energy technology - Center of Excellence for Clean Energy

THE CENTER OF EXCELLENCE
CENTRALIA COLLEGE
WINTER 2009
ENERGY TECHNOLOGY
Vol. 3 No 1
CALENDAR
FWEE Recruitment
Workshop
March 3, 2009
New Market Skills Center
Tumwater WA
Western Boiler
Manufacturers
March 10-12
Davenport Hotel
Spokane WA
NW Hydro Assn.
Conference
March 17-19
Portland Marriot Hotel
Portland OR
Washington Innovation
Summit
April 9
Meydenbauer Center
Bellevue WA
Earth Day
April 22
Various times and places
COE Best Practices
Summit
June 25-26
Satsop Development Park
Elma WA
For details on these and
other energy-related events
that will be announced later,
please call Cindy Mann at
the Center of Excellence
for Energy Technology,
(360) 736-9391, ext. 280.
Commentary
by Barbara
Hins-Turner
For most of a century we’ve been told that nothing
could come between the American consumer and
his or her automobile. Conventional wisdom said
the American public would give up every other fascination to keep its oversized, gas-guzzling SUV or
pickup or luxury motorhome at the ready.
The American-made car was, Detroit insisted, the
vibrant symbol of sex and power; the dream of young
boys and the pride of old men. Nothing would make
America forsake the two tons of plastic and iron in
the driveway. Then gasoline hit $4.29 a gallon.
Conventional wisdom, we learned, was wrong!
In the last year America has voluntarily cut the
use of petroleum-fueled family cars beyond anyone’s
wildest guess. Our habits changed and the U.S. public reduced their driving by more than a billion miles
a month!
The sale of European and Asian-based economy
cars has skyrocketed while the “ Big Three” American
auto manufacturers teeter on the edge of bankruptcy.
More telling is the prediction that America is happy with the energy-conservation arrangement. Something as simple as a change of habit is putting nearly
$40 million back into the US economy with every
10-cent drop in the pump price of gasoline. Energy
efficient cars from Toyota and Honda are outselling
America’s Big Three automakers combined.
What’s more, America’s combination of thoughtful energy conservation and a growing choice of
energy-efficient products is here to stay.
This profound change in public attitude and behavior speaks volumes about the future of the electric energy industry. People are willing to pay more for
renewable energy, will retrofit their home or business
to take advantage of new developments in systems and
appliances that consume less electricity, and are increasingly receptive to energy conservation education.
As demand, power efficiency, and generating capability increase, America is reducing its dependence
on foreign oil, natural gas, and other fossil resources.
We in the Pacific Northwest will be the first benefi-
HYDRO SPILL
Guests on an energy
industry tour of Tacoma
Power facilities watch as
the spillway gates are
opened at Mossyrock Dam.
Hydropower will continue
to produce about 70% of
regional energy needs.
ciaries of this energy revolution––and it will spread
across the continent.
New developments have recently put electric, tankless water heaters on the market. As the hardware is
refined so conversion from fossil-fueled instant hotwater to a household electric unit is economically
attractive, look for thousands of new customers enjoying an overall energy reduction of 10-30% on hot
water appliances alone.
We are fortunate to have begun training the people
who will produce, market, and distribute electrical
energy to a population that appreciates energy efficient products and consciously embraces energy conservation techniques.
Thanks to your guidance and to our partners in industry, labor, education, and government, our training programs are abreast of the changing world of
energy––and we’re flexible enough to stay there.
CENTRALIA COLLEGE
WorkforceDEVELOPMENT
Thanks to all who made the 2008 annual energy
summit the most exciting ever!! It happened because
our valued partners brought colleagues and coworkers. That happened, in turn, because the summit has
become a key place to discuss trends and ideas in
industry training programs.
The IBEW Local 77 line apprentice flag raising
demonstration was again the ceremonial signal for
the start of one of the Northwest energy industry’s
most important gatherings.
The attendance this year reached 170 participants,
our best yet. Randy Rawson, Executive Director of the
American Boiler Manufacturer’s Association, set the
professional tone of the summit in the keynote speech.
