Together with students, Botlhale Village and head lecturer Francois Venter are working on a project called Solar Monitoring or Solmon.

The system has been designed for use in remote areas where access to electricity grids is difficult. This project will be used to power schools and other facilities in rural areas.

What makes the Solmon system so unique is that it allows remote monitoring of the system, meaning that a technician does not have to be notified before coming out to do repairs or to stay on site. To do this, the entire system is connected to the internet and system parameters are sent wirelessly to the monitoring station wherever it is. The monitoring system also allows the technician to control aspects of the system wirelessly via an internet connection, allowing relays to be switched on and off and parts of the system to be shut down in an emergency.

The software section of the system is ready for roll-out with the standard and existing hardware requirements. Solmon has already been installed in Mozambique. As a new and unique system in the realm of solar power supply, Solmon is a testament to the vision and capabilities of Belgium Campus.