Federal Facility Operators Awarded Building Operator Certification

June 1, 2002

In January 2002, the Northwest Energy Efficiency Council (NEEC) announced that 55 building operators working in Federal facilities completed training and were awarded the Building Operator Certification (BOC)—Level I. Three Federal participants received Level II certification. (See pages 18 and 19 for the list of BOC recipients.) BOC is a professional development program which certifies individuals in energy- and resource-efficient operation of building systems. BOC certification is earned by completing 7�months of classroom training (1 full day per month) and hands-on projects conducted at the operator's facility. The topics covered include HVAC systems and controls, energy conservation techniques, electrical systems, and indoor air quality.

Certifications such as BOC can be valuable for Federal facility staff and their agencies for many reasons. Many certification programs have an intensive classroom component, through which participants learn the most current building operations and practices, enabling them to improve energy use in their facilities. A study by the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance on the NEEC BOC program attributed savings of 330 megawatthours per year for each trained student. Certification programs also frequently offer continuing education credits. The BOC certificate is accredited by licensing departments and technical colleges for continuing education in several states, and is recognized by employers in 14 States.

Certification provides opportunities for professional development, and professional credentials demonstrate high levels of experience, competence, and specialized knowledge. It also provides objective benchmarks for validating skills of current employees, and assists as a hiring tool for organizations. Industry-wide, certification programs establish standards for professional practice. Participation in certification programs also helps agencies meet Executive Order 13123 requirements for training personnel in energy management.

FEMP's LOCATOR tool provides information on training opportunities such as certification programs. LOCATOR is a database tool of energy management training courses offered by the Federal government, professional associations, colleges and universities, industry groups, and other private-sector organizations. It can be accessed at www.eere.energy.gov/femp/resources/training/locator.html.

For more information on the NEEC BOC Level I and II course series, please contact Cynthia Putnam of NEEC at 206-292-3977 or cmputnam@aol.com, or visit www.neec.net/boc.htm. For additional information, please contact Arun Jhaveri of DOE's Seattle Regional Office at arun.jhaveri@ee.doe.gov.

The NEEC, a non-profit trade association, is just one of many organizations that offers professional certifications for energy professionals. Other organizations offering certifications for energy professionals include:

The Energy Center of Wisconsin (www.ecw.org/ecw/trainings.jsp) also offers the BOC course series.
The University of Wisconsin - Madison (epdweb.engr.wisc.edu) offers short courses and certificate programs such as the Energy Management diploma, which requires completion of four 1-week energy courses and an exam.
The Association of Energy Engineers (AEE) sponsors the Certified Energy Manager (CEM), Certified Energy Procurement (CEP), Certified Power Quality (CPQ), and Certified Lighting Efficiency Professional (CLEP) certifications, among other certifications for energy professionals (www.aeecenter.org/certification). In 2003, AEE will also introduce two new certifications, the Certified Emissions Trader (CET) and the Distributed Generation Certified Professional (DGCP).
The International Facility Management Association (IFMA) offers the Certified Facility Manager (CFM) program, and the Building Owners and Managers Institute (BOMI) offers courses for Systems Maintenance Technician (SMT), Systems Maintenance Administrator (SMA), and Facilities Management Administrator (FMA) designation (www.ifma.org).
The Association for Facilities Engineering (www.afe.org) sponsors the Certified Plant Maintenance Manager (CPMM) and Certified Plant Engineer (CPE) programs.
The Building Commissioning Association, which already offers courses through its Professional Development Program, is also designing a certificate in Building Commissioning, expected to be in place by the end of 2002 (www.bcxa.org).

The BOC Awardees:

BOC Level I Awardees:

Name	Title	Agency/Facility	State
Ed Arel	Work Control Specialist	Pacific Northwest National Laboratory	WA
Sandra Beardsley	Building Technician	Pacific Northwest National Laboratory	WA
Dan Black	Mechanic	General Services Administration	WA
Shannon Blas	Engineering Technician	Naval Submarine Base Bangor Public Works	WA
Barry Brazzell	Work Control Specialist	Pacific Northwest National Laboratory	WA
Art Broszeit	Engineering Technician	Naval Hospital, Bremerton	WA
Charles Burton	Electrical/Maintenance Supervisor	Dept. of Veterans Affairs	OR
Dennis Bush	HVAC Technician	Bonneville Power/TECOM Inc.	OR
Guy Cannova	Maintenance Mechanic	General Services Administration	OR
Norman Clare	Building Officer	Trident Refit Facility	WA
Sam Culver	Electronic Technician	Naval Undersea Warfare Center	WA
Pat Cunningham	Facilities Planner	Pacific Northwest National Laboratory	WA
Greg Daiker	Maintenance Engineering	U.S. Postal Service	OR
Darcy DeRosia	Facilities Management	Naval Air Station, Whidbey Island	WA
Donna Eberhart	Facility Specialist	Pacific Northwest National Laboratory	WA
Charles Eddington	Building Engineer	General Services Administration	WA
David Erickson	Senior Technician	Pacific Northwest National Laboratory	WA
Patrick Fallon	Senior Technician	Pacific Northwest National Laboratory	WA
Craig Hall	Building Technician	Pacific Northwest National Laboratory	WA
Howard Hebdon	Maintenance Mechanic	General Services Administration	OR
Chris Helmer	Operating Engineer	General Services Administration	OR
Karen Hill	Senior Building Technician	Pacific Northwest National Laboratory	WA
Wayne Hill	Maintenance Mechanic	Naval Station Everett	WA
Steven Hudspeth	Supervisor	Naval Station Everett	WA
Dