Electrical training center installs solar panel array

By Andrew Edwards
Staff Writer
SAN BERNARDINO -- A local electrician's school has a new set of solar panels that can be used to power the training center and teach future generations the craft of installing photovoltaic systems.

The 312 panels are installed atop steel support structures behind school, which is called the Joint Apprenticeship Training Center.

The panels are expected to generate more than 87,000 kilowatt hours of electricity per year and there is room for future apprentices to install dozens of additional panels over the course of future classes.

The training center is operated by the local chapter of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and National Electrical Contractors Association.

"Originally, the idea was to have a system out here to promote the union and show our capabilities," said instructor Steve Pitzek, who is also a contractor with a company called Creative Energy Electric, Inc.

"I think it became more of an investment in the training center itself," he continued.

The training center spent about $500,000 to install the panels, which are expected to pay for themselves in eight to 10 years.

The panels suggest that contractors and union officials alike are banking on solar power to increase its prominence in the coming years.

David Shankle, an executive chapter of the local branch of the Contractors Association remarked that many people may think of solar power as a fad technology sold by salesmen who wore tie-dyed shirts while trying to market solar-powered water heaters during the 1980s.

He expects the technology to have a brighter future in coming years. Particularly within the Inland Empire.

"You need to clean the air. We've got the sun," he said. "The politicians love it."

The Joint Apprenticeship Training Center offers both classroom and on-the-job training.

Apprentices don't have to pay for classes during the five-year program but do have to shell out for textbooks after their first year.

Prospective apprentices need to be at least 18 years old and have a high school education. Algebra classes are a must, and applicants need to pass an aptitude test.

Training director Richard Purper said the union's San Bernardino and Riverside locals have trained about 450 people how to install photovoltaic panels.

U.S. Department of Energy statistics show a significant increase in photovoltaic deliveries during the current decade. In 2000, the department recorded nearly 20,000 domestic shipments of photovoltaic panels.

That number climbed to more than 280,000 panels in 2007.

Coal is the most significant source of American electrical power. About 48 percent of electricity generated during 2008 in the United States was fueled by coal.

For more information on apprenticeship classes, call (909) 890-1703.