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Another source of employment information is the US PV Industry Roadmap, which indicates almost three times as many direct jobs – about 6500 – with another 13,500 indirect in the year 2000. Since the US shipped approximately 25% of the world total in 2000, we can estimate that the worldwide photovoltaic industry provided employment for almost 350,000 in the same year.

Industry estimates indicate continued strong growth in solar energy jobs worldwide. Most of the new jobs will come in marketing and installation of solar photovoltaic and thermal systems, which means they will be located close to end market users of solar systems, thereby being highly beneficial to local economies.

The German solar industry is expected to create 4,000 new jobs in 2004 alone. By the end of 2003, around 12,000 people were employed in the solar industry in Germany. This is growth from just 1,500 in 1998. UVS, the German Industry Association anticipates 100,000 jobs will be created over the long term. This is supported by growth in industry revenue in Germany from just 80 million euros in 1998 to reach one billion euros in 2004.

A 1996 European Commission report showed that even the slowest growth rate for solar PV would result in over 150,000 European jobs globally by 2010, and a continuation of existing growth rates would result in 453,000 solar jobs. In the late 1990’s, the Austrian Federal Minister for the Environment publicly announced the results of a study that predicted 30,000-80,000 new jobs would be created in Austria alone in the photovoltaic sector by 2010. In 2001, the European Photovoltaic Industry Association predicted “solar energy is on the brink of a boom. The industry is already worth $1 billion annually. By the time the generation born today reaches adulthood in 2020, solar energy could easily provide energy to over a billion people globally and provide 2.3 million full-time jobs.”

World solar photovoltaic market installations soared to 574 Megawatts in 2003, representing growth of 34% over 2002. The star performer among the top three country markets was Germany showing 76% growth. In combination, the Japanese, German and United States markets accounted for 75% of the world market. The major driver of world market growth was the strong grid-connect sector, up 57% to account for 77% of the market. In 2003, Japan's market installed 219 Megawatts, Germany 145 Megawatts Other countries in Europe, outside Germany, recorded a very healthy 109% growth rate in 2003.

The US market has increased from just 18 Megawatts of PV installations in 1999 to 66 Megawatts by 2003. California represents about 80% of the US market and that is where most of the US jobs have been created. However, emerging States like New Jersey suggest a wide geographical spread is in the future.

Our projection of world markets leads to a cumulative installed capacity in 2010 of 1.6GWp in the USA and 9.5GWp worldwide, which compares with official targets (EPIA 2010) of 2.14GWp and 11.34GWp respectively.

The annual shipments have been used to estimate jobs in production, marketing & sales, and installation while the cumulative installed data have been used to estimate maintenance jobs.

Utilizing production ratios, which agree with the historical data and are consistent with other projections (e.g. EPIA 2001), and allowing for improvements in productivity over the period and an increased use of labor in the developing world. Indirect jobs have been simply estimated to be twice direct jobs in line with earlier estimates.

We have tried to be conservative in our estimates and, in the period to 2002, our figures for direct solar electric jobs in the USA tie more closely to the EIA data than the PV Industry Roadmap. Similarly, in 2010, our projection for direct solar electric jobs is just over 100,000 worldwide – approximately half the estimate of Greenpeace and EPIA (2001). However our conservatism does not hide the probability of real jobs growth in the industry – we have estimated close to an order of magnitude increase in direct jobs, and this is our real message – the future job prospects in the solar industry are excellent!

An understanding of the nature of the solar energy industry may help recognize the types opportunities that can become available.

At the core of the solar electric industry are the cell and module manufacturers – these are the OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) of the industry. However other key manufacturers include those making everything else needed for a solar electric system – particularly inverters and controllers, normally referred to as balance of system (BOS) components. They are supplied by a plethora of other organizations,

manufacturers of equipment, not only for production but everything needed for a manufacturing business; from fork lift trucks to paper clips
materials suppliers, including substrate (glass, plastic, steel etc.), chemicals, sealant etc. etc.
service suppliers: some OEMs have their own in-house accounting departments, while other contract it in. All use contract labor to some degree and examples include:
- production line and assembly operators
- office cleaning
- landscaping
- legal support
- accounting and any other professional support which corporate management decides to outsource

This supply chain is an integral part of the solar industry and the jobs involved are dependent on its success. These and BOS manufacturers are normally classified as “indirect” jobs, as distinct from the “direct” jobs offered by the OEMs and their agents.

OEMs market their products in a variety of ways: basically they either sell direct to end customers or through distributors – many do both. In any particular geographical area, solar distributors may be the most visible face of the industry. They may stock solar electric modules from more than one manufacturer, install and maintain systems from a few to hundreds of kilowatts and work directly with consumers – whether commercial or residential, and they may also cover other renewable energy technologies in addition to solar electric. Many are very small businesses but increasingly the best are becoming significant as the industry expands. However, even the larger companies employ relatively few people since they have no real manufacturing capacity. However they do employ engineers and generalists in the design, assembly, installation and maintenance of systems.

The solar electric manufacturers form a very mixed group. The biggest are already mid-sized companies, with revenues in the hundreds of millions of dollars, employing several hundred people, sometimes in many different countries. Others may have much lower sales but be more active in research and development. You can get an idea of the range of companies on the Solarbuzz website (http://www.solarbuzz.com/Cellmanufacturers.htm).

The solar electric supply chain can therefore be summarized quite simply as shown below:

Distributors and Integrators may also employ service, material and equipment suppliers, though on a much smaller scale than the OEMs and BOS manufacturers. For those of you wishing to make a career in the solar electric industry, the important thing to remember is that there are jobs in every sector leading up to the End Users, although their nature earning capacity may differ markedly.

Let’s look at the cell and Module Manufacturers to get some idea of the number and types of jobs available. The figure below is based on a hypothetical company manufacturing and selling about 20MW of product. The total number of employees is 100, of whom 60% are in manufacturing. As calibration, consider the recently opened Sharp 20MW production plant in Memphis directly employs 67 people. Of the remainder, 10% are in technology, essential to new product development in such an industry, and the rest almost evenly divided between corporate management and sales. The proportion shown in management may seem high – indeed for many companies it probably is. However, in this example we have included Human Resources, Information Technology, Accounting and Finance, Marketing, Planning and Logistics in addition to the CEO. If we accept this distribution as reasonable we can then examine what kind of employment opportunities may be on offer.

Let’s start from the top – the CEO of many solar electric companies have been technical entrepreneurs with extensive management experience, a lifetime’s technical knowledge and a vision of the products they wanted to make. In a fledgling high technology industry, this is to be expected. However, as the successful companies grow, the industry matures and demands on CEOs change, not least because of the expectations of the market and anxious shareholders. Replacements for the original CEO, whose real forte may have been technical innovation, are increasingly likely to be individuals whose forte is leadership and business innovation. Obviously, such posts are relatively few and only become available on an occasional basis. Moreover, even when a company is looking for a new CEO it may not advertise the fact and may employ recruitment services to identify suitable candidates. If it is the kind of opportunity you want to pursue, you have two choices: either start your own company or consistently build your profile and reputation by excelling in each of your appointments, develop your management and leadership qualities in a variety of positions and make no secret of your intent.

Marketing is something sometimes done by the CEO, but in anything but a very small company, it is usually someone else ‘s responsibility. Sometimes it is combined with Sales although this does not always make sense. For example, if a company becomes international, it is likely to make sense to have Sales organizations on a regional basis while Marketing may stay a Head Office function. This could be because the function of Marketing is not just to promote its products but also to raise the profile of the company, when it fits with company strategy, and this must be accomplished in a consistent manner worldwide. The Marketer will have had previous experience, perhaps in Sales in the industry or even in Marketing in another industry and will have convinced his employer that he has an understanding of the company strategy, the image it wants to present for itself and its products and the skills to develop and implement a plan which achieves this. The original qualifications of the Marketer are often less relevant than his experience and he may be a graduate from any discipline.

Planning is a strategic activity in which the CEO normally plays a major part. However, in any sizeable company, he normally has at least one professional whom he trusts to help him and take responsibility for the maintenance of the plan. The individual is likely to have previous industry experience and is increasingly likely to hold some type of business qualification.

