Victor Valley College Photovoltaic Solar Technician Program 2014

Introduction to

Victor Valley College’s

Photovoltaic Technician Program

What is VVC’s Photovoltaic (PV) Technician Program?• CT-148/144 is a 6-unit class that teaches PV theory, electrical

skills, and the installation skills necessary to enter the Solar Industry.

• A Solar Hiring Conference is hosted by VVC on the last week of the course

• Typically, 6-8 companies attend. They are looking to hire.

• 80% of students are hired within 4 weeks of completing the class.

• There is a LOT of Math and Reading required for this class!

• Recommended (not required) course preparation:• CT-107 or 108: Technical Math

• CT-120A Residential Wiring

• CT-142 Renewable Energy

A Good Thing Happened at VVC

Construction Tech’s

Solar Technician Program

It’s about landing the first job and starting your career!

Freddy, 19 years-old, graduated from our first class in October 2013. This is a picture of him landing a job with REC (now Sun Run) at our first Hiring Conference. He has since promoted to lead installer.

Employment Opportunities

• Solar Job Census 2013 Reports:

• 142,000 U.S. solar workers in 2013

• California:

• 10,340 added in 2014!!

• 57,523 Solar Jobs in 2014

• #1 State for solar jobs

• Projected to grow 20% each year

• Solar Installation is most common solar job and is expected to grow 25-30% a year.

• Bottomline: Solar is a significant, and growing career field

• California: #1 Solar Jobs!


• Residential PV Systems: installed on homes, apartments, etc

• Non-Residential/Commercial PV Systems: installed at schools, businesses, and military installations

• Utilities: Large systems, different installation techniques due to project scale.


• U.S. Residential, Non-Residential, and Utility Installation Growth rose rapidly in recent years!

U.S. installations are growing at about 40% each year!! Q3 and Q4 of 2014 is notyet posted, but is expected to be HUGE! 2015 and 2016 are projected to see continued explosive growth of PV

California Projections

Notice the Residential market in BLUE continues its rapid growth!!

Employment Opportunities-WHY is Solar growing?• Typical Residential system: 3KW, or 3,000 Watts

• 2011:

• $6.30 per Watt, installed

• 3,000 Watts: $18,900

• 2012:


• 3,000 Watts: $15,300

• 2013:


• 3,000 Watts: $11,760

• Financing combined with lower installation costs results in payments that are less than Edison bills

• Result: It’s cheaper to go PV than it is to continue paying an electric bill

• Result: PV installations are increasing rapidly!!

CA Statistics by County

• San Bernardino county and surrounding counties are amongst the top 10 counties in the top state for PV solar installation

• California has superb sun!!

• Over 50% of solar is installed in CA!!

Us!!

Completed PV Projects

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

Apple Valley

29

115

180

348

2010 2011 2012 2013* projected

Our area is seeing the same trend: Rapid growth in Rooftop Solar!!


• Solar Job Census 2013 Reports:

• 142,000 U.S. solar workers in 2013

• California:

• 10,340 added in 2014!!

• 57,523 Solar Jobs in 2014

• #1 State for solar jobs

• Projected to grow 20% each year

• Solar Installation is most common solar job and is expected to grow 25-30% a year.

• Bottomline: Solar is a significant, and growing career field

• California: #1 Solar Jobs!


• Residential/Non-Residential PV Jobs:

• Entry-Level Installer:

• Job Duties:

• Attach panels

• Connect system components

• Wage Expectations:

• Starting: $26,000-$32,000 a year

• Experienced, supervising: $36,000-$50,000 a year



• System Designer: PV Experience with AutoCAD Training

• Job Duties:

• Calculate system needs and costs

• Select system components

• Draw installation plans and documents


• Starting: $32,000-$36,000 a year

• Experienced: $40,000-$60,000 a year

Employment Opportunities• Residential/Non-Residential PV Jobs:

• Sales:

• Job Duties:

• Contact customers, generate leads

• Discuss system options/design with customers

• Close deals, sign contracts with customers

• Ensure customer satisfaction


• Starting: $35,000 a year and higher

• Experienced: $50,000 a year and higher



• Contractor:

• Job Duties:

• Oversee the business

• Supervise and manage personnel, work with customers

• Manage inventory, equipment, costs, and pricing

• Ensure compliance with state law, tax law, and building codes

• Market the business and ensure customer satisfaction


• Varies on business size and competency

• Can be $100,000 or higher

Employment Opportunity

• Photovoltaics is a growth industry

• Southern California is the largest PV market in the U.S.

