Solar
ERP software for solar installers and EPC contractors
Track enquiries and site visits, quote each system size, invoice panels, inverters and installation on one bill, and keep stock and annual maintenance contract renewals in view.
In short
SimpleERP is ERP software for rooftop solar installers and small EPC contractors. Enquiries and site visits become quotations, quotations become invoices mixing panels, inverters and installation, and stock, purchases, maintenance contract and payroll share one ledger.
Illustration of the CRM pipeline with four stages and a list of follow-ups due today.
A day in a solar installation business
A rooftop solar business sells a system, not a product, so every job mixes enquiries, site visits, equipment and labour.
The morning starts with enquiries. Three homeowners called after seeing a neighbour's rooftop, a school wants a 25 kW quote, and Swan Valley Winery asked for a revised price on 10 kW. Someone has to visit each roof, measure the shadow-free area and come back with a system size.
Meanwhile a crew is on a roof in Fremantle with panels and an inverter taken from the warehouse, and the bill for that job will mix goods and installation on one invoice. Last year's maintenance contract customers are due for renewal, and nobody is sure which ones.
SimpleERP puts that day in one place. Enquiries and site visits live in a CRM pipeline, and the two documents that matter most, the quotation for each system size and the tax invoice that mixes equipment and installation, carry the same lines from first price to final bill.
CRM
Every enquiry gets a site visit and a follow-up
Enquiries enter as leads with just a name and phone number, and site visits and call-backs sit as follow-ups with a due time, so no rooftop enquiry goes cold in a notebook.
- Log a site visit as a meeting against the lead, with notes on roof area and shade.
- Today's follow-ups are the first list a salesperson sees, overdue ones in red.
- Pipeline stages you can rename, such as Site visit, Proposal and Negotiation.
- Duplicate warning when the same phone number enquires twice.
Illustration of the CRM pipeline with four stages and a list of follow-ups due today.
Quotations and billing
Quote each system size, then bill it without retyping
A quotation lists the panels, inverter, structure and installation for one system size, and once the customer accepts, it converts into a sales order or an invoice with the same lines.
- Duplicate a 3 kW quote to start the 5 kW one, then change the quantities.
- Tax per line, with a summary by rate on the print.
- Goods and installation on one bill, each at the rate your country sets.
- Revise a sent quote as a new draft, so the first version stays on record.
| Line | Kind | Taxable | Tax |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solar modules 540 Wp, 6 pcs @ $180 | Goods | $1,080 | 10%: $108 |
| On-grid inverter 3 kW, 1 pc | Goods | $1,200 | 10%: $120 |
| Mounting structure, 1 set | Goods | $450 | 10%: $45 |
| Installation and commissioning | Service | $900 | 10%: $90 |
| Total | $3,630 | $363 |
Inventory and purchase
Know how many panels are in each warehouse
Panels, inverters, cables and structures are tracked by warehouse at weighted average cost, and every invoice issues the stock it sells, so the count matches what left for the roof.
- Purchase orders and bills from your distributor receive stock into the right warehouse.
- Transfers move panels from the main warehouse to a site store or branch.
- Low-stock list turns shortfalls into purchase orders, grouped by supplier.
- Purchase register to check the tax on supplier bills before you file.
Illustration of stock on hand by warehouse at average cost, with a low-stock row highlighted and a movement ledger.
maintenance contract and service billing
maintenance contract invoices and renewals you don't forget
Annual maintenance is a service with its own tax rate, so a maintenance contract invoice is an ordinary invoice, and a follow-up task on the customer reminds you before the next year falls due.
- Services without stock for maintenance contract, cleaning visits and repairs.
- Customer history shows the original system invoice, maintenance contract bills and payments in one list.
- Renewal reminders as CRM tasks with a due date on the customer.
- Receivables ageing shows which maintenance contract bills are still unpaid.
Illustration of tax invoice INV-2026-0213 to Northside Retail with tax 10% and the amount in words.
Expenses and payroll
Pay installation crews and settle their site expenses
Installation teams file travel and food claims from a phone with a photo of the receipt, a manager approves them, and the monthly payroll reads attendance for paid days.
- Expense claims with receipts, approved and then reimbursed from cash or bank.
- Attendance for the whole crew on one screen.
- Payslips with basic pay, deductions and advance recovery.
Illustration of an expense claim on a phone with a receipt photo and Approve and Reject buttons.
Ready on day one
What you don't have to set up
SimpleERP seeds the boring parts when you sign up, so your first day is about quoting systems, not configuring software.
- A chart of accounts with sales, purchase, inventory and tax accounts already mapped.
