When you’re looking at a solar installation, it’s easy to focus on the equipment.
How many panels? What size inverter? How much battery storage? What’s the price?
All of those things matter.
But there is another part of a solar installation that is just as important, and it’s often overlooked:
Who is actually installing it, and who stands behind the equipment once it’s on your property?
Current Connections is a Herholdt’s Group Premium Partner, and we think it’s worth explaining what that means for our customers.
Not because having another logo on our website is particularly important, but because the relationship behind the equipment can make a real difference when you’re making an investment that is supposed to work for you for many years.
It’s about more than buying solar equipment
There are plenty of places where you can buy a solar panel, inverter or battery.
The equipment is only one part of the equation.
A properly designed solar installation needs to take into account how your property actually uses electricity, what you want the system to achieve, what your existing electrical installation looks like, and what makes sense for your budget.
It then needs to be installed correctly and in accordance with the relevant regulations and standards.
That is where the installer matters.
Herholdt’s Group created its Premium Partner programme specifically around qualified and reliable solar installers. Their requirements include appropriate qualifications and registrations, reference installations, insurance, compliance with applicable standards and ongoing training on approved products and technologies.
For us, that fits with the way we have always approached electrical work.
Recommend what the customer actually needs, do the job properly, and stand behind it.
So what does the partnership mean for you?
At a practical level, it gives us a relationship with an established electrical and renewable energy distributor that has been operating in South Africa for decades.
Herholdt’s Group has a national footprint and supplies a wide range of electrical and renewable energy products, including solar panels, inverters, batteries and associated equipment.
That matters because a solar installation shouldn’t end when the installer packs away the tools.
The equipment needs to be correctly specified, sourced, installed and supported.
Having an established supply partner behind the installation gives us another layer of support and access to product knowledge, training and industry resources.
It also means we’re not simply choosing equipment because it happens to be available.
It doesn’t mean we’re going to sell you the biggest system
This is probably the most important part.
Being a Premium Partner doesn’t change the way we approach a customer.
We don’t believe everyone needs the biggest inverter, the largest battery or the most expensive system available.
A good solar installation should make sense for your property.
Your electricity usage is different from your neighbour’s. Your budget is different. Your priorities may be different.
Some customers want to reduce their electricity bill.
Some want reliable backup power.
Some want to keep essential equipment running during an outage.
Others want to make a longer-term investment in reducing their reliance on the grid.
Those are different requirements, and they shouldn’t all result in the same system.
Our job is to understand what you actually need and then design the installation around that.
The installation is just as important as the equipment
A good brand doesn’t automatically make a good installation.
The panels can be excellent. The inverter can be excellent. The battery can be excellent.
If the system isn’t properly designed, installed and commissioned, you haven’t necessarily got a good solar system.
This is why compliance and workmanship matter.
Herholdt’s Premium Partner requirements specifically include installations meeting applicable South African National Standards and other relevant legislation and regulations, as well as ongoing training and certification on approved products and technologies.
For the customer, that means you can look beyond the name printed on the equipment and ask a more important question:
Who is responsible for putting it all together?
And what happens after the installation?
This is something we think customers should consider before choosing an installer.
A solar system is a long-term investment. You don’t want your only relationship with the company that installed it to be the day they send you the invoice.
The Herholdt’s Premium Partner programme is built around ongoing relationships between the distributor and its approved installers, including training, support and access to industry resources.
Herholdt’s also states that where a Premium Partner is no longer available to provide after-sales service, it can arrange for another Premium Partner to assist with issues.
That doesn’t replace our responsibility to our customers.
It simply means there is an established network and relationship behind the installation as well.
What should you actually look for when choosing a solar installer?
We don’t think you should choose an installer simply because they are a Premium Partner.
You should still ask questions.
Is the company properly qualified?
Are they registered where required?
Will the installation comply with the relevant standards?
What equipment are they recommending, and why?
Does the system actually suit your electricity usage?
Who will look after it afterwards?
And perhaps most importantly:
Does the person recommending the system understand the electrical installation as a whole, or are they simply selling you solar equipment?
Those questions are more important than whether the quote at the bottom of the page is the cheapest one.
A partnership that supports what we already believe
For Current Connections, becoming a Herholdt’s Group Premium Partner isn’t about changing who we are.
We’ve been working with electrical systems for more than 40 years.
Our approach has always been fairly simple:
Tell the customer what they need. Do the job properly. And stand behind the work.
The partnership gives us another strong relationship within the electrical and renewable energy industry and helps us continue doing that as solar technology develops.
Ultimately, the benefit to you isn’t the badge.
It’s having the right people, the right equipment and the right support behind an installation that you expect to rely on for years to come.
If you’re considering solar for your home or business and you’re not sure what you actually need, talk to us first.
We’ll look at what you’re trying to achieve, look at the electrical requirements, and work from there.
No pressure to buy the biggest system.
Just the right solution for the job.