Human Resources, Accounting and Finance, and Information Technology have at least two things in common – they are usually filled with professionals with special qualifications and, unlike the roles discussed above, they may be outsourced. However, every company in the industry has need of these services whether outsourced or not and opportunities will regularly present themselves to suitably qualified candidates.

Logistics has been broken out here simply to highlight it, although it may in practice be included in the manufacturing organization. Those responsible for it must have the skills to procure everything required and make sure everything is where it needs to be when it is required. In order to do it well, those responsible must have the qualities required to develop and maintain good relationships with suppliers, negotiate sound contract terms and have very good organizational skills. It is a specialist role, which can be key in optimizing the efficiency of the company’s operations, and is normally not outsourced.

In very large companies, Technology, or Research and Development, can become regarded as a corporate overhead to be minimized. However, in the infancy of high technology industries, it is critical in giving companies products with which they can differentiate themselves – whether in cost, reliability, performance or durability – ideally all four! All cell and module manufacturers have in-house technology organizations staffed with individuals possessing a variety of skill sets and qualifications. These organizations are likely to offer opportunities for technologists of almost every description, including materials scientists, engineers of many descriptions, chemists and physicists. The Technology organization is likely to be led by someone who has grown “through the ranks”, either in the same company or in other companies or even other industries, and possesses the organizational and leadership skills to make what is often a disparate group of specialists perform well together.

The Manufacturing organization is likely to be led by an engineer – probably a very skilled but pragmatic engineer, since the success of such an operation depends on minimizing downtime and overcoming the problems which are a constant part of everyday life – breakdowns, late deliveries and accidents included! Obviously, the larger the operation, the more senior and experienced the person responsible is likely to be and should a company be seeking to find a new Manufacturing manager, they are very likely to consider external recruitment unless the company is large enough to have a pool of candidates who have the demonstrated competence. Reporting to this individual will be a core of engineers responsible for the manufacturing plant. The precise nature of their expertise will depend on the type of product and manufacturing operation. There may even be an occasional physicist, especially if the process involves lasers, and chemist, for example in the Quality Control Laboratory. However their roles will be a long way from R&D and very focused on the maintenance of the manufacturing process. The actual production line is likely to be staffed with operators and/or assemblers who may be trained on the job. At least a proportion of these are likely to be contracted in to manage swings in production volume.

Sales is very different from the foregoing in at least these respects – it has an almost completely external focus, it involves daily contact with the external world – particularly customers and prospective customers, and is normally the sole source of the company’s commercial income*. It is perhaps the ultimate key to a company’s success – unless it sells products at a profit the company by definition will always be loss-making. The person leading the Sales organization may have almost any kind of academic qualifications (or none) but is likely to have demonstrated his competence in previous sales positions. This competence will include the ability to cultivate potential customers – convincing them of the company’s product offering (when the price, quality, warranty etc has probably been determined by others), satisfy existing customers by ensuring that promises are kept – products are delivered on time, installations are completed and work from the start, and problems are addressed promptly. In larger organizations, his competence will also include demonstrated ability to plan, lead and motivate a sales group. While the leader may have no technical qualifications there are likely to be some in the sales force – particularly, but not exclusively engineers, especially if the company sells into high technology industries such as Telecommunication companies. If such a relationship is to be successful and long-standing, it probably must be founded on a sound understanding at a technical level and the lead sales person is likely to be technically competent to explain the detailed attributed of his products – not just the modules but the systems they are incorporated into. Also, should the company integrate and sell systems, it will employ engineers to design and build them and installers to put them into operation. Installation may be contracted out or done by in-house staff. It is worth recognizing however that installers are needed throughout the industry, that most are trained on the job (although there is now a certification process in the USA) and it is probably one of the easiest ways to break into the solar electric industry

*Others, e.g. Technology may get some "income" in the form of grants but these seldom include any profit element.

