2015 was a big year for Clean Solar and a monumental year for the solar industry in general. Shortly before the curtains closed on 2015, the 30% Federal Investment Tax Credit (ITC) for the ownership of a solar system was extended through 2019 with step downs in subsequent years. This is a huge victory for the solar industry and paves the way for exponential growth in 2016 for both the industry and Clean Solar. With a bright future planned for 2016, let’s take a closer look at Clean Solar’s 2015 year.
January – March
- Clean Solar pitches in to completion of Rotary PlayGarden
- Clean Solar made a significant donation of $40,000 to the San Jose Rotary toward the completion of the Rotary PlayGarden in San Jose, a playground which allows children regardless of physical or mental abilities to play together side-by-side. In February, Clean Solar helped finalize the “readying” of the playground by volunteering to clean up some of the playground equipment before the grand opening.
- Clean Solar awarded MetroActive’s first ever Best Solar Company
- This year MetroActive added the “Best Solar Company” category to their own Best of Silicon Valley poll, inviting readers to vote for their favorite Silicon Valley businesses. Clean Solar became the first ever solar installer to be honored in this new category.
April – June
- Expanding Commercial solar
- Clean Solar grew its commercial solar division by both expanding the service area and hiring a new Commercial Business Development Manager. The new service area expanded beyond our existing residential service area to now include the North Bay cities between Vallejo and Vacaville. Clean Solar has already installed commercially for the city of Vallejo, so this familiar region is a great opportunity for expansion.
- 100th 5-star Yelp review
- Clean Solar is proud to announce receiving their 100th 5-star Yelp review. This impressive milestone distinguishes Clean Solar as the solar installer with the most 5-Star reviews in the country while also maintaining an overall 5-Star average. Yelp is an online social networking site where users share their experiences with businesses and rate them on a 1-5 star scale.
- Best in Silicon Valley 2015
- For the fourth consecutive year, Clean Solar has been voted “Best Solar Installer” by the Mercury News reader poll. In addition, Clean Solar appeared at the top of their Hall of Fame listings, honoring companies that have won this prestigious title four consecutive years.
July – September
- Top Workplaces 2015
- For the second consecutive year, Clean Solar has been honored as a Bay Area Top Workplace by the Bay Area News Group. In fact, Clean Solar ranked in the top 50% of all Small Companies on the list. Acknowledgement is based solely on confidential surveys about the workplace environment completed by the company’s own employees.
- Expanding into Tracy and Mountain House
- Clean Solar has expanded its residential service area into the San Joaquin County regions of Tracy and Mountain House. Previous Clean Solar residential solar installations in Tracy and San Joaquin County were installed on a case-by-case basis. To better address this growing solar market, Clean Solar has now increased the number of dedicated Sales Site Analysts serving this region.
- Clean Solar releases “Buyer’s Guide to Going Solar” eBook
- To help educate homeowners on the solar marketplace, Clean Solar has released the “Buyer’s Guide to Going Solar” eBook. This free download is filled with insights and comparative analysis that will help homeowners when evaluating if solar is right for them, their available options, and how to choose a solar installer.
- Expanding into North Bay and Upper East Bay
- Clean Solar further expanded its residential service area, this time into the North Bay and further into the East Bay. Service areas now include homeowners living in: Tiburon, Mill Valley, Sausalito, Vallejo, Benicia, Fairfield, Pittsburgh, Antioch, Brentwood, Discovery Bay, Byron, Lathrop, and Manteca. Clean Solar is beginning the solar process for homeowners in these cities with the convenience of an emailed quote.
- 5000’s Fastest Growing Private Companies
- For the second consecutive year, magazine ranked Clean Solar on its annual, exclusive ranking of the nation’s 5,000 fastest-growing private companies. The fastest-growing industry this year was energy and Clean Solar ranked #55 for the fastest-growing company in the industry. California was also the fastest-growing state this year and Clean Solar ranked in the top 400 for companies in California. In fact, for the second consecutive year, Clean Solar is the only energy industry company in the San Jose-metro area to make the list.
- Clean Solar attends Solar Lobby Day
- 200 solar employees representing over 60 companies in the California solar industry, including a group of Clean Solar employees, spent the day at the State Capitol in Sacramento for Solar Worker Lobby Day 2015. The prime objective was to educate Sacramento legislators that the fast-growing solar industry must not be slowed down or their jobs could be at stake. The three pieces of legislation discussed were Net Energy Metering (NEM) 2.0, the Investment Tax Credit (ITC) expiration in 2016, and solar for low-income renters, which all affect the growth of the California solar industry and jobs.
October – December
- Clean Solar ranks highest ever on Silicon Valley Business Journal’s Book of Lists
- The Silicon Valley Business Journal Book of Lists released its 2015 local solar installers list as determined by a ranking of the amount of kilowatts installed in Silicon Valley in 2014 for combined commercial and residential projects. Clean Solar ranked #6 overall from #7 last year, the highest ever for the company, and has increased their ranking for amount of exclusively residential system kilowatts installed in Silicon Valley in 2014 from #4 to #3.
- Silicon Valley Business Journal’s Fastest Growing Private Companies
- The Silicon Valley Business Journal released their list of the Top 50 Fastest Growing Private Companies in Silicon Valley. Ranking were determined by the average of the percentage revenue growth from the period of 2012 to 2013 and the period from 2013 to 2014. Clean Solar ranks at #21 overall on the list, reporting 152% growth over that time period. Clean Solar is the highest ranked solar company on the list, making them the fastest growing private solar company in Silicon Valley in terms of revenue.
- Clean Solar releases drone video
- Clean Solar has released three versions of a video spot to capture the quality installations Clean Solar is known for. The video features a bird’s-eye-view of Bay Area landmarks using state-of-the-art drone-mounted video technology. The video then zooms down into a San Jose neighborhood during a live Clean Solar rooftop installation, while offering a peek into our whimsical side.