The summit theme––Workforce development–
–was evident as Dr. Alan Hardcastle, WSU Extension Energy Program, examined our research project
of the year, Workforce Challenges of Electric Sector
Employers in Washington and Oregon. Our industry
partners responded to the challenges with their best
practices succession and workforce planning models.
The green economy continues to be at the forefront our work. To that end, Rhys Roth, Climate
Solutions; Roger Garret, Puget Sound Energy; and
Andrew Munroe, Grant County PUD, outlined the
probable future of renewable energy trends at our summit. The green economy translates to new high skills,
high wage jobs and in light of an increasingly difficult
economy offers hope, renewal and the opportunity to
reduce our nation’s dependency on foreign oil.
We are pleased that the Center of Excellence for
Energy Technology is at the hub of the green economy, creating workforce collaboration for renewable
energy and “green collar jobs.” Our involvement has
been illustrated by participation in the Northwest Energy Efficiency Task Force, the UK Ocean Energy
Exchange, WSU’s Solar Summit, Climate Solutions
Climate Free Prosperity 2025 Report and Washington Senator Maria Cantwell’s Energy Roundtable
discussion: Historic Tax Package To Create Green
Collar Jobs, Stimulate Local Economy, and Accelerate Clean Energy Transition.”
These contacts have helped us begin the essential educational design for skills training development across Washington State and the Pacific
Northwest region.
Other COE highlights this fall include a special
welcome to Peninsula College as a partner in our
statewide outreach collaborative. This partnership
is a result of a request from the Washington Office
of Veterans Affairs for energy efficiency training
for returning military in the Port Angeles area. Our
first-ever development of a specialized wind energy
skill panel got underway in November at PSE’s Wild
Horse Wind Farm in Ellensburg with Columbia Basin
College and Wenatchee Valley College. Energy
Northwest, Puget Sound Energy, Portland General
Electric and Everpower are supporting the project.
The foundation of this work continues to be the
research component conducted by WSU Extension
Energy Program partners. Watch for our next great
joint publication in 2009, “Renewable Energy Trends
in the Pacific Northwest.”
It is truly an exciting time in the energy industry
as we drive workforce development for the future of
renewable energy across our great nation.
Mossyrock Dam
“Tacoma Power’s Mossyrock
facility uses a large spillway
system to adjust reservoir
levels to accommodate
upriver flooding or a rapid
Cascade snowmelt.”
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COE OUTREACH
TURBINE CREW
A maintenance crew works
on a wind turbine generator
at PSE’s Wild Horse Wind
Farm near Ellensburg. The
photo gives a sense of scale
to the turbine structures.
Skill Standards
By Pat McCarty
Most energy jobs have
changed a lot over the
last 20 years, due in part to
the many technological advances that have occurred;
the changes to the power
plant electrician’s job have
been nothing short of dramatic.
For starters, power plant
electrician’s duties were
much less complex than
they are today. In the
past, those tasks included installing the occasional
conduit or cable tray run, changing light bulbs, doing annual maintenance on generators, and troubleshooting. Troubleshooting was much easier back
then because most all relays, governors and excitation systems were electrical/mechanical or mostly
mechanical. These were fairly straightforward
systems, and as a result, electrical problems were
easier to identify.
That all changed with the introduction of electronics and computers, which rendered the design
of electrical systems and equipment far more complex. New systems and equipment such as solidstate protection relays, smart relays, programmable
logic controllers, computerized plant control systems, electronic governors and static excitation
systems are more advanced. Today these systems
are increasingly integrated and used in combination with each other.
The introduction of new and integrated systems
and equipment also called for the development
of higher-level skills among electricians. Electricians were now required to use computers as an
everyday tool for installation and troubleshooting.
Education and training programs were modified to
teach to the new systems, including the technology
The Center of Excellence and its
partners from labor, industry, and
education have embarked on a
cooperative outreach program to
serve the most engaged and promising energy students. To provide
the best energy training possible,
the COE is building innovative models to accommodate those students
in every part of the northwest.
The COE recently established
classroom ITV links with students
at Peninsula College in Port
Angeles, Grays Harbor College,
and Wenatchee College to offer
students a variety of energy-specific
classes at each.
