt is pushed down and rotated to lock into the Rail channel, the rubber spacer compresses and, upon release, the rubber spacer relaxes and holds the clamp assembly in place. Figures 11-4 and 11-5 demonstrate the pre-loading of the End and Mid Clamp Assemblies. End Clamps are installed approximately 1-1/2" from the end of the Rail. Mid Clamps are pre-loaded after each consecutive module has been placed on the Rails. Installing the Modules A. Using the Large Square and starting on the East or West end of the Rails, scribe a mark on each Rail 1-1/2" from its end. The End Clamps will be preloaded on these marks. (See Figure 11-3) 1-1/2" Scribe Mark 1-1/2" from end on each Rail Large Square Figure 11-3: Marking the Rails with the large Square 14 of 15
B. Pre-load two End Clamp Assemblies per Module (one in each Rail) 1-1/2" from the end of the Rail by compressing the foam spacer and engaging the RAD bolt into the top channel of the Rail. (See Figure 11-4) 1 Compress Rubber Spacer to insert RAD Bolt into Rail channel Rubber Spacer 2 Rotate End Clamp Assembly 90 to lock RAD bolt in channel 3 RAD Bolt locked in channel, pre-loading complete 1-1/2" WARIG: This is a two person activity. PV Modules are heavy. One person should hold and align the modules while a second person secures modules with clamping hardware. Failure to do so could lead to serious personal injury and/or damaged components. WARIG: Modules must be held in place until they are secured at all four points with clamping hardware. Failure to do so could lead to serious personal injury and/or damaged components. Figure 11-4: Pre-loading an End Clamp Assembly C. This is a two person activity. Lift the Module, center it on the Rails and butt the Module against the rubber spacers of the End Clamps. While one person holds the Module in place, the other adjusts the End Clamps as needed, pushing the Clamp tight against the Module as shown in Figure 11-1. Tighten End Clamps and Torque to 14-16 ft.-lbs. (See Figure 11-5) End Clamp End Clamp Figure 11-5: Installing the Modules 15 of 15
Direct Power & Water Corporation 4000-B Vassar Drive E Albuquerque, ew Mexico 87107 USA Telephone: 800.260.3792 Fax: 505.889.3548 Web Site: www.dpwsolar.com E-mail: info@power-fab.com Preformed Line Products (Canada) Limited 1711 Bishop St. E Cambridge, O 1T 15 Telephone: 519.740.6666 Fax: 519.740.7917 Web Site: www.preformed.on.ca E-mail: sales@preformed.on.ca 2014 Preformed Line Products P/ 5803028 Version 1, Rev D