Blogs

by Lily Collins Positions in the trades are getting more attention as opportunities for fulfilling and lucrative careers, but that doesn’t mean that hiring has gotten any easier—yet. If you’re reading this, it’s likely that you aren't seeing the results from your current recruiting efforts that you were hoping for, but you’re still committed to finding the best possible candidates for your team. You’re smart to double-down on the recruiting process—hiring good people in the trades isn’t impossible, even if it might feel that way right now! It just takes a slightly different approach than traditional office-based recruiting resources suggest. ...

by John Tooley Businessman and author Philip Crosby is so right—the fabric of quality is the culture of the company; all else is woven into that fabric. A quote attributed to business management guru Peter Drucker says, “Culture eats strategy for breakfast.” The quote was made famous by Mark Fields, president at Ford Motor Company. Any company that disconnects its culture from its strategy is putting its success at risk. I have worked with companies that have a good strategy and tactics to match but have a poor culture. They have all failed. They have no hope of success unless they transform their culture. They hire good employees but die a slow ...

BPA tracks the latest policy updates and legislative issues in many states across the nation. They've made it easier to read the monthly state policy updates by segmenting out details state by state on their website here . BPA has also created a letter for you to send to your elected representatives and let them know you want them to support ongoing energy efficiency legislation, programs, and initiatives in your home state. Click here to send your personalized letter. Below are key highlights for May. Key State Highlights In Pennsylvania , regulations to officially join the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) were published on ...

by Sam Rashkin Insulation (such as fiberglass, rock wool, or cellulose) need a complete air barrier on all six sides. This ensures the thermal control layer works effectively, since air can flow through it. Think of the difference outdoors on a cold windy day with a sweater and jacket made of a water repellent fabric: Without the jacket, the cold wind easily passes through the sweater and mitigates its thermal resistance. In contrast, with the jacket functioning as an air impervious control layer, air flow through the sweater is blocked, resulting in much more effective thermal protection. It’s the same with buildings. Note that some types of ...

by Kelly Carey A large, diverse, and prepared workforce is urgently needed to meet our communities’ climate goals and ensure that all Americans benefit from the climate transition. To help meet this need Building Performance Institute (BPI) has partnered with Northeast Energy Efficiency Partners (NEEP) for the Total Energy Pathways (TEP) initiative. Other partners include BPA and Energy Futures Group, with funding from the Department of Energy. Total Energy Pathways is based upon lessons learned in the Zero Energy Now program in Vermont, which bundles weatherization, efficient HVAC, and solar into building energy upgrades. This bundled approach ...

Blog reposted with permission from NEEP. In order to address and accelerate whole-home retrofits, scaling, educating, and diversifying the contractor workforce is essential. One major barrier to implementing whole-home deep energy retrofits – as highlighted in ACEEE’s Residential Deep Energy Retrofits report – is access to a workforce with the right skills. Many contractors cite inability to effectively market and sell comprehensive efficiency upgrades. They are also concerned with the risk of investing time and resources to learn new skills and purchase new equipment. In order to remediate these and other concerns, the Total Energy Pathways (TEP) Workforce ...