Growing a solar EPC from 5 installations a month to 50 is not just 10x more work — it is a fundamentally different kind of business. The tools, processes, and team structures that worked at 5 installations will actively hurt you at 50. Companies that scale successfully treat operations as a discipline, not an afterthought. Companies that do not end up drowning in missed deadlines, angry customers, and burning cash.
This is the 30-point operations checklist distilled from working with 200+ Indian solar EPCs. It is organised into 6 categories: Sales, Operations, Procurement, Finance, HR, and Compliance. Each item is something you should have in place before you cross 30 installations a month. If you are already past that and missing any of these, consider this your priority list for the next quarter.
Sales (5 Points)
1. Dedicated Solar CRM Software
Spreadsheets break at scale. You need a purpose-built CRM like SolarNeo that understands the solar project lifecycle, handles multi-source lead capture, and enforces status advancement rules.
2. Lead Response SLA of < 5 Minutes
Research is unanimous: leads contacted within 5 minutes convert 21x more than leads contacted after 30 minutes. Set an SLA, automate notifications, and track adherence weekly.
3. Standardised Quote Template
Every salesperson should use the same branded template with the same subsidy calculation, same warranty terms, and same payment milestones. Variance is the enemy of scale.
4. Site Visit Template with Photo Requirements
Every site visit captures the same data: roof dimensions, shade analysis, electrical panel photo, existing wiring, customer consumption pattern. Field staff should not have to remember what to capture — the form should tell them.
5. Lead Source Attribution and ROI Tracking
You must know which marketing channel generated which closed project. Without this, you are spending ad budget blind.
Operations (5 Points)
6. Defined Project Lifecycle with Auto-Advancement
Use the 9-stage lifecycle (Order Confirmed through Handover). Every stage has an owner, a definition of done, and automatic advancement triggers.
7. Digital Document Collection
Customer documents (Aadhaar, electricity bill, bank details, photos) should be collected via a single WhatsApp upload link, not scattered across chats.
8. Engineer Mobile App for Field Teams
Installation crews capture photos, update milestones, and log issues from the site via a mobile app. Manual end-of-day reporting is a recipe for missing information.
9. Customer Mobile App for Project Visibility
Customers should be able to track their project without calling you. This reduces your support load by 50%+ and increases satisfaction.
10. Weekly Operations Review Meeting
Every Monday, walk through every active project. Flag anything stuck. Assign owners. Set deadlines. Document decisions.
Procurement (5 Points)
11. BOM Templates by System Size
Define standard BOMs for 1 kW, 2 kW, 3 kW, 5 kW, 7 kW, 10 kW, 15 kW, and 25 kW systems. Load them into SolarNeo so quotes auto-populate.
12. Dispatch Challan Workflow
Every piece of inventory that leaves your warehouse is documented on a challan linked to a specific project. No exceptions.
13. Low-Stock Alerts and Reorder Points
Reorder thresholds are set per SKU per warehouse. When stock drops below threshold, procurement is notified automatically with a one-click PO button.
14. Multi-Vendor Sourcing Agreements
Never rely on a single supplier for critical items. Maintain at least 2 approved vendors for modules and inverters.
15. Vendor Scorecard
Track every vendor on price, delivery lead time, quality, and GST compliance. Consolidate around your best vendors and drop the weak ones.
Finance (5 Points)
16. Milestone-Based Payment Schedule
Never accept a single lump-sum payment. Standard structure: 20% advance, 30% post-survey, 40% pre-installation, 10% post-commissioning.
17. Razorpay or Payment Gateway Integration
Customers pay via a UPI link, not bank transfer. Reduces payment friction and reconciliation effort.
18. GST Compliant Invoicing
Every invoice is GST-compliant with HSN codes, CGST/SGST/IGST breakdown, and auto-generated via your CRM.
19. Cash Flow Projection Dashboard
You should always know: how much cash will come in over the next 30, 60, 90 days based on your active pipeline. SolarNeo generates this automatically.
20. Receivables Aging Report
Track overdue customer payments by age bucket. Chase 30+ day receivables proactively.
HR (5 Points)
21. HRM System for Attendance and Leave
Field team attendance, leave requests, shift scheduling — all in one system. Prevents payroll disputes.
22. Automated Payroll
Salary, overtime, deductions, and tax — calculated and disbursed monthly without manual Excel.
23. Employee Insurance (ESI, PF, Health)
Statutory compliance plus a safety net for field staff who work on rooftops. Non-negotiable.
24. Performance Reviews Quarterly
Formal review with every team member. Sets expectations, identifies high performers, and catches problems early.
25. Training and Certification Program
Installation staff should be trained on BIS standards, safety, and manufacturer-specific panel handling. Certifications are logged in HR records.
Compliance (5 Points)
26. ALMM Compliance Tracking
Every module used in subsidised projects must be on the latest ALMM List-I. Check before every procurement.
27. BIS Certification Verification
Every module and inverter used must carry valid BIS certification. Request certificates from every supplier.
28. DISCOM Empanelment in Every State You Operate
Unempanelled vendors face longer queues and more scrutiny. Get empanelled with every DISCOM where you do business.
29. GST, PAN, Professional Tax Compliance
All registrations current and renewed. Tax filings on time.
30. Safety Compliance (Factory Act, Rooftop Safety Gear)
Harness, helmets, gloves, insulated tools for every installation. A single preventable accident can end a small EPC financially and reputationally.
How to Roll Out This Checklist
Thirty items looks overwhelming. Here is how to prioritise:
- Month 1: CRM software, document collection, BOM templates, milestone payments, ALMM compliance. (Items 1, 7, 11, 16, 26)
- Month 2: Lead SLA, project lifecycle, dispatch challans, HRM, DISCOM empanelment. (Items 2, 6, 12, 21, 28)
- Month 3: Quote template, engineer app, low-stock alerts, Razorpay, BIS verification. (Items 3, 8, 13, 17, 27)
- Month 4 and beyond: Roll out the remaining items one per week.
Most of these items are natively supported in SolarNeo — the CRM platform, document collection, BOM engine, dispatch workflow, payment tracking, HRM, and reporting dashboards are all built in. The compliance items (ALMM, BIS, DISCOM empanelment) are external but tracked within the system.
The Compounding Effect
Each item on this checklist, on its own, might deliver a 5–10% improvement in some metric. But the items compound. A faster lead response improves conversion. Better quotes close more deals. Better BOMs reduce installation delays. Better dispatch reduces site errors. Better finance reduces cash crunches. Better HR reduces turnover. Better compliance reduces legal risk.
Stack them all together and you get a 3–5x operational efficiency improvement. That is the difference between scaling from 20 to 200 installations a month, and getting stuck at 20 forever. The operationally excellent EPCs will dominate the next decade of Indian solar. The question is whether you will be one of them.