Solar panel installation SWMS, drafted for your job
Panels go on roofs, the array makes live DC power the moment light hits it, and a bare summer roof bounces heat back at the crew all day. Tell us the job and the site: your SWMS is drafted around them, and you check it on site before work starts.
A$39per job
However many high-risk activities it covers.
- However many high-risk activities it covers.
- 3 for A$99
- 10 for A$249
- Yearly A$129 for 120
- Monthly A$60 for 10
You review it on site before work starts.
Your Business
Safe Work Method Statement
Version 1
Draft
Solar panel installation
Site Your site address
Law Your state
High-risk construction work
- Work where someone could fall from height
- Work on or near energised electrical installations
Job steps, hazards and controls
| 1 | Set up roof access and edge protection | Fall at edge or through sheets | Extreme | Edge protection or harness; mark brittle spots |
| 2 | Fix rails and seal penetrations | Dropped fixings; awkward reach | Medium | Fixings in a pouch; tools tethered |
| 3 | Lift and stage panels on roof | Panel as a sail; drop zone | High | Mechanical lift; zone below kept clear |
| 4 | Clamp panels and run string cable | Live DC in daylight | High | Strings left open; treat all DC as live |
| 5 | Mount inverter and wire AC side | Back-feed to the board | High | Isolate, lock, tag; prove dead |
Illustrative first page. Yours carries your business name only.
What you get
What your solar panel installation SWMS will contain
An A4 document your crew can read on site, a PDF for the builder and a sign-on register.
- Job and site detailsYour business, the site, the principal contractor, the dates.
- High-risk construction workThe categories your job involves, ticked.
- Step-by-step methodEach step with its hazards, risk rating and controls.
- How controls are checkedWho puts each control in place, monitors and reviews it.
- PPE, plant and permitsEquipment and training the job needs.
- Emergency planAssembly point, first aid, nearest hospital to confirm on site.
- Consultation and reviewWho was consulted, when it is reviewed.
- Sign-on registerYour crew signs by QR or on paper.
High-risk construction work
Categories this task often involves
You tick the ones your job involves. Each ticked category gets its own steps and controls, in your state's wording.
- Work where someone could fall from height
- Work on or near energised electrical installations
State notes
Rules depend on your state
Pick your state when you start. Your state's regulator publishes the rules and guidance for this work.
Hazards and controls
What goes wrong on a solar panel installation job, and how the SWMS controls it
These rows are written for this task. Your draft adds the ones your site and method need.
- 1
Fall from the roof edge or through a brittle sheet or skylight
Extreme- Edge protection or a harness on an anchor before anyone goes up
- Mark skylights and brittle sheets on the roof plan and bar them off
- Use a scaffold or EWP for gutter-edge work instead of leaning out
- 2
Live DC from strings that energise in daylight and cannot be switched off
High- Keep string wiring open until the last connection or cover the panels
- Treat every string cable as live and test before touching
- Insulated gloves and tools for DC terminations
- 3
Panels catching wind or slipping while being lifted to the roof
High- Lift panels by conveyor, hoist or crane, never carry them up a ladder
- Tie the load and keep the drop zone below clear of people
- Postpone lifts when gusts turn a panel into a sail
- 4
Heat stress on a hot roof with no shade and reflective surfaces
High- Start early, rotate the crew and keep drinking water on the roof
- Plan the heavy lifting and sheet work for the cooler part of the day
- 5
Weak or sagging roof framing under staged panels and foot traffic
Medium- Check the roof framing before loading it with pallets of panels
- Spread panels along the rafters and never stack them mid-sheet
- 6
Tools or clamps dropped from the roof onto people below
Medium- Barrier the drop zone under the work face before panels go up
- Tether tools and keep fixings in a pouch or lipped tray
- 7
Back-feed to the board from the inverter during the AC connection
High- Isolate at the board, lock and tag before wiring the inverter
- Prove dead at the isolator before terminating the AC side
How the job usually runs
- 1Set up roof access and edge protectionFall at edge or through sheets → Edge protection or harness; mark brittle spots
- 2Fix rails and seal penetrationsDropped fixings; awkward reach → Fixings in a pouch; tools tethered
- 3Lift and stage panels on roofPanel as a sail; drop zone → Mechanical lift; zone below kept clear
- 4Clamp panels and run string cableLive DC in daylight → Strings left open; treat all DC as live
- 5Mount inverter and wire AC sideBack-feed to the board → Isolate, lock, tag; prove dead
- 6Test, commission and hand overFaults under load → Test strings, then energise and monitor
PPE for this job
- Fall arrest harness
- Grip-sole safety boots
- Insulated gloves for DC work
- Safety glasses
- Sun shirt, hat and sunscreen
- Cut-resistant gloves
Your draft lists the PPE your site and method need.
After you finalise
Brief your crew and send it to your builder
Crew signs by QR
Send to my builder
PDF and register
Builder sent it back?
Make their changes and re-issue the same job free. Workers re-sign the new version.
Questions
Solar panel installation SWMS questions
- Last reviewed
- 21 October 2026
- How
- Hazard rows checked against the task; no legal line is stated unless it is logged from primary text.
- Next review
- Every six months, or when the method or rules change
Are the panels really live before anything is connected?
Yes. In daylight each panel makes DC, so the draft treats string cabling as live from the moment it is run. Strings stay open until the last connection, and DC terminations use insulated gloves and tools.
Does the SWMS cover the inverter and a battery too?
Yes, when you say the job includes one. The draft adds the board isolation and back-feed steps for the AC connection, plus the extra DC isolation a battery brings.
What about a steep or two-storey roof?
Describe the roof when you start and the draft lifts the access controls: scaffold or EWP at the gutter edge, harness and anchors for the pitch, and a barrier on the drop zone below.
How much does a solar panel installation SWMS cost?
One job uses 1 SWMS when you finalise: A$39 for one, however many high-risk activities it covers. AI drafting needs a SWMS pack or plan. Packs and Yearly cost less per SWMS.
Is this a template?
No. You describe the job and the site, and the SWMS is drafted for them. You edit anything, then finalise it.
Who checks the SWMS?
You do, with your crew, on site before work starts. The draft gives you a strong starting point; the person running the work makes sure it matches the site.
My builder sent it back. What now?
Open it, make the changes they asked for and re-issue it. Corrections to the same job are free.
How does my crew sign it?
Show the QR code on your phone or print the A4 sign-on sheet. Workers read and sign on their own phones without an account.
Does it work in my state?
Yes. You choose the state before drafting, and the document names the law that applies there. Victoria uses its OHS Regulations.
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