he public-private partnerships that helped speed up wind energy technician training
are being adopted by other Pacific Northwest sustainable energy companies, most
notably by solar panel manufacturers moving into the area.
SolarWorld, a leading German manufacturer of solar panels,
recently teamed with Portland Community College in Oregon to train technicians who
will work at a fabrication plant the company is renovating in the Portland suburb
of Hillsboro. SolarWorld expects to have 350 employees working at the plant by the
end of 2008, and 2,000 when it’s 100 percent up and running by 2011 or 2012. Of
those, 1,600 will be production or maintenance technicians, says Jim Talty, a SolarWorld
HR training coordinator.
To make sure SolarWorld gets the technicians it needs,
the company is working with Portland Community College’s nearby Rock Creek campus
on a two-year solar voltaic manufacturing training program that starts this fall.
A third of the 75 spots are already taken, says Dorina Cornea, microelectronics
and solar technology department chair at PCC Rock Creek. This summer, the college
also started offering an eight-week fast-track certification course that attracted
24 students. Upon finishing the course, these students can expect to start earning
$14 to $16 an hour, Cornea says.
SolarWorld doesn’t guarantee jobs for graduates; the
chances are good, "but they have to go through the interview process like everyone
else," Talty says.
Although SolarWorld’s new facility is located in the
heart of Portland’s Silicon Forest high-tech corridor, home to Intel and other semiconductor
manufacturing companies, the company has had little trouble attracting recruits.
Renewable energy is the new kid on the block, and people
in the energy-conscious Pacific Northwest are jumping at the chance to work for
a green business, Talty says. Add a competitive compensation package that includes
up to four weeks of vacation and employee discounts on solar panels, and it’s no
wonder SolarWorld has already collected 4,000 résumés. "They’re lined up around
the block" for all kinds of positions, Talty says.
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