What’s Inside a Commercial Solar Feasibility Packet: NJ Engineering Walkthrough

Most New Jersey commercial property owners hear “feasibility study” and picture a contractor with a clipboard and a free estimate. That’s not what an engineering-led feasibility packet looks like. A real feasibility packet is a decision-quality document — typically 30 to 60 pages — that you can hand to your CFO, your insurer, your roof manufacturer, or a competing contractor and get the same answer about whether your facility makes sense for solar.

Below is what a LandAir Energy feasibility packet contains for a typical NJ commercial property, and why each item matters.

1. Drone-Captured Roof Imagery

Orthomosaic photography plus a 3D model of your roof. Captures every penetration, equipment placement, drain location, parapet, and visible defect. Replaces the typical “I climbed up there and took some pictures” approach with documented, measurable surface mapping.

2. Roof Condition Report

Membrane type identification (TPO, EPDM, BUR, standing-seam metal, concrete), age estimate, penetration count, and documented defects. If your roof has less than 10 years of remaining warranty, the report flags it — and we recommend a re-roof and solar package rather than installing on aging membrane.

3. Structural Pre-Check

Existing roof load capacity assessment using as-built drawings when available. Most NJ commercial roofs have 25 to 60 psf existing capacity. Ballasted solar adds 3 to 5 psf; mechanically attached adds 1 to 2 psf. When drawings are missing, we coordinate a licensed Professional Engineer site assessment.

4. Electrical Service Single-Line

Documents your main electrical panel, sub-panels, transformer rating, and available service capacity. This determines whether solar can backfeed into your existing service or whether you need a service upgrade (typically $25,000 to $75,000 in NJ).

5. 12-Month Load Profile from Utility Data

Pulled from your last 12 utility bills. Peak kW, kWh by month, time-of-use shape if available. The shape of your load determines optimal system size and whether battery storage is worth pairing with solar.

6. Shading Study

Annualized solar resource estimate accounting for nearby buildings, trees, equipment, and seasonal variation. Uses PVsyst-style modeling, not back-of-napkin estimates. Output is a percentage shading loss applied to the production estimate.

7. Code Review

Applicable NJ Uniform Construction Code references, municipal overlays, historic district considerations, and floodplain notes specific to your address. Identifies any special permit requirements early.

8. NJ Utility Interconnection Pre-Screen

Confirms which utility serves your property (PSE&G, JCP&L, Atlantic City Electric, or Rockland), checks hosting capacity for your circuit, and projects which interconnection track applies (Level 1, Level 2, or supplemental review).

9. Production Estimate

Year 1 annual kWh production with degradation curves through year 25. Weather-corrected for your specific latitude and shading conditions.

10. Recommendation Memo

The go/no-go memo. If the project doesn’t pencil — say, because your roof can’t carry the load or the service can’t handle backfeed — we tell you in writing, with reasoning. Most contractors don’t issue written no-go recommendations; we do.

What’s NOT in the Packet

Detailed engineering drawings, final pricing, marketing illustrations, and long-form ROI projections are saved for the engineering phase after contract. Including them in feasibility would inflate cost without improving the go/no-go decision.

Why Pay for a Feasibility Before Contract?

A free feasibility study is a sales tool. It tells you the project is viable but doesn’t tell you what will fail in PSE&G interconnection review six months later. A paid feasibility packet identifies the specific failure modes upfront and either resolves them or flags them so you can decide with eyes open.

If you’re considering commercial solar for a New Jersey property and want to know whether the project actually pencils, start with our Commercial Solar Property & Site Analysis service. The packet rolls into project cost if you proceed.