06-02, 14:00–14:30 (Europe/Stockholm), Wadström
As solar energy accounted for 75% of new U.S. electricity-generating capacity in Q1 2024, the industry faces mounting pressure to streamline project timelines and reduce costs. This session explores how one of the leading Renewable Energy Engineering firms in the U.S. has fully embraced open-source GIS, leveraging its flexibility to develop custom tools and enhance efficiency.
By integrating QGIS as a powerful user interface and utilizing its seamless Python integration, our team has significantly automated workflows, improved accuracy, and accelerated project completion. Everything that can be done in QGIS has been automated—eliminating repetitive tasks and enabling greater scalability.
Key open-source tools include:
• Whitebox Tools – Advanced geospatial analysis
• GDAL – Raster and vector data processing
• LandXML to Mesh – LandXML to Mesh conversion used for Topography data
Additionally, we provide an update on EarthCalc, an open-source QGIS plugin for PV site earthworks estimation, developed by Marco Alvarez-Patino and John Kopchick. The session also shares insights and lessons learned from developing custom QGIS plugins.
This shift isn’t just about adopting new tools—it’s about adopting a new mindset: one where we create the solutions we need, rather than waiting for them.
Marco Alvarez-Patino is a civil engineer with extensive experience in utility-scale solar site development, combining expertise in GIS, programming, and civil site design to create scalable solutions for the renewable energy industry. His work focuses on optimizing land-use strategies, integrating open-source tools, and leveraging automation to streamline project execution.
At Revamp, Marco is responsible for the development of the internal toolsets used by engineers for civil site design, and he has been involved in the construction of over 3GW of utility-scale Solar.
Prior to joining Revamp in 2022, Marco held roles at Mott MacDonald designing over 1 GW of utility scale solar in North America where he tackled difficult projects in the northeast United States developing solutions for solar array grading problems involving tracker systems.
Marco holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from Wayne State University. His belief in working towards a cleaner future has led his work in applying solutions at scale to drive the development of renewable energy.