The ITV system gives those
students an opportunity to gain the
same level of training as students
learning face-to-face in live classrooms at Centralia College, but
without the expense or disruption
of moving to the southwest Washington campus. Standard academic
classes are furnished by the student’s parent college.
Meanwhile, Rulon Crawford’s
innovative basic curriculum has
been adapted to another primary
student market, and early results
are very promising.
High school students engaged
in vocational training will be able
to enjoy a seamless transfer into
college-level energy technology
courses by taking a prescribed
number of math and appropriate
science classes in high school.
Thus far the program is underway
only at New Market Skills Center
in Tumwater, but will expand.
Talks are currently underway with
TechPrep, a consortium of a dozen
school districts that offer specific
vocational classes for students. With
adequate high school-level basics,
that student pool may be an especially welcome population of future
energy workers.
tools and skills they required. Foundational skills
such as problem solving, critical thinking and basic
communications also became more critical.
As electrician work has become more complex,
it is increasingly difficult to recruit qualified personnel. Filling vacancies by recruiting from other
industry sectors provided an effective supplement
to fill vacancies, but presented another set of challenges. For example, while commercial and residential electricians often install a lot of the equipment used in the power industry, very few ever
troubleshoot these systems.
Industry declines in pulp and paper, aluminum
and other manufacturing sectors has further made
it difficult to recruit qualified people from sectors
where electricians are familiar with the equipment
used in the power industry. Those industries employ electricians who are trained on similar equipment, and they can readily make the transition into
power generation careers.
With those industries shrinking or leaving the
region, however, it has become harder to attract
qualified electricians.
Labor shortages and new skill requirements
have led many employers, colleges and other training providers to develop skill standards for power
generation occupations, both to define what skills
are required now, and to provide training benchmarks for the future.
The primary benefit of having power plant electrician skills standards in place is that it gives us an
assurance that future applicants will have the foundational knowledge, skills and abilities needed to
succeed in the industry. The standards provide a
practical, detailed roadmap for colleges and other
training programs to follow as they establish or modify relevant electrician programs.
The standards also provide a specific tool for communicating with students, incumbent
workers and experienced electricians from other industry sectors what will be expected of
them in the electric power industry.
Finally, the skill standards also provide power generation employers with a systematic
way to identify the core work of our employees, and a measure for assessing how new
technologies and a changing workplace will alter the skill requirements for power plant
electricians in the future.
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PGE Plant and Stack
Besides alternative generation systems, many
producers also use alternative fuels where
economical. This PGE plant uses a
state-of-the-art stack system to reduce airborne
particles to an absolute minimum.
Veterans
Group
INITIATIVE
One of the best illustrations of our outreach projects currently underway is the result of
an expanded partnership with Peninsula College, The COE partners, and the Washington
Department of Veteran’s Affairs. The Veteran’s Conservation Corps at Peninsula College
learned of the potential for an ITV class in Energy Tech and began the process.
Mark Fischer, program manager of the Veteran’s Conservation Corps in the state
veteran’s agency took the ball and ran with it. After meeting with the COE and looking
at the adaptation of Rulon Crawford’s teaching model to ITV, Fischer returned to the
Peninsula vet’s group and the program got underway.
“The Veteran’s Conservation Corps is invested in this initiative because for us,
“conservation” means more than just the environment,” Fischer explained. “It is
about conservation of all our resources. Environment means the whole picture, not
just part of it.”
Fischer explained that the Peninsula veteran’s group was involved in this training
because it made sense to those looking for a connection with something larger than
themselves. Knowing the vets in this group liked working outside rather than at a
desk, Fischer recognized the Energy Tech program with the COE as the right kind of
opportunity. The students now taking the program at Peninsula voiced strong support
and enthusiasm for the potential it offered them.
“We’re pleased to partner with the Centralia College Center of Excellence,” he said.
“We think the energy field offers the kind of opportunity our students want.”
Many industry observers
suggest that nuclear
energy production
facilities will be brought
back on line––and
new ones built––to
lessen North America’s
dependence on imported
fossil fuels.
