Managing Technologies in Project Variants

Understanding Technologies in Variants

Eturnity projects support multiple energy technologies that you can combine in different ways within each variant. This flexibility allows you to create and compare different solution proposals for the same project—for example, comparing a PV-only system versus a PV system with battery storage and heat pump.

Available Technologies:

• Photovoltaics (PV): Solar panel systems for electricity generation
• Battery Storage: Energy storage systems to maximize self-consumption
• Heating: Heat pump systems and thermal solutions
• E-Mobility: Electric vehicle charging stations
• Energy Management: Smart energy management systems
• Free Technologies: Custom technologies configured in your company settings

Note: Free technologies are custom technology types that your company can define and configure in the settings. If your company has created free technologies, they will appear alongside the standard technologies and can be activated/deactivated in the same way.

Each project variant can have a different combination of active technologies, enabling you to present multiple options to your customer without creating separate projects.

Key Benefit: Activating or deactivating technologies allows you to quickly adapt your project proposal to changing customer requirements. Instead of creating multiple projects, you can maintain all options as variants within a single project.

Prerequisites

Before you can activate or deactivate technologies in a variant:

• Active Variant: The variant must be set as the active variant (you cannot modify technologies in inactive variants)
• Available Technologies: Technologies must be enabled in your company settings. If you don't see a specific technology option, contact your administrator or Eturnity support.
• Component Library: Your component library should include components for the technologies you want to activate

How to Activate or Deactivate Technologies

Step 1: Navigate to the Variants Section

1. Open your project in Eturnity Expert
2. In the project navigation menu, click on Variants
3. You'll see a table displaying all variants of your project, including their names, systems, and active technologies

Step 2: Select the Variant You Want to Modify

1. In the variants table, locate the variant you want to modify
2. If the variant is not already active (indicated by a radio button selection), click the radio button in the first column to activate it
3. Only the active variant can have its technologies modified—this ensures you're always working with the correct variant configuration

Important: You cannot activate or deactivate technologies in inactive variants. Technology tags in inactive variants appear grayed out and are not clickable. Always activate the variant first.

Step 3: Toggle Technology Activation

1. In the active variant row, locate the Technologies column showing technology tags
2. Active technologies are displayed as green tags, while technologies available but not currently used appear as outlined tags
3. Click on any technology tag to toggle its activation state:
   • To activate a technology: Click on an outlined/inactive technology tag—it will turn green and be added to your variant
   • To deactivate a technology: Click on a green/active technology tag—it will become outlined and be removed from your variant
4. The system automatically saves your changes and recalculates the project based on the updated technology configuration

Visual Indicator: When you hover over a technology tag in the active variant, a tooltip appears showing either "Activate" or "Deactivate" to indicate what will happen when you click.

Step 4: Review the Updated Variant

1. After toggling a technology, the system automatically updates the project calculations, components, and financial analysis
2. Navigate to other project sections (e.g., System, Financial, Documents) to see how the technology change affects your project
3. The system ensures all project data remains consistent with the active technologies

Important Rules and Limitations

Minimum One Active Technology

Every project variant must have at least one active technology. If you attempt to deactivate the last remaining technology in a variant, the system will display a warning message and prevent the deactivation:

System Message: "You must have selected at least one technology per variant. The technology was not deactivated."

Why this rule exists: A variant without any active technology would be an empty project configuration with no components, calculations, or meaningful data.

Tips for Effective Technology Management

• Name Variants Clearly: Use descriptive names that indicate which technologies are active (e.g., "PV + Battery", "PV Only", "Full Energy Solution")
• Start with Maximum Configuration: Begin with all relevant technologies active, then create simplified variants by deactivating technologies. This is easier than building up from a minimal configuration.
• Check Component Availability: Before activating a technology, ensure you have appropriate components in your library. Missing components will create gaps in your system design.
• Review Financial Impact: Always check the Financial section after changing technologies, as activation/deactivation significantly affects investment costs, operating costs, and profitability.
• Document Differences: When presenting multiple variants to customers, clearly explain which technologies differ between variants and why this matters for their specific needs.

Troubleshooting

Technology Tags Are Grayed Out and Not Clickable

Cause: You're attempting to modify an inactive variant.

Solution: Click the radio button in the first column of the variant row to activate it first, then the technology tags will become clickable.

I Don't See a Specific Technology Option

Cause: The technology may not be enabled in your company settings or license.

Solution: Contact your administrator or Eturnity support (support@eturnity.com) to verify which technologies are available in your license and request activation if needed.

System Displays Warning When Deactivating a Technology

Cause: You're attempting to deactivate the last remaining technology in a variant.

Solution: Every variant must have at least one active technology. If you want to create a variant without a specific technology, first activate a different technology before deactivating the one you want to remove.

Project Calculations Don't Update After Technology Change

Cause: Page may need to refresh or project may need recalculation.

Solution: Navigate to another project section (e.g., Financial or System) to trigger recalculation. If issues persist, refresh your browser and check if changes were saved.