The US Department of Energy and the National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS) announced Better Buildings Workforce Guidelines, developed with feedback from industry experts, to help enhance and streamline commercial building workforce training and certification programs.
In 2013, DOE and NIBS announced they were working on the Workforce Guidelines to provide a national framework for certification agencies across the country to roll out consistent programs. Up until now there have been no national guidelines for energy efficiency-related professional credentials, posing a barrier to the quality, consistency and scalability of this workforce, say the agencies.
The Energy Department and NIBS worked with industry trade associations, governing credential boards and energy efficiency advocates to develop the professional certification and certificate program guidelines for four key energy-related jobs: energy manager, building energy auditor, building operations professional and building commissioning professional.
The Energy Department will recognize competency-based certification programs that successfully implement the new guidelines and achieve third-party accreditation. Currently, NIBS and the DOE are working with industry stakeholders to strengthen outreach, education and adoption of the guidelines.
