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Bringing green economy to life

Posted: Thursday, March 4, 2010

Energy House will serve as a demonstration facility and educational lab for Delaware Tech's new Applied Energy Education offerings and support the State's vision for energy related jobs.

Using an $800,000 federal grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce, Delaware Tech will build Energy House, a statewide learning center for alternative and renewable technologies; this facility will be a key factor in advancing the college's vision of becoming a regional center of excellence in energy education.

Developed to support Governor Jack Markell's goal to create new energy-related jobs for Delawareans, this vision was created through the efforts of a high-powered advisory committee to guide development of its new energy programs. The statewide, 32-member committee includes energy heavy-weights from business and industry, government, and research such as Dr. John Byrne, director of the University of Delaware's Center for Energy and Environmental Policy and Nobel Peace Prize laureate (with former Vice President Al Gore); Delaware's Senator Harris McDowell, a respected renewable energy advocate; Michael Bowman, chairman of the Delaware Technology Park, an incubator of high tech business innovation; Secretary Collin O'Mara, Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC); energy business owners and utility company leaders.

"Talking about the green economy is easy. Capitalizing on the opportunities it represents is not, because few if any states have really figured it out ... That's why we've got to assemble our natural resources ... including the training expertise of Delaware Tech to help Delaware lead the way." - Governor Jack Markell, 2009 State of the State Address

Educational offerings will begin in three phases in response to emerging and changing jobs in the region. Initial offerings include energy auditing and weatherization, followed by energy management and solar technology. The final phase will include off-shore wind. Specifically, these offerings include:

• Associate degrees to train energy managers and "green power" technicians;
• Certifications in areas such as renewable energy technologies, energy auditing, energy management, green building design and construction, hybrid and electric transportation, ammonia refrigeration, and industrial maintenance; and
• Workshops on a variety of energy topics for technicians, facility managers, residential energy users and specialized industries such as poultry and cold storage.

At the forefront of advancing the vision is Energy House, a learning center and demonstration facility, wired with distance learning capability and built with sustainable design and construction methods and materials. It will be a site that focuses on renewable energy and environmentally preferred products that people can use now in their homes and work, such as a living green roof, solar systems, wind generation equipment, radiant floor heating, geothermal options and efficiency in construction and appliance usage.

As a working lab showcasing residential design and as an actual home, Energy House will collect and provide data on the cost/benefit of energy generation and efficiency that students and the public can use to evaluate options and make decisions about which sustainable efforts they will choose.

Energy House will contain two classrooms and a conference room where students in applied energy certificate and degree programs will be taught. Dr. Ileana Smith, vice president and campus director for the Owens Campus states, "Energy House will enable the workforce for sustainable energy to learn the competencies needed for the installation, operation and management of these technologies in a state of the art, hands-on learning environment. We're thrilled that Delaware Tech can have such an integral role in this rapidly emerging field that is so vital to our future."