2018 is just starting, and while we all started to work on our New Year’s resolutions, Solar Energy International (SEI) will be accomplishing one of its biggest projects this year: the inauguration of SEI’s first international Solar Training Center in Costa Rica. This new training facility will accelerate and expand access to world-class solar training to Spanish speakers throughout Latin America, in line with SEI’s vision of a world powered by renewable energy.
This project is a result of a 3 year solar training relationship SEI has had with local partners CFIA (Colegio Federado de Ingenieros y Arquitectos de Costa Rica), and CIEMI (Colegio de Ingenieros Electricistas, Mecánicos e Industriales). For the past year we have been discussing the expansion of the SEI training program to include our popular technical hands-on solar installation workshops. That dream is now coming true as both roll up their sleeves to make this development happen.
We spoke with SEI’s Director of Campus and Hands-on Training, Pete Mueller, who is acting as the Technical Team Coordinator on the Costa Rica PV training facility development, to learn more about this amazing project.
As we launch our FV201L lab training in the Costa Rica PV training facility, will there be any differences between the systems installed in the Paonia and Costa Rica campus?
Pete: “True to SEI’s mission to see a world powered by renewable energy, we want to see this done the right way by ensuring the best practices are taught regardless of where we are teaching. The PV systems in Costa Rica will be held to the same rigorous standard as the Paonia, Colorado facility. This means, each system will be compliant with the US National Electric Code, allowing students to learn on the most up-to-date design and safety parameters. In addition to keeping the systems compliant with US standards, the systems themselves will be composed of leading technologies and popular products available internationally. For example, the one roof-mounted system will have a sting inverter with DC-to-DC converters or optimizers. Another system will composed of high-efficiency modules and micro-inverters. The ground-mount array will have multiple strings combined in a DC combiner box and then fed to an inverter. These three systems are great examples of the breadth of the most popular technologies available around the world in the residential and commercial scales.”
What makes the systems installed on all of our campuses unique for training?
Pete: “The systems installed on the Costa Rica campus will allow students to build and wire a photovoltaic array from the roof up. Industry professionals hired as instructors will take SEI’s leading curriculum and apply it to these hands-on systems for Latin American students to take a hands-on approach to system assembly, wiring and commissioning. Photovoltaic arrays are modular, so once you become proficient in the building blocks of an array, you can extrapolate the system to much larger sizes and capacities.
The Costa Rica campus will be constructed in compliance with OSHA regulations modeling the safest possible working environment for students to learn best practices. Equipment to teach safest procedures such as harnesses and insulated electrical gloves will be used in each class. The integrity of the solar industry relies on safe, reliable and code-compliant practices and technology. It is SEI’s commitment to bring the highest level of safety and training to Latin America.”
Are tools and safety equipment going to be available for students at our new training facility in Costa Rica?
Pete: “The campus in Costa Rica will be fully-equipped with the most appropriate tools to construct, commission and test solar electric arrays. SEI is the leading technical trainer of photovoltaics in the United States and will compromise nothing in Latin America. We want to see this industry succeed worldwide which means bringing the highest level of safety, tools and techniques wherever we teach.
While attending the Costa Rica SEI campus each student will have access to plenty of reliable and high quality tools, meters and safety equipment. These are the tools they will encounter while working in the industry. Instructors will take them though the very basics to the advanced functions of these necessary tools and meters.”
Is there anything else that you would like to add about this exciting development?
Pete: “The Costa Rica campus is an invaluable opportunity for SEI to bring good PV education to a growing Latin American market. Over 26 years of time-tested and evolving techniques stand behind SEI’s academic and hands-on curriculum. It is SEI’s mission to bring solar electricity to people around the world empowering them to harness the renewable energy of the sun.”
Solar Energy International will be offering the following trainings in Costa Rica, register today and save your spot!
FV101 Diseño e Instalación de Sistemas Fotovoltaicos Conectados a la Red
FV203 Fundamentos de Sistemas Fotovoltaicos Basados en Baterías
FV201L Laboratorio de Sistemas Fotovoltaicos Conectados a la Red
Want to learn more about our Costa Rica in-person trainings? Contact our spanish student advisor team at [email protected] or call +1-970-527-7657 opción 8
SEI Professional Services (SEIPS) and SEI Engineering (SEIE) are extensions of Solar Energy International (SEI). SEI has a long and well respected heritage within the industry that dates back to 1991 as the leading non-profit technical training provider for the solar industry. SEIPS and SEIE were created in 2015 and 2016 respectively as a solar engineering and consulting company in response to the growing demand and requests from SEI’s 60,000+ students, alumni, supporters, and the broader solar industry to offer formal solar engineering, design, consulting, and field services across the globe. Visit: www.SEISolarPros.com