THE
NEW MARKET
Energy Project
By Randy Bachtell
The Alternative Energy Technology Program
is under way at New Market Skills Center.
The decision was made in late August to go
ahead with a stand-alone program rather than
an integral part of the Advanced Automotive
program as originally intended.
The plan has proven to be a good one and
at this point students are involved in several
demonstration projects that will hopefully
be in full operation by late February or early
March. New Market Skill Center will have a
fully functional model of a power production,
transmission and distribution system incorporating conventional, solar and wind energy
sources. We will also have a full-scale mobile
solar PV battery recharge system typically
found in a small off-grid residential system.
Another project the students are excited
about is a battery powered Electrathon racecar that they hope to campaign in the spring.
Student interest is high and we hope to continue to offer a program that attracts quality
students while providing interesting, relevant
career choices.
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CENTRALIA COLLEGE
Rulon Crawford PROFILE
FWEE Workshop
Recruiting Strategy Workshop
Electric utilities in the Northwest are facing a crisis; over
half of utility workers here are
45 years or older. As retirements increase, the bubble of
need for highly skilled workers has become epidemic.
That means increased
recruiting and training costs,
increased competition for
workers, new staffing challenges, and potential gaps in
service staffing.
A new workshop for HR
specialists, utility educators,
outreach specialists, coordinators of apprentice and preapprentice programs, education, union representatives,
and hydropower leadership is
coming in March.
The workshop focuses on
ways to rebuild the pipeline
of high school students into
energy training avenues.
Hydropower—up to 70% of
the Northwest’s electricity—is
the resource focal point.
The workshop, sponsored
by the Foundation for Water
and Energy Education and
the Centralia College Center
of Excellence, is set for
March 3, 2009, from 8:30
a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at New Market Skills Center in Tumwater.
Registration is needed by
Feb. 17—call the Center of
Excellence as soon as possible for complete information
and your reservation for this
career summit. Call COE at
(360) 736-9391, ext. 280: or
call FWEE at (509) 535-7084.
Rulon Crawford
came to the Centralia
College Center of
Excellence two years
ago. Now the assistant
professor of Energy
Technology, Crawford
brought along his
own, handmade energy learning system
that serves the needs
of new power plant
and energy workers in
all phases of the industry.
After completing high school in Moses Lake,
Crawford enrolled at Big Bend Community College to take accounting. “I learned pretty quickly
that I didn’t want to be an accountant,” he laughed.
‘I went out and got a job while taking some business classes in the evenings.” Crawford returned
to college, this time at Eastern Oregon University,
and earned a degree in Business Administration.
“I went to work for Portland General Electric,”
he recounted, “and was asked to develop a basic
electricity training course specifically for nonengineers. It was in response to a plan by PGE to
give marketing people, accountants, and even legal
staff a practical knowledge of the energy industry.
That way,” Crawford continued, “the people who
fielded customer complaints and questions could
deal with problems from the perspective of actual
knowledge.” His innovative training program was
successful beyond almost anyone’s expectations!
“I spent the next twenty years or more,” Crawford
explained, “teaching electricity and energy to nonelectrical people up and down the coast at dozens of
major energy producers.” All that time he continued
to improve and refine his brainchild to better serve a
broader range of students.
“My challenge was to make the course fun and
interesting to non-engineering employees,” he admitted. “It wasn’t long before I realized it was a
perfect entry-level approach for technical students
entering the energy production field.”
Center of Excellence director Barbara Hins-Turner knew of Crawford’s success and contacted him to
arrange a possible move to Centralia College.
Crawford’s curriculum design now serves as a
basis for incoming Energy students at the Center of
Excellence, and he’s modifying his system to serve
high school classes aimed at steering younger students into the Energy Technology career field.
EconomicDEVELOPMENT FOCUS
The Center of Excellence for Energy Technology
at Centralia College has become the premier training program for power production workers in the
northwest. Now, according to COE director Barbara Hins-Turner, the power program is adding
an economic development component. “We want
the next generation of energy professionals to understand their role in regional economic development,” she added.
