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Suncast vs spreadsheets
Most installers quote with a spreadsheet, a drawing on a printout and a Word template. It works. Here is what changes when the roof, the numbers and the proposal live in one place.
| Task | Spreadsheet and templates | Suncast |
|---|---|---|
| Panel layout | Sketched on a printout or estimated from roof size. | Traced on satellite imagery; panels placed automatically around setbacks and obstacles. |
| Panel count | Guessed, then corrected on site. | Counted from the actual layout, per roof face. |
| Yearly production | One rule-of-thumb figure for every roof. | PVGIS solar data for the address, tilt and direction of each roof face. |
| Savings and payback | Often assumes all solar replaces grid power, which overstates savings. | Daytime use, battery shifting, feed-in tariff, tariff increases and panel ageing. |
| Pricing, margin and VAT | Works, until a formula breaks or a price is out of date. | From your own equipment list, with contingency, markup, discount and VAT in one place. |
| The proposal | Copied into a Word template by hand. | A branded PDF with your logo, colours and terms, generated from the design. |
| Same quality across the team | Every salesperson has their own version of the spreadsheet. | One shared equipment list, one method, one proposal layout for everyone. |
| Finding an old quote | Somewhere in email attachments and file folders. | Every customer, project and proposal in one place, with its status. |
Fair is fair
When a spreadsheet is still fine
If you quote a handful of identical systems a month and your spreadsheet works, keep it. Suncast pays off when quotes vary, roofs are complicated, several people quote, or customers compare you with other installers.
Keep what you already have
- Your equipment and prices come with you: paste a price list instead of retyping it.
- Your logo, colours and terms appear on every proposal.
- Nothing to install: it runs in the browser on a laptop or tablet.
Try it on your next quote
Join a small group of South African installers using Suncast free during the pilot, and help shape what we build next.