Load Modeling Tool Helps Users Decide How to Best Use Solar, Storage & Controls To make the most effective use of solar, it’s critical to know when and how a customer is using power–and see if there’s a match between load and solar availability. While this seems like a simple idea, using a load… Continue reading “Load Modeling Tool Helps Users Decide How to Best Use Solar, Storage & Controls”
The Quiet Revolution: Solar-Plus-Storage Gains Ground In some parts of the country, the costs of solar-plus-storage are beating grid prices, which is good news for the solar industry and the environment. For example, in Nevada, regulators in 2019 approved three solar-plus-storage power purchase agreements (PPA) for… Continue reading “The Quiet Revolution: Solar-Plus-Storage Gains Ground”
How to Streamline the Design Process for Large-Scale Solar Projects When designing a large-scale solar project, it’s critical to tackle classic hang-ups as early as possible to avoid slowing a project and encountering cost overruns, says Ryan Mayfield, instructor, along with Randy Batchelor, of HeatSpring’s Megawatt Design course. Designers need… Continue reading “How to Streamline the Design Process for Large-Scale Solar Projects”
The Benefits of Standardized Solar Contracts Students in HeatSpring’s newly updated Solar Executive MBA Training Course learn about how to take advantage of a standardized solar contract, one of the course’s important new features. “If you use your own agreement, you need to find an investor… Continue reading “The Benefits of Standardized Solar Contracts”
Transitioning to the Solar Business from Other Industries to Find Rewarding Work The two most active and attentive students in a recent Solar Executive MBA Training course came not from the solar industry but from the Texas oil industry, says Keith Cronin, HeatSpring’s co-instructor of the course. “Both had extensive backgrounds and… Continue reading “Transitioning to the Solar Business from Other Industries to Find Rewarding Work”
Tips From a Pro for Taking the NABCEP PV Installation Professional Exam If you’re a solar industry member interested in taking the NABCEP PV Installation Professional Certification exam, it’s a good idea to be familiar with the work of instructor Sean White–and to check out his tips about studying for exams. White,… Continue reading “Tips From a Pro for Taking the NABCEP PV Installation Professional Exam”
Using Drones for Gathering and Crunching Data in Solar, Other Industries Drones–unmanned aircraft–can be useful tools for PV engineers and those in other industries, especially for large-scale projects that would require engineers to work at heights or cover a large field to gather data. That’s the word from Keven Gambold, who… Continue reading “Using Drones for Gathering and Crunching Data in Solar, Other Industries”
Now Open: Live Online Proctoring for all NABCEP Board Certification Exams NABCEP has just announced that all candidates may now schedule to take all NABCEP PV Board Certification and PV Associate credentialing exams through live online proctoring (LOP). You may now schedule to take an exam from your own home! The… Continue reading “Now Open: Live Online Proctoring for all NABCEP Board Certification Exams”
HeatSpring Gets High Marks for Students Taking the NABCEP Associate Exam Over the past 12 months, 98% of the HeatSpring students who have taken the NABCEP PV Associate exam have passed it. HeatSpring instructor Sean White teaches the students how to prepare for the exam with his course, Solar PV Installer… Continue reading “HeatSpring Gets High Marks for Students Taking the NABCEP Associate Exam”
Jokes, Music and Memory Tricks Help Keep Students Engaged in NABCEP Course Sean White brings original guitar music, his own jokes, quick responses to questions and tried-and-true memorization tricks to HeatSpring’s 40-hour NABCEP Advanced PV Certification Training and CEUs course. Funny Professors Role Models for White He learned some of his teaching… Continue reading “Jokes, Music and Memory Tricks Help Keep Students Engaged in NABCEP Course”
New Free Course: Why Solar Plus Storage? Why is everyone talking about solar-plus-storage as a business opportunity? Expert instructors Chris LaForge and Chris Brown discuss the importance of solar-plus-storage, why it makes sense as a business case and why it is needed NOW. In our new free… Continue reading “New Free Course: Why Solar Plus Storage?”
New Free Course: Drones, 3D Mapping and LiDAR in Solar We’re really excited to announce our partnership with Scanifly software. They’ve released a new free course that helps solar companies understand how drones can be used to improve operations and lower the cost of delivering solar. The 76-minute lecture talks… Continue reading “New Free Course: Drones, 3D Mapping and LiDAR in Solar”
Solar O&M: How Long Your System Lasts Will Depend Upon These 3 Things “Solar is maintenance free”. “Solar panels last for over 20-years”. “The inverter warranty will take care of everything”. “Don’t worry”. You might have heard these things before. You might have believed some of them and maybe for a period of… Continue reading “Solar O&M: How Long Your System Lasts Will Depend Upon These 3 Things”
Free Weekly Solar Business Discussion Group with Keith Cronin We are excited to announce a valuable new offering with solar business expert Keith Cronin available for free every week. Keith is now hosting a live call every Tuesday @ 10 am PST. Participants discuss current events, solar business tips… Continue reading “Free Weekly Solar Business Discussion Group with Keith Cronin”
Time to Get Back to Work Your world changed overnight it seems. How you live has been altered and this is very disruptive. You are unsure of what is coming and where to turn for advice. One thing is certain. This is a wakeup call to the… Continue reading “Time to Get Back to Work”
Help Choose the Solar District Cup 2020 Industry Choice Winner We are excited to invite all HeatSpring students, instructors, and members of our community to participate in the selection of the Industry Choice winner of the U.S. Department of Energy Solar District Cup 2020 Competition Event on Monday April 27th from… Continue reading “Help Choose the Solar District Cup 2020 Industry Choice Winner”
Will 2020 Be a Year You Want to Remember or Forget Look around you. What do you see? Despair? Hope? This experience you are facing is going to move you in one direction or another. In the short term, you are going to be concerned. Just like the rest of us.… Continue reading “Will 2020 Be a Year You Want to Remember or Forget”
Your Second Half of 2020 When we were kids and we were learning how to play a game or a sport, we didn’t know what to do. We sometimes asked for a do-over. Most of us would feel the same way about 2020 up to… Continue reading “Your Second Half of 2020”
NABCEP to Offer Online Certification Exams Update 6/16/2020: Live Online Proctoring is now available for all NABCEP Board Certification and Associate credentialing exams. Due to concerns about the COVID-19 emergency, NABCEP has decided to offer all Board Certification and Associate level exams through live online proctoring (LOP).… Continue reading “NABCEP to Offer Online Certification Exams”
Solar Legend Lends Expertise to HeatSpring Courses with Sean White Solar legend Bill Brooks has partnered with HeatSpring instructor Sean White to prepare new materials for some of White’s courses that train students to take NABCEP exams. Brooks, who calls himself an ambassador for solar technology, is an engineer with… Continue reading “Solar Legend Lends Expertise to HeatSpring Courses with Sean White”