The growth projected for renewable energy technologies such as solar and wind power is mirrored in the projections for other clean energy technologies such as fuel cells. These growing industries will demand qualified personnel who simply cannot come from within the existing industry workforces – they are simply too small. Thus the training and education of a new cadre of clean energy specialists is essential to underpin the projected growth. In addition, this cadre must cover every skill level required by the burgeoning industries – from semi-skilled to seasoned professional! Fortunately this need is being recognized across the world and programs have been, and are being initiated, to address it.

Most professionals who work in these industries now obtained their qualifications the traditional way – through regular degree and professional examinations in the sciences, engineering or one of the many business disciplines. Their clean energy industry expertise has accrued from hands – on experience in the industry. This will continue in future, but an increasing proportion of professionals – particularly in the technology areas (science and engineering) will already possess industry specific knowledge and perhaps qualifications when they qualify.
In the United States, colleges are starting to offer courses in alternative or renewable energy production and some, like the Appalachian State University, offer both batchelor’s and master’s degree programs focusing primarily on some aspect of renewable energy production. The San Juan College in New Mexico offers a two year Associates degree or one year certificate in renewable energy technologies.
However, it is Australia which appears to be in the forefront, particularly of photovoltaic education: The Technical and Further Education sector (TAFE) offers courses in every state which lead to a nationally recognized Certificate IV in renewable energy systems, energy efficient building design and micro-hydro systems. Western Power, which owns all the electricity grids in Western Australia, found it impossible to find appropriately trained engineers for its rapidly expanding use of renewable energy technologies such as wind and solar electric power and took the initiative to fund the establishment of a new undergraduate engineering program at Murdoch University specifically addressing their need. In addition, the Australian Cooperative Centre for Renewable Energy offers not only a BS Applied Science in Energy Studies, but an MS in Renewable Energy Technology. The University of New South Wales offers BE, PhD and ME in photovoltaic engineering while the University of Melbourne offers an MS in Energy and Development.
Practical
While most of the highly paid jobs in these industries are, and probably will continue to be filled by college graduates it must be understood that the businesses also require less highly skilled people for jobs such as assembly line workers, laboratory assistants, clerical assistants, cleaners, and a whole lot more! This short list of jobs can be found in the manufacturing part of many renewable energy companies. In addition, those companies installing systems for the end user also need installers. In the solar energy industry, there is need for installers is already great and is increasing so quickly that such people are in great demand.

No specific qualifications are likely to be needed for many of the jobs in this category, since training is often provided by the employer. However, bear in mind that qualifications do help differentiate applicants and previous experience in similar jobs is often taken into account.

In certain jobs however, it does help to be qualified. The need for qualified solar electric system installers has been recognized in the USA through the establishment of a national certification program overseen by the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners (NABCEP). The first qualifying exams were held in October 2003! However, since the process has just been started, very few installers actually possess the qualification but it is certain to become increasingly important in the future. Entry into scheme is relatively easy and appropriate training course are widespread.

1. Be at least 18 years of age
2. Meet prerequisites of related experience and/or education
3. Complete an application form documenting requirements
4. Sign a code of ethics
5. Pay a reasonable application/exam fee
6. Pass a written exam

The certification time period will be three years. To maintain certification, certificants will complete a continuing education requirement and a specified number of documented installations every three years. See maintenance requirement below.
To qualify to sit for the NABCEP PV Installer Certification examination, the candidate must demonstrate that he/she meets at least one of the following minimum entry requirement tracks:

a) Four years of experience installing PV or,
b) Two years of experience installing PV systems in addition to completion of a board-recognized training program or,
c) Be an existing licensed contractor in good standing in solar or electrical-construction related areas with one year of experience installing PV systems or,
d) Four years of electrical-construction related experience working for a licensed contractor, including one year of experience installing PV systems or,
e) Three years experience in a U.S. Dept. of Labor approved electrical-construction trade apprentice program, including one year of experience installing PV systems or,
f) Two-year electrical-construction related, or electrical engineering technology, or renewable energy technology/technician degree from an educational institution plus one year of experience installing PV systems or,
g) Four-year construction related or engineering degree from an educational institution, including one year experience installing PV systems.

For more information visit the NABCEP website or contact them directly: