Trina Solar has called on the industry to pay more attention to solar energy as housebuilding figures continue to rise.

Trina Solar has called on the industry to pay more attention to solar energy as the  latest housebuilding figures show a 28% rise in registrations in 2013 compared to 2012.

A total of 133,670 new properties were registered with the National House Building Council by the end of last year, but Trina Solar says that too many construction companies treat installing solar panels as a box-ticking operation, missing out on the energy saving benefits that are possible.

 Richard Rushin, UK manager for Trina Solar, and board member of the Solar Trade Association, said: “Looking around many new housing developments I can’t help noticing that houses will have only one panel up, often facing in the least productive direction. 

"Government targets require all newbuild housing to be zero carbon by 2016. While this is an ambitious deadline, many construction companies are missing a trick and should use solar installations as a key part of meeting this target.

“Newbuild properties are exceptional at incorporating energy efficiency into their designs and construction. I totally understand the need for housebuilders to ‘value engineer’ their budgets and keep their offerings competitive but many are using single panel solar PV installations as a ‘tick in the box’ to achieve a given build code. Many of these systems will have little benefit to the house owner and consequently there is an increasing reputational risk to the PV industry. I would call on the government to make the necessary regulatory changes to make a fully operational solar PV system a standard measure on as many newbuild properties as possible in the same way that thermal efficiency is now an essential part of the design and final build.”