By Michael Puttré – pv Magazine
Published August 14, 2025
Paired Power, a California-based manufacturer integrated solar canopy and EV charging systems, announced that it has received a U.S. patent for its PairTree freestanding design. Installers are able to assemble the canopy unit on the ground and raise it up to its final position by hand without mechanical lifts.
The process patent covers the unit’s configuration and assembly implementation. Essentially, the structure itself is a scissor lift that forms an x-brace when raised and locked into position. The design also enables the PairTree to be installed for microgrid applications in remote locations where specialized lift machinery may not be available.
Tom McCalmont, CEO of Paired Power, told pv magazine USA that the concept for the PairTree came from a desire to broaden the reach of solar canopy charges beyond big parking lots and fleet depots.
“I wondered if the canopy itself could be the lift,” he said, adding that the company tried many approaches to realize this goal. “We tried hydraulics. We tried pulleys. And finally we came came up with an approach that works really well, but it took some iteration and some invention to figure it out.”
The traditional approach of building a solar canopy is to erect a superstructure on which PV panels are secured and wired into place. This generally requires a scissor lift for the installer crews and a lot of repetitive actions over an extended period of time. Paired Power has a PairFleet design accommodating multiple charging stations that installs this way.
Large solar canopy installations generally require and require trenches for electrical cables that disrupt access to parking lots. A PairTree installation can go up in a day without any construction permitting, utility approval or digging. All that’s needed is a flat surface. The units are secured with ground screws that McCalmont said are good in 130-mile winds.
Read the full piece here
