Back on the grid after hailstorm damage News | 22.05.2024

In August of last year, a severe hailstorm heavily damaged the roofs of the S+P Samson buildings and destroyed parts of the infrastructure. For a manufacturing company in the industrial identification sector, such a natural event represents an enormous challenge, as delivery capacity for our customers must be maintained at all times.

One of the first actions taken after temporarily sealing the roof was the dismantling of the photovoltaic system. A total of 1,034 modules were disconnected and removed. Not because the modules were defective – they had to be cleared to allow access to the roof for the extensive renovation work. Thanks to the untiring commitment of all contractors and the internal team, production was able to continue without major disruptions.

Seven months later, the roof repair is largely complete. In April, the modules were repositioned and rewired in a painstaking, detailed operation, allowing the switch to be flipped at the end of the month. Our solar power station is functional once again. This means we are again covering a significant portion of our energy requirements directly from on-site regenerative sources.

Bureaucratic Hurdles in the Energy Transition

By a twist of fate – and exactly as planned long in advance – a new, additional photovoltaic system was constructed in the meantime. The company parking lot was fitted with a roof structure housing another 500 modules. Completion was reached back in November – yet, to this day, this system is not operational. This is because the grid operators are at the limit of their capacities, and bureaucratic approval processes are delaying the final grid connection.

The plan was for S+P Samson to operate 100% on its own energy during the sunny months. This investment is a central building block of our long-term sustainability strategy to further minimize the carbon footprint of our robust identification solutions. Now, the repair work is finished, but we are still waiting for the full commissioning of the new solar carport. Despite these grid-related delays, we remain firmly committed to our goal of energy-autonomous manufacturing in order to produce industrial labels not only to the highest quality standards but also in the most environmentally friendly way possible.