• San Bernardino County and surrounding counties have the highest number of PV installations

• PV jobs vary in:

• Wages

• Complexity

• Responsibility

• Education, experience, and initiative Increased Income

• This program will allow you to move quickly up the ladder.

A Good Thing Happened at VVC

Construction Tech’s

Solar Technician Program

It’s about landing the first job and starting your career!

Freddy, 19 years-old, graduated from our first class in October 2013. This is a picture of him landing a job with REC (now Sun Run) at our first Hiring Conference. He has since promoted to lead installer.

• Run more classes --- the industry is exploding

• Develop a Solar Electrician Class

• We’d love to hire veterans

Feedback from our Partners:

CT-148/144 PV Technician Program 160 hrs

Career Unit8 hrs

Math Unit12 hrs

PV Unit60 hrs

Electrical Unit28 hrs

Installation36 hrs

NABCEP Certification

6 hrs

Career Fair(Start your career)

Safety Unit10 hrs

What is NABCEP?

• North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners

• Voluntary national certification programs that will:

• Promote renewable energy

• Provide value to Solar Installation and Sales Professionals

• Promote worker safety and skill

• Promote consumer confidence

• Certifications include:

• PV Technical Sales

• Solar Water Heater Installer

• PV Installer

Career Unit – 8 hrs

• Student will be prepared to:

• Research job opportunities/career paths

• Pursue employment

• Interview for and land a job

• Succeed and promote quickly

Career Unit – 8 hrs

• The PLAN:

• First days of program:• Introduce career path and the program

• Focus on success in the program/career path

• Understand the PV industry

• Last weeks of program:• Write resumes

• Analyze jobs and winning attributes

• Prepare for interviews

• Utilize portfolio, resume, and interview skills to land a job opportunity at the Career Fair

Math Unit – 12 hrs

• Student will be able to:

• Perform all of the math operations required in the Photovoltaic Technician career field:• Read/utilize a tape to 1/8 of an inch

• Work with lineal units and square units

• Understand metric units

• Solve word problems and problems that use formulas

• Use order of operations properly

• Solve problems involving fractions, decimals and percentages

• Solve problems using angles, Sine, Cosine, and Tangent

• Understand latitude, longitude, magnetic and true north, and be able to solve problems involving those concepts.

• Take information from a table and correctly apply to real-life problems.

Math Unit – 12 hrs

• The PLAN:

• First days of program:• Math review

• Focus on basic math needed for early lessons

• Throughout program:• Remove math difficulties as an obstacle to

understanding how PV and electricity work

• Teach/Review math necessary for other units

• Math embedded in the PV and Electrical Units

• Prepare you for the NABCEP Certification test

Photovoltaic Unit (60 hrs)• Students will be able to describe in detail:

• Solar radiation and how Photovoltaic cells work to create electricity

• The various designs of PV systems to meet the specific needs of customers

• The function, maintenance, performance, and safety considerations of batteries within a PV system.

• Students will be able to verify the electrical design of a PV system from both a performance and safety perspective

Photovoltaic Unit (60 hrs)

• The PLAN:• Early in the program:

• Describe the PV industry

• Describe how PV works

• Describe PV systems and components

• Middle of the program:• Understand the flow of electrons throughout the system

• Be able to diagram the components, and their function, that are necessary for the various types of PV systems

• Learn to perform the calculations to verify safe system design requirements.

• Learn to perform the calculations to predict system performance and to troubleshoot installed systems.

