Solar energy, other 'green' industries a growing source of jobs
Yet the jury is out on the large-scale promise of "green jobs," said University of Arizona economist Marshall Vest, although he doesn't write off the possibility of an important new sector based on energy conservation. "I don't have any data on which to measure this still-fuzzy industry," Vest said. "We are desperately in need of a new (economic) driver. Solar energy could be that industry, if it results in manufacturing." Assembly and more Juan Gonzalez already has one of those green manufacturing jobs, laminating photovoltaic solar panels at Solon Corp.'s plant near Tucson International Airport. Gonzalez -- who was laid off from his old welding job -- said the assembly-line job at Solon doesn't use his welding skills, but "it's a nice job." He checks sheets of solar cells as they are fed out of a robotic machine that joins individual cells into strips, checking for cracks and particles, and the connected strips of cells to make sure there is a complete circuit. "Once it is laminated, you can't fix it," Gonzalez said. Though Solon's production line is mix of robots and humans, there are some things humans still do better than machines, Solon officials say. Assembly-line positions aren't the only green jobs at Solon, which is part of the German company Solon SE. Among its 81 workers, the company also employs more than a dozen engineers, as well as management and support people who would be found at any manufacturing operation. Besides the manufacturing division, Solon's Tucson operation includes a unit that designs and supervises the construction of photovoltaic power plants. Planting power And that brings up the long-term impact of the solar power plants that continue to spring up across Southern Arizona. "A one-megawatt facility over 20 years employs 35 full-time people," said Patricia Browne, Solon's product-marketing manager. That's an average over the span of the project, from building the solar panels and their components to selling, designing and building the plant and, ultimately, maintaining it. Once a solar plant is up and running, no staff is needed to run things, said Dan Alcombright, Solon's vice president and general manager. "There is routine maintenance. Typically most of the system would be monitored by cameras (for vandalism), but no ongoing operation," Alcombright said. But Solon's decision to locate its North American headquarters here means Tucson captures much of the employment benefit for solar panels built for projects elsewhere. There may be more green jobs to come, Solon executives say. "We run two shifts. We're not running at full capacity, (but) we've positioned ourselves for extra capacity," Browne said. Solon is currently using solar cells manufactured in Europe, but it's hoping to switch over to a new U.S. supplier in Georgia. Solon's parent company also owns a stake in Tucson-based Global Solar Energy Inc., a maker of thin-film photovoltaics that employs about 120 people. Installing a new career Although much of the green training and worker retraining available is geared toward solar installation, there is hardly a shortage of workers available to install solar equipment, said Katharine Kent, president of the Solar Store, 2833 N. Country Club Road. Kent said roughly half of the eight installers her company has hired in the last year or so came out of training programs. She said the company, one of Tucson oldest solar contractors, has about 20 installers. Kent said her company's most recent hire was a former tile setter who took classes to learn solar installation. But Kent said it was the worker's construction experience and attitude, as much or more than the solar training, that got him the job. "People that take these classes that think they can walk into a solar company and get a job just based on taking these classes are being misled," Kent said. She said plumbers can install solar hot-water systems and electricians can install photovoltaic (electric, or "PV") systems with a little on-the-job training. Green-jobs training Some "green" work force programs available through the Pima One- Stop Career Center: --Green Veterans Workforce Investment Program (VWIP) -- $500,000 grant award from the U.S. Department of Labor to train veterans in Southern Arizona for green jobs. --Photovoltaic systems certification -- International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers apprenticeship upgrade. --Photovoltaic-installer certification -- Fast-track training at Pima Community College for laid-off workers. --Green contextual adult-education class -- Fast-track remedial education provided by Pima Community College Adult Education to prepare lower-skilled adults to enter training for green construction and other certifications. --Sustainability for Building Trades -- Fast-track upgrade certification through Pima Community College for experienced construction workers in green building concepts. --Solar Energy Efficient Dwelling (SEED) -- On-the-job training partnership with the University of Arizona College of Architecture and the Arizona Research Institute for Solar Energy (AzRISE). --Arizona Governor's Council on Workforce Policy Capacity-Building Grant -- $325,000 grant for regional industry outreach, curriculum development and direct training of Southern Arizona workers in green-related credentials. Contact reporter Dan Sorenson at 573-4185 or dsorenson@azstarnet.com (c) 2010, McClatchy-Tribune Information Services To subscribe or visit go to: www.mcclatchy.com/ |