DOE Solar Water Heating Market Expansion Workshop

DOE Solar Water Heating Market Expansion Workshop Jane M. Weissman Interstate Renewable Energy Council January 18-19, 2007 San Diego, CA jane@irecusa.org www.irecusa.org

Raising the professional bar Certifying Installers Building a strong workforce Training Practitioners

Installer Certification today North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners (NABCEP) PV Installer Certification Started in 2003 As of today, 291 Certificants 2 Exams per year About 80 candidates are certified per year Solar Thermal Certification Started in 2006 As of today, 14 Certificants

Certification Combination of experience and/or education is required to sit for exam Experience needs to include at least 2 installations/year in a responsible role on the job Rigorous 4-hour test of knowledge and skills based on psychometric principles Signed Code of Ethics NABCEP Candidate Information Handbook, Section 3

PV Certificant Pool 1/3 from California 1/4 from the Northeast & Mid Atlantic Fig. 3: Installed Grid-Connected Photovoltaic Capacity by State (1997 through mid-year 2006) NJ AZ MA NY Others CA Chart Larry Sherwood, IREC

Solar Thermal Certificant Pool Wisconsin 4 California 2 Illinois 2 Minnesota 2 New Mexico - 2 Ohio 1 Missouri - 1 Fig. 5: Installed Solar Thermal Capacity by State (2001-2004) AZ FL CA Others PR HI Chart Larry Sherwood, IREC

Dates Application for Solar Thermal Certification is available at www.nabcep.org Applications are due January 27, 2007 Exam is scheduled for March 24, 2007

Exam Prep Course For NABCEP s Solar Thermal Exam Web Training by Bill Guiney Tuesday, February 27 from 6pm - 9pm EST AND Thursday, March 1 from 6pm - 9pm EST Contact Larry Sherwood, 303-413-8028, Larry@irecusa.org

What should be done to open market? Encourage installers to get certified Employers could offer incentives to employees to become certified States and Licensing Boards need to be aware of NABCEP s Solar Thermal Credential which follows rigorous credentialing and exam standards Inform customers of certification professional status

What else should be done? More Practitioner Training Training for current installers to take NABCEP exam Training for new entrants into the market Training for related trades

Training Trends More and more Community Colleges and Technical Schools are offering Renewable Energy Courses Range from stand-alone courses, new energy certificates, associate degree programs, and customized training for business and industry Classes are expanding from 3 to 5 day workshops to semester-long courses Courses are being incorporated into existing trade programs Average enrollment per course:12-15 students Students range from 18-45 years of age IREC/PETE Survey February 2006

Over 150 courses listed on the IREC site 30 providers 45% are offered by Community Colleges and Technical Schools 28% are offered by private and non-profit Training programs

But This is little solar thermal training available

Questions to consider How do potential students know that they will be taught the skills and knowledge they will need to do a good job? Do the facilities include the right equipment and hardware for training? Are there procedures that ensure safety and safe practices? Are the programs managed in a fiscally responsible way? Are the teachers qualified?

Recommended Criteria Practitioner training courses should lead to defined workplace knowledge, skills, and abilities. Training should appropriately address issues of safety, codes, and core competencies of an industry-approved task or job analysis. Training should be taught in an environment with appropriate facilities, tools, and safe practices. Training should offer a formal and planned learning structure where the learner receives some sort of feedback and the learner s progress is monitored.

Verification of training quality Third party assessment of training programs and instructors offered by IREC IREC is the North American Licensee for the ISPQ 01021 International Standard for Renewable Energy Training Accreditation and Instructor Certification Programs 5 recognitions Accreditation of Training Programs Accreditation of Continuing Education Certification of Master Trainers (independent) Certification of Master Trainers (affiliated) Certification of Instructors

What should be done to open market? Increase training opportunities Base learning objectives on the NABCEP Task Analysis

NABCEP s Solar Thermal Task Analysis The task (or job) analysis is a formal process for determining what people do, under what working conditions they do it, what they must know to do it, and the skills they must have to do it. NABCEP Technical Committee of subject matter experts is convened to develop the task analysis. Dell Jones, Chair Purpose is to define a standard set of competencies required of Solar Water and Pool Heating Systems Installation Contractors 1. Working Safely with Solar Hot Water and Pool Heating Systems 2. Identifying Systems and Their Components 3. Adapting a System Design 4. Conducting a Site Assessment 5. Installing Solar Collectors 6. Installing Water Heater and Storage Tanks 7. Installing Piping, Pipe Insulation and Connecting System Piping 8. Installing Mechanical/Plumbing Equipment and Other Components 9. Installing Electrical Control Systems 10. Installing Operation and Identification Tags and Labels 11. Performing a System Checkout 12. Maintaining and Troubleshooting a Solar Thermal System

PV Entry Level Certificate of Knowledge For students wanting to get into the solar field A way for to show that they have achieved basic knowledge, comprehension and application of key terms and concepts of photovoltaic system operations. Certificate demonstrates that the student has passed an industry-designed exam based on learning objectives developed by subject matter experts. End of course certificate

To date over 250 students have participated in the PV Entry Level Certificate Program over a 1 ½ years There are now 19 Provider institutions who have been approved by NABCEP to offer the Certificate

What should be done to open market? Increase training opportunities Base learning objectives on the NABCEP Task Analysis Explore NABCEP starting an Entry Level Certificate of Knowledge program for Solar Thermal Prepare Solar Thermal Occupational Profiles for educators

For training at Community Colleges 3 questions are asked 1. What are the jobs? 2. Where are the jobs? 3. What can we expect for enrollment?

First PV Road Map Solar Electric Industry Profile

PV 01 Roadmap defines the industry Primary Occupations & Industry Description Solar Cell and Module Manufacturers. Technologies includes crystalline, thin-film, and concentrator products. Photovoltaic Equipment Manufactures. Design and supply of the equipment needed to fabricate devices, assemble modules, and test products. Balance of Systems (BOS) Manufacturers and Supplies. Design, develop and fabricate equipment, electronics, and devices to monitor, control, ensure quality, store, and provide a utility interface to the electrical power produced by photovoltaic modules. System Integrators, Packagers, & Installers. Work with consumers, groups for microgrids and power parks, utilities for central-station and distributed-generation applications. Skilled labor to mount, monitor and maintain systems. Researchers & Scientists Engineers Technicians Indirect Occupations Architects Builders Skilled Laborers roofers, electrical and metal workers, machinists, transportation engineers Commodity Suppliers glass industry, electronic device manufacturers, plastics and polymer industries, equipment suppliers, wire and cable makers, and steel, aluminum, and other metal industries. Electric Power Utilities

Recap Encourage installers to get certified Inform States and Licensing Boards of NABCEP credential Increase training opportunities based on the NABCEP Task Analysis Develop and fund Entry Level Certificate of Knowledge program for Solar Thermal Prepare Solar Thermal Occupational Profiles for educators Publish Job Forecasts/Labor Market Assessments for Solar Thermal