• Prepare you to install several systems in our lab

Electrical Unit (28 hrs)

• The student will be able to describe, diagram, and solve problems associated with DC and AC electrical circuits

• Ohm’s Law

• Electrical symbology

• AC/DC circuits

• Parallel/series circuits

• The student will be able to install electrical equipment and components associated with a Residential PV system, safely and in accordance with building codes

• Load calculations

• Service panels and distributes

• Safety

Electrical Unit (28 hrs)

• The PLAN:

• Early in the program:

• Describe how DC and AC circuits work

• Understand and be able to perform the calculations needed to describe PV system components, electrically.

• Middle of the program:

• Understand the flow of electrons throughout the system

• Be able to connect PV system components, safely, and verify their proper functionality using meters.

• Be able to properly design and install various types of PV systems in accordance with industry standards and building codes.

• Get you prepared to install!

System Installation Unit (36 hrs)• Students will be able to describe the entire

life cycle of a PV project: selling, designing, installing, and commissioning

• Students will design, install, and commission PV systems in the lab:

• Utility-interactive shingle-roof mounted

• Utility-interactive tile-roof mounted

• Ground-mounted

• Stand-alone system

System Installation Unit (36 hrs)

• The PLAN:

• Latter Days of course:

• Culminating experience --- brings it all together

• Physically work in teams

• 2 instructors for 2 ½ weeks, opportunity to review material

• As real as we can make it.

• Really prepare you for the job!

• Excellent experience to prepare you for the NABCEP test

NABCEP Test Review (6 hrs)

• Students will be prepared to pass the NABCEP PV Entry-Level Certification Test

• Wide-ranging test includes:

• Safety

• PV Industry and it’s history

• Solar radiation throughout the year and at different latitudes

• Basic Electrical and PV principles

• Electrical safety and performance calculation

• System components and design

• Industry accepted installation practices

• Troubleshooting systems

• And much more

• You WILL be prepared! You WILL pass!!

Career Fair --- Last Day

• Students earning an 80% or above will be given the opportunity to interview.

• You will have:

• The knowledge that you have worked to acquire

• The experience of four different installations

• Your portfolio

• Your resume and interview preparation

• The OPPORTUNITY to start a rewarding career in Photovoltaics

• We typically have have 6-8 companies lined-up. Historically, 80% of our students have jobs within 4 weeks of course completion. 95% have jobs within 2 months.

CT-148/144 PV Technician Program 160 hrs

Career Unit8 hrs

Math Unit12 hrs

PV Unit60 hrs

Electrical Unit28 hrs

Installation36 hrs

NABCEP Certification

6 hrs

Career Fair(Start your career)

Safety Unit10 hrs

Summary

• This program is well thought out

• There are 7 areas of instruction intertwined and logically sequenced to result in your:

• Deep understanding of Photovoltaics

• Readiness to land a position and promote quickly

• Pass the Entry Level NABCEP Certification Test

• Preparation for a career in the Photovoltaic industry.

• The goal of the program: Accelerate your PV career

Review

• What is the #1 state in the U.S. for PV installation?

Review

• What is the #1 state in the U.S. for PV installation?

• Answer: California

• #1 County: Los Angeles

• #2 County: San Diego

• #4 County : Riverside

• #6 County: Kern

• #7 County: San Bernardino

Review

• What is NABCEP?

Review

• What is NABCEP?

Answer: North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners

• Voluntary national certification programs that will:

• Promote renewable energy

• Provide value to Solar Installation and Sales Professionals

• Promote worker safety and skill

• Promote consumer confidence

Review

• What are the 7 areas that we will cover in the Program?

Review

• What are the 7 areas that we will cover in the Program?

Answer:

• Careers

• Math

• Photovoltaic Energy

• Electrical Theory

• Safety

• PV Installation

• NABCEP Certification Test Preparation

Career Fair at the end of the Program!!

Review

• Why are PV systems getting increasingly popular?

Review

• Why are PV systems getting increasingly popular?

• Answer: They are getting increasingly cheaper!!

FACT: With today’s financing, most homeowners can have an installation paid for in 5-8 years with a lower monthly bill!!

Job Opportunity/Program Questions?

Victor Valley College Photovoltaic Solar Technician Program 2014

Education

Transcript of Victor Valley College Photovoltaic Solar Technician Program 2014