In June 2012, the Building Performance Institute (BPI) will introduce four new Home Energy Professional certifications to the nation's weatherization and home performance workforce. Offered by BPI and funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and its National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the four certifications focus on the most common job classifications in the home energy upgrade industry:
- energy auditor
- retrofit installer
- crew leader
- quality control inspector.
"The weatherization and home performance industry has long seen the need for nationally recognized, transferrable certifications for workers employed by the Weatherization Assistance Program and the broader home performance industry," said Larry Zarker, BPI CEO. "A successful candidate from one geographic region will be verified as having the same knowledge and skills as a successful candidate from the other side of the country. The development of a single, consistent set of national certifications for home performance professionals will help to remove any existing confusion in the marketplace."
The new credentials will meet the international benchmark for personnel certifications across all industries — the International Organization for Standardization's (ISO 17024) standard. Under ISO 17024, each new certification is developed and administered using international best practices, such as cross-disciplinary peer review and industry validation of technical materials. BPI will pilot written and field practical exams during the month of June. The results of the pilot test cycle will be used to set passing scores for the national exams. BPI expects to roll the exams out nationally in the fall of 2012.
The new certifications will complement and build upon BPI's existing credentials in the home performance career ladder, where increased knowledge and skills lead to advancement. They are designed to allow professionals in the home energy upgrade industry build both a stackable and lateral career lattice. These certifications will not replace or interfere with professional certifications in the building trades, such as HVACR, plumbing or remodeling, but rather are intended to support the four most common whole-house home performance job roles.
To meet the quality and rigor of ISO 17024 accredited certifications, all candidates must meet prerequisite criteria prior to taking the written or field exams. Click here for more information. Registration for the pilot certification exams is now open online and can be found here.
Scheduling of pilot exams will begin in May 2012.
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