COSEIA Working Towards Licensing PV Installers [Video]

I got to sit down and interview Lynn Hirshman, the Executive Director of COSEIA. This is the first part of the interview I had with Lynn.

SolarDave: What is COSEIA’s  (Colorado Solar Energy Industries Association) mission?

Lynn Hirshman: We are a trade association, so we have a mission statement on our web site, but essentially it is to promote the use of solar energy both PV (photovoltaic) and solar thermal, to promote energy efficiency and to promote the advancement of the industry across the state (Colorado) and to that end we are doing a lot of things including trying to get a license fro PV installers, and we have an application in to the Department of Regulatory Agencies right now that is in the process.

SolarDave: License similar to a electrician’s license? Not a certification but a license?

Lynn Hirshman: Yes. We have certification now, but we see with the enormous growth in the industry and we don’t see that growth stopping in the next few years. We want to make sure that PV installers in particular are really at the top of their skills. Right now is someone is COSEIA certified we can tell perspective customers, these guys have had a certain amount of experience – certain amount of training – passed a fairly stringent exam. We want to extend that and make it state wide (Colorado). Make is possible for customers to know that this body of people who really know what they are doing. We are hoping that DORA (Department of Regulatory Agencies) is going to recommend that we move toward licensing we don’t know what they are going to say yet.

SolarDave: To obtain a license – how would that be done if that passes?

Lynn Hirshman: There would be specific training involved and we are working with some community colleges right now to try and develop that. Weather or not we end up with a license we need to have standardized training. Right now it is sort of hit or miss.

There would be specific training toward passing a specific exam – pretty much like becoming a licensed electrician. You have to take X number of hours of training, pass an exam and then you get your license.