EnergyCareerPath.com

Over the past few months, Energy Career Path has been working on the design and build of an energy lab for a client here in Sacramento.  The lab will come equipped with several stations that will give the organization the ability to teach energy surveys, lighting retrofit, and electrical fundamentals. For reflection, here is what the training room looked like prior to the start of the project: Here is the team showcasing elements of the progress of the project: Safety was considered a priority in the design of the training stations.  Here, we have installed GFCI's dedicated to each station. Here is the team with the training stations Workbenches with stools that can raise for use and lower for stowaway.

ECP had it's first run at providing hands-on training with FutureBuild in Pittsburg, California with an emphasis on social distancing.  FutureBuild did a great job preparing the training site to accommodate social distancing.  This included thermometer checks (both staff and students) prior to entry into the training site, distance-compliant seating with benches as seen in the photo.  Here are some of the takeaways for organizations that are interested in opening up their training during the pandemic: 1.  Training needs to start with awareness.  Odds are that there will be a few students that have not paid attention to how the pandemic has developed since the first case.   Training should start off with the host site giving their students a class on COVID-19 and the proper way to social distance. 2.  Establishing a shared commitment to keeping the class safe.  In some instances, there are students that do not believe that the pandemic ...

Training Future Build Cohort #13 One of the things that I love the most about Future Build is the pure heart from the organization that goes directly into guiding their students.  Thinking back to my first meeting with Future Build back in 2015, I remember how amazed I was with the energy that the class had.  The training these students go through while in Future Build runs several months at a time, teaching various construction and energy trade skills, so they've had an opportunity to bond together.  Each of the students join the program with their own story, but by the time they enter the classroom to learn from me, I am fortunate to be in front of students that had persevered through the long hours and days prior to my training. The serious students.  The committed to succeed.  Those with a positive attitude. It's these qualities that give instructors their success stories.  An organization has to have the proven capabilities (not just the means...

"beauty" adaptation of solar project in P.R. Time and time again, disaster after disaster, renewable energy has been a lifesaver.  The following articles talk about how a school in Puerto Rico has moved away from non-reliable utilities (which have been down since Hurricane Maria): Puerto Rico School Ditches Grid for Solar-plus-Storage (REW) The school's system is one of many newly created microgrids installed by sonnen Inc . One comment that caught my attention was: “The solar microgrid has had a very important impact on the community,” the school’s director, Alberto Melendez Castillo, said in an interview. “It has been very moving to see the students drinking cold water, eating fresh food and being able to work on computers powered by renewable energy.” This connects with me because it brings me back to my days of installation with GRID Alternatives .  Working with GRID, I knew immediately knew how impactful solar can be for a community in need.  It was ...

Occurring more frequently, the idea of blended industries seems to be the way to go.   Another article showed up in my feeds that described floating solar , this time using thin-film applications.   Still new innovation for the solar industry, I'm finding this type of application more interesting by the minute simple because the idea proves that solar will find its way into multiple industries, thereby creating more opportunities than just with a panel on the roof.   In this case, all things marine will find its way to the floating farms.   Like highways, EV's and electric charging stations, it paints a nice picture to think that the same thing can happen with electric-powered boats, stopping at the floating charge stations along the coast, eliminating the need to for the insane amount of fuel. I gloss over the idea of a solar scuba academy, but this seems like a great opportunity for both solar and scuba industries to marry.   As the floating solar farms beco...

My Solar Analysis of MIST Some of you may recall the coinage BRIC, which stood for Brazil, Russia, India and China. This term was created by famous economist Jim O'Neill. Jim's latest grouping is MIST , which stands for Mexico , Indonesia , South Korea , and Turkey . My goal in this article is to overlay the solar potential with the growth potential of the MIST countries. Quick overview of the MIST group: Mexico GDP: $1.6 trillion GDP Growth Rate: 5.4% Indonesia GDP: $1.03 trillion GDP Growth Rate: 6.1% South Korea GDP: $1.46 trillion GDP Growth Rate: 6.2% Turkey GDP: $960.5 billion GDP Growth Rate: 8.9% Compared to the California. GDP: $1.7 trillion GDP Growth Rate: 2.8% ( Q2 ) Alright now that we got that out of the way, let's talk solar! There's not much conversation (if any) about relating the solar industry to the MIST group. This is why I find it very interesting as it presents a great opportunity to dive in and see what kind of potenti...

