Under Mounting you set, for each building, which mounting system holds the panels on the roof. autarc then calculates the bill of materials with every part from the roof hooks to the cable ties, and runs the MCS structural check.

The bill of materials, with its prices, feeds into the costs of the design, the proposal and the technical documentation.

You can open Mounting in three ways:

A mounting system always belongs to one building: a roof group with its dormers, a single roof side, or a carport. At the top of Mounting, you pick the building (Choose a building). The list shows each building's mounting system and whether anything is still missing. Once every building has a mounting system, Add > Mounting system is greyed out.

Work through the tabs from left to right; Next takes you to the next one. A warning icon shows where required details are still missing. Click Done or the X to close Mounting. Remove mounting system takes the system off the building; the roofs stay.

Mounting opens in the middle, between the sidebar and the canvas. The sidebar on the left stays open and shows the details of whatever you select: a roof with its roof details, or a panel grid with its mounting type, orientation and spacing. This lets you adjust the roof and panel layout without leaving Mounting, and the bill of materials updates straight away. Selecting a roof side at the top also highlights it on the canvas.

autarc estimates the site values from the project address. They apply to all buildings. Check them against your site survey:

If you change a value, autarc keeps your entry even if the address changes later. The estimated value is shown below the field; tap it to restore.

Building height and Hill slope belong to each building. You set them in the building's roof settings in the Layers list. autarc suggests the highest ridge above the ground as the building height.

For each roof side, enter how the roof is built:

As you enter the values, autarc draws the rafters and battens on the roof, so you can see where the roof hooks sit. If the panels are at an angle to the battens, autarc takes this into account in the number of hooks.

Flat roofs follow MIS 3002 §5.9.11–5.9.13. Instead of the roof-hook check, you record how the array is held down (Flat-roof system: Ballasted or Mechanically fixed, Ballast mass, Coefficient of friction (μ)). A structural engineer confirms the imposed load. The check only passes once every flat roof has a Structural engineer reference.

Click Select mounting system. The dialog has two tabs:

If you pick a system from the Database, Configure … opens. Under Pricing, choose whether the price is calculated Per component or Per unit, and enter the Purchase prices. Click Create, and autarc copies the system with all its components into your products and assigns it to the building. You can edit it there at any time.

In the Database you will find systems from these manufacturers:

The Bill of materials lists each item with product and quantity, e.g. Roof hooks, End clamps, Mid clamps, Base rails, Rail connectors and Roof-hook screws. For the roof-hook screw, autarc also shows the selected length.

If something is missing from the mounting system, e.g. rail lengths, a suitable screw length, the screw diameter for the MCS pull-out check or a purchase price, autarc shows a warning above the bill of materials. You can only create a proposal once these warnings are fixed.

Even without a mounting system, autarc calculates a generic bill of materials from the roof and panel geometry. It is read-only.

Click Generate BOM PDF to create the bill of materials as a PDF that you can download or save to the project files.

All mounting systems are under Products > Packages with the type Mounting system. There you edit the components and set a Quantity rule for each, e.g. Automatic, Fixed, Per roof hook, Per module or Rail breakdown. You also set which roof coverings and roof types the system suits.

Mounting systems are not added to a proposal directly, but through the solar planning, where their quantities are calculated.

The Results tab runs the MCS structural check (MIS 3002) for every roof side with panels. It appears when the design is set to MCS Compliant Planning. Carports are not part of the MCS structural check; only their bill of materials is calculated.

The check ends with Structural check passed or Structural check failed. With several roof sides, an icon on each roof side shows whether it passed.

Above 50 kWp, the MCS standard no longer applies and autarc uses PVGIS for the yield instead.

Check the roof covering type and roof type of the roof side in the Substructure tab. In the Database you can reset the filters (All manufacturers, All coverings, All roof types). You can edit your own systems under Products > Packages.

No. Purchase price, margin and tax are empty after copying, unless the product is already in your products. Enter the prices in Configure … or later in your products.

Yes. autarc copies the system into your products. You can edit this copy freely; the original in the database stays unchanged. Please note: your copy is linked to your designs. Changes to it apply to every design that uses this mounting system, and the bill of materials and costs update there automatically.

The MCS structural check only runs when the design is set to MCS Compliant Planning. Without it, you plan the substructure, mounting system and bill of materials without the check.

The roof is flat (under 10°). For flat roofs, MIS 3002 requires a structural engineer to confirm the imposed load. Enter their name and report reference as the Structural engineer reference.