To foster the new focus on energy sector decision-makers, the Center of Excellence has hired
Jim Lowery, a long-time expert in rural economic development.
“The COE has done an excellent job of building partnerships with labor, government, education, and some of the energy leaders,” Lowery
said. “Now, we want to convince the very top
level of private and public energy policy makers
to get involved.
“Energy,” Lowery continued, “is the prime requirement for new industry to move away from
high-density, expensive urban areas. We believe
that leaders who play an active role in the COE
energy and conservation
program will be able to
plan new facilities in
areas that are less expensive and where economic growth is sorely
needed.”
Lowery comes to the
center through a grant as
a WIRED coordinator
(Workforce Innovation
in Regional Economic
Development) funded
Jim Lowery
by the five-county Pacific Mountain Workforce Council. Lowrey is the
former executive director of the Washington Rural
Development Council.
“Bringing mainline and alternative energy leaders
to the table will ensure they have an equal voice,”
Lowery concluded, “as we consider energy resources, efficiency, and distribution to meet the industrial
demands and domestic power growth for the next
10 or 20 years.”
5
The FOREIGN OIL CHALLENGE
by Bob Guenther
With the events that have taken place in the political arena this
cycle our country has the best chance of getting itself less dependent on foreign oil and forward to energy independence.
The Center of Excellence is ahead of the curve helping our
students train for the new and emerging job requirements and
enabling workers to do the work needed at the present time
in the energy business. The next five to seven years will require 200,000 line workers just to replace the workforce due
to retirement.
The buzz is green jobs. We believe solving environmental
challenges through training and action creates a green job.
Labor’s state apprenticeship programs allow workers to react
to the changing times and give workers the base knowledge to
adapt to new and emerging technologies. The Center of Excellence for Energy Technology is
very active in meeting the student’s needs.
With the partnerships developed with industry, labor, workforce development, economic
development and many other community colleges, Centralia College is poised to make
available shovel-ready workers meeting industry nee ds. The partnership has developed and
is developing apprenticeship programs for Power Plant Mechanic, Power Plant Electrician,
Wind Turbine Technician, and Gas Fired Turbine Mechanics, and Power Plant Operator. The
COE goal is preparing students for apprenticeship in the respective fields they would like.
In these changing times those prepared may be described as lucky, but it’s really the other
way around; I feel much of the luck you receive is through preparedness. Just because the
price of oil is 45 dollars per barrel now, we are convinced it will go back to 175 in the future.
Nine Canyon
“Modern wind turbines are
environmentally friendly
and permit surface farming,
ranching, and wildlife habitat
virtually under the structures.
Cost-effective systems are
being studied to reduce
or eliminate birds-of-prey
mortality on wind farms.”
Innovation
Summit 2009
Washington Innovation Summit
The Washington Innovation Summit––previously titled the “Washington Technology
Summit”––is presented by the Washington
Technology Center and will take place at
Meydenbauer Center in Bellevue on April 9
from 7:30 a.m. until 6:00 p.m.
Last year’s summit attracted nearly
450 CEOs, entrepreneurs, investors, and
economic development leaders from across
the state. This year’s summit, “Innovating to
Sustain Our Future,” is expected to be the
biggest yet.
Keynoters are Thomas Plimpton, vice
chairman of PACCAR Inc., and Gifford
Pinchot, president emeritus of Bainbridge
Graduate Institute.
The Summit will focus on Sustainable
Energy, Innovative Material and Manufacturing, Urban Sustainability, and Healthy
Ecosystems.
The sponsor, Washington Technology
Center, is a statewide economic development organization focused on technology
and innovation. WTC channels state, federal, and private resources to help companies
develop and commercialize new products
and technologies.
Of particular interest to energy producers
will be the initial focus on sustainable energy and the role biofuels and other emerging
energy options will play in manufacturing,
urban design, and environmental stability.
For full information and details, contact
Gayle Duncan, Executive Options, (425)
802-7034.
CENTRALIA COLLEGE
CENTER OF EXCELLENCE
600 Centralia College Blvd
Centralia, WA 98531
(360) 736-9391, ext. 280
From Olympia, 753-3433
www.centralia.edu/coe/
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