Sacramento Work and American River College are offering an orientation for those interested in learning more about Solar Technology. American River College’s Solar Energy Technology Training Attend the next Orientation At Hillsdale Career Center Date: 08/29/2012 & 8/31/2012 Time: 9am —11am Location: 5655 Hillsdale Blvd, Sacramento CA, 95842 Solar Flyer 8.20.2012 B

For those of you going into solar design, one of the must-have's in your solar arsenal is a strong familiarization with the local authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) and their specific codes.  All jurisdictions will follow their perspective state's codes, but often times will add adjustments that best support their territory.  For example, a forest county may have stricter fire code requirements than a jurisdiction out in the middle of the desert, whereas the latter may have a tighter reign on heat tolerance specs. Fire Codes "Offsets, offsets, offsets" - Yes, you'll hear it all the time when determining the location of your array. Here is the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection Office of the State Fire Marshal's  SOLAR PHOTOVOLTAIC INSTALLATION GUIDELINE Here are few captures from the guide which focus on the 3' offsets: HOA/CCNR Codes and Applications Sample FORM - Compliance Deposit Submittal Form - 2012 Jan - ...

Career Planning Green Jobs Network IREC Solar Career Map  - A great tool to help you map out your career path. Solar Energy Careers Don't discount the opportunities that Craigslist and other local community sites offer.  Oftentimes, young start-ups will rely on those sites because they're free.  Think of it this way, money saved on advertisement is money that can go to new solar employees.  Go to the jobs section and filter for "solar". Training Solar Training Network Industry News Plain and simple... If you want to be a part of the industry, you have to keep up with the industry. Get informed, but be careful with information overload...unless you're an info junkie like me :) Clean Technica Energy.gov Greentech Media - Solar  (lots of other renewables on this site) IREC PV Magazine Renewable Energy World Solar Industry Magazine Solar Energy Industries Association: SEIA and the GUNTHER Portfolio has a whole slew of links, especially for those...

The following chart was pulled from Indeed.com using a generic search for "solar" (there are other possible entries such as PV, photovoltaics, etc).  The chart is a good representation of the shift from an incentive driven industry to one that is self-sustaining.  Peaks in this chart meet the goals of companies pushing to capture the incentives prior to expiration.  What we would like to see is leveling out, possibly represented in 2013. (01/12/18 - Indeed's graphs have been updated since.  Below is the latest.  Despite what looks like a drop off, this is a healthy representation of an industry right-sizing)

Recent articles describing some of the challenges of solar companies (i.e. bankruptcy and facility closures) made me think about the natural progression of any industry.  You may recall an earlier post about how the telecommunications industry went through its own house-cleaning and the advice to stay informed with your chosen field.  It's just a matter of time before the renewables go through the same thing, if it hasn't started already.  However, do not despair and abandon your efforts to gain a foothold in the industry.  One of your responsibilities is to stay in tune with the industry of your choice and understand the dynamics.  Why is one company going bankrupt?  Is it a true depiction of industry strength or weakness? What is influencing change? Or is just the result of the cycle that all industries go through?  I would lean toward the latter with the belief that this is a good thing. But let's step this aside from the obvious and start ap...

In a recent post from The Green Economy Post, an article titled, " Green Energy’s Big Challenge: The Daunting Task of Scaling Up " places the penetration progress of our various resources into proper perspective.  With impressive increases in acceptance of renewable energy, (see " $6-billion solar industry logs another record year ") society is nowhere near snapping the umbilical connection to fossil fuels.  One of the more prominent notions is that the United States is trailing Europe in renewable project implementation.  Make no mistake, this form of international "in-your-face" is necessary for innovation here in the states.  However, the article goes on further to stifle the belief that countries like Germany are faring better.   "Despite more than 21,000 wind turbines and 13 million square meters of solar installations, Germany still gets more than 50 percent of its electricity from burning fossil fuels, including lignite, the most polluting form...

Okay.  We're not going to really talk about rats, but imagine the outcome if you had to decide on the survival of your family over sparing an endangered animal.  I love life, I love nature.  But at some point we have to make a decision that results in a better tomorrow.  I'll come back to this. The Sacramento Business Journal recently posted the report, " California, Sacramento keeps growing 'green' jobs " which highlights the achievements of the region that includes California's Core Green Economy Job average annual growth rate of 3%. First, I want go in to Next 10's report and focus on ideas for the green-tern. Page 14 (report is no longer avail as of 2018) provides a quick reference table of Green segments and job types that can help you with your research for careers in the Green industry.   Another great find in this report is how major cities are defined by the type of energy solutions they focus on determined by employment shares.  For examp...

In an article from OregonLive.com, " SolarWorld, others in Oregon hope to benefit from new "Buy America" law ", there are indications that the DOD Appropriations Act has a provision that will give SolarWorld and other companies with U.S. factories some protection from Chinese solar companies. First, take a few steps back and recall on December 19, 2010, President Barack Obama signed in to law the 2010 Department of Defense Appropriations Act .    At the time of the signing, most of the media was hailing that Act as a successful move to support the efforts in Afghanistan and Iraq.  Due diligence will have you reading between the lines and understanding that the Act was much more. You can find the provision in H.R. 3326: Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2010 , Section 8038 which "Prohibits the use of funds: (1) by a DOD entity without compliance with the Buy American Act." Let's look at a few more details and attempt to take away key elem...

Renewable Energy Certificates (REC's) are starting to buzz more often in my ears, so I figured that it was time to begin understanding what will someday become the "alternative" market for trading. Renewable Electricity Certificates or Tradable Renewable Certificates (TRCs) is viewed as the solution that will help states meet their Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) sooner, if not more aggressively. To simplify how the process works, here's my take: 1. Grid-tied producer of electricity (solar, wind...pick your flavor) produces a) electricity and b) the REC. 2. Once the renewable-based electricity is created and sent to the grid, there is no way of distinguishing between electricity generated from other sources. ("Come on! I swear my 1-panel system is powering Grand Central Station.") 3. The solution is to give the point of generation 1 REC for every megawatt of electricity contributed to the grid. 4. This gives you the two products (electricity a...

As your strategies for landing an internship develop while in your green training, I want you to try to avoid limiting yourself with the possibilities of where you will find your opportunities.  Try to get away from relying on traditional methods such as general job boards and unlock doors through your research and volunteering.   I'll start with the latter. The key to volunteering is ensuring that  the position creates a foundation for your career.  This means that the duties of the volunteer position must provide the basic skills required for your goal.  If you don't have a goal yet, skip right down to the "research" section.  Now, although it's important, let's just put aside the rewards you reap spiritually when volunteering to help others and realize that as a job seeker, you have a mission to develop and sell yourself to your future employer.  Therefore treat your volunteer efforts as the defining point of your career.  If you treat the vo...

California solar companies have been frequently making headlines across the nation as Golden State companies kick off the New Year with announcements to expand into other states.  Mississippi has the pleasure of welcoming San Jose thin-film solar manufacturer Stion .  In an article from CNET News , Stion's gift of the state's first thin-film solar panel factory will bring 1,000 jobs to Mississippi.  In other news , W Solar Group Inc will be moving the whole house over to Dane County in Wisconsin.  Also a thin-film solar company, W Solar will be bringing approximately 620 jobs to Wisconsin.  Digging deeper in to some of the moves, it's obvious that incentives are a key element in the decision process.  Mississippi is giving Stion a $75mil loan in addition to incentives, while Wisconsin is offering W Solar an incentive that gives the company a $28mil Enterprise Zone Tax credit. First side of the coin: Of course, Californians are left to wonder why their s...

As the first Monday of the new year approaches, I wanted to start off this post by reiterating the importance of viewing your industry with the big picture in mind.  When I was doing my first solar installation, one of the rooftop ramblings involved the close and obvious relationship between solar and electricity vehicles. Now the idea of electric cars is not new.  Neither is the idea of charging stations.  However, the opportunities that present themselves are great for those that want to get in to solar, electrical technician positions, and yes, even smart grid.  As the charging stations become more popular and we see the charging stations appear as frequently as the highway rest stop, there should be a demand for technicians to service those stations. The article brought up an interesting issue on load clusters that helped broaden my own perspective on the career possibilities with charging stations.  The article states, "Load clusters occur when several ...

When I was in telecommunications, there was nothing more fascinating than being part of cutting edge technology.  Part of the enjoyment while in the industry is being able to watch your industry to not only evolve, but to also be a major influence in Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs.  But that psychological theory was never a prominent thought in my own mind as I watched the progression of technology in the wireless industry slowly choke out the workforce that supported it. While working in a switching office between late '98 and early 2000, I recall the size of the switch rooms and the many rows of equipment required to provide communications to mobile subscribers.  Jump ahead 10 years and you'll find that technology has either eliminated that switching office or reduced the equipment down to a single box.  Less equipment, less headcount. I recently sat down with a very good friend of mine who was with me in the industry from the beginning of our careers in telecommu...