- Your country's tax rates, ready to pick on a product or service.
- Units such as pieces, sets, metres and days, and document numbering on your financial year.
- A pipeline with Qualification, Proposal, Negotiation, Won and Lost stages.
- Seven ready-made roles, from Owner to Employee self-service, to copy and adjust later.
By job
Solar installers by job
Inventory for solar installers
Panels, inverters, mounting structures and cable counted by warehouse and crew van at average cost, with transfers to each rooftop job.
Read moreAccounting for solar installers
Customer advances, homeowner balances waiting on rebate, maintenance contract income and distributor payables in one double-entry ledger for solar EPC firms.
Read morePayroll for solar installers
Installation crew salaries from rooftop check-ins, site expense claims, advances recovered over months, and deductions on each payslip.
Read more
One system
The modules that do this work
A won enquiry becomes a quotation, an accepted quotation becomes an invoice, and the invoice writes the sale, the stock issue and the tax in one step.
CRM
Leads, a deal pipeline, today's follow-ups and conversion to customer and quotation.
See howInvoicing & tax
Tax invoices with VAT, GST or sales tax on every line, numbered by fiscal year and posted in one step.
See howInventory
Stock on hand by warehouse at weighted average cost, with a movement ledger and a low-stock list.
See howPurchase
Purchase orders, supplier bills that receive stock, debit notes and payables.
See howExpenses
Business expenses with receipts, and staff claims from submit to approve to reimburse.
See howPayroll
Salary structures, monthly runs and payslips with your earnings and deductions, posted to the books.
See how
Honest limits
What SimpleERP does not do for solar installers yet
We would rather you know now than find out in month two.
- Serial numbers for panels and inverters. Stock is tracked by product and warehouse; note serials in the invoice line description if a customer needs them.
- Rebate or subsidy portal integration. Applications under government schemes are filed on their own portals.
- Project costing. Costs are not rolled up per installation site; use one invoice per system to see its margin.
- Automatic maintenance contract renewal invoices. Set a CRM task with a due date and raise the invoice when it comes up.
- E-invoicing or transport documents filed through a government system.
Getting started
Start with your first invoice
Sign up with your email
Name, email and a password. No card for the seven-day trial.
Tell us about the business
Pick your country and, if you are registered, type your tax number. Accounts, tax rates, units, roles and numbering are seeded for that country.
Add what you sell
Import your panels, inverters, structures and cables from a CSV file with opening stock per warehouse, then add installation and maintenance contract as services with their tax rates.
Post your first invoice
Pick the customer, add lines and save. Your first invoice can be out within 10 minutes of signing up.
FAQ
Questions, answered
Which tax rate applies to solar panels, inverters and installation?
It depends on your country. Many charge the standard VAT, GST or sales tax rate, while some cut it for residential solar: the UK has zero-rated installation on homes, and several US states exempt solar equipment from sales tax. In SimpleERP each product or service carries its rate, and one invoice can mix them. Rates differ by country and change, so confirm the rate for your goods with your accountant or tax authority before you rely on it.
Can I put panels, inverter and installation on one invoice?
Yes. An invoice can mix goods and services, each at its own tax rate. The print shows the tax per line and a summary by rate, and only the goods lines move stock.
Does it track panel and inverter serial numbers for warranty?
No. Stock is tracked by product and warehouse, not by serial number. Many installers type the serial numbers into the invoice line description so they appear on the customer's copy.
We are a team of eight with two installation crews. Is it too big for us?
No. SimpleERP is built for small teams. Give the owner, the office person and the sales lead their own logins with the right role, and let crew members file expense claims and see payslips through employee self-service.
We keep enquiries in spreadsheets and accounts in an old app. How do we move?
Import your products from a CSV file with opening stock, add customers as they come or enter open enquiries as leads, and enter opening balances once. Start new quotations and invoices in SimpleERP from the first day of a month to keep the cut-over clean.
Related
Keep reading
Electrical and electronics
Fast billing of electrical goods, stock by warehouse, panel assembly from BOMs and electrician credit.
Read moreConstruction and contractors
Quotations and stage invoices, material per site, payroll with advances and site expense claims.
Read moreRepair and service centres
Spares and labour on one invoice, spares stock by centre, maintenance contract follow-ups and technician claims.
Read moreSales teams
Today's follow-ups, a pipeline, and quotations that become invoices without retyping.
Read moreCRM
Leads, a deal pipeline, today's follow-ups and conversion to customer and quotation.
Read more
Run your whole business from one simple place.
Seven days free. No card. Your first invoice in minutes.