Spanish architectural firm Ignacio Borrego Arquitectos has built a photovoltaic shading structure on the outdoor rest area of a commercial building located in the northern part of Madrid.

“The structure rests on the only four possible points that had been planned on the roof for future installations and is made with light galvanized steel profiles for plasterboard partitions,” Ignacio Borrego told pv magazine. “For its assembly, it was necessary to weld two curved circular tubes of 70 mm steel that support the wind load and transfer it to the four support points.”

He also explained that the rest of the structure is lightweight profiles bolted on site and assembled without the need for any auxiliary means. “The whole set is reversible,” the architect further explained. “All joints are removable and the interior furniture of the pergola is also made with the same profiles and recycled furniture.”

The PV system deployed on the structure has a nominal power of 8 kW and relies on JAM72S20 MR 455W solar panels provided by Chinese manufacturer JA Solar. The entire structure comprising the solar array has a footprint of 55 m2, offers a shade area of 25 m2 and weighs 57kg/m2. The modules were deployed by Lodeal Green and Tasvalor was the project developer.

“The project was built at a cost of €12,500,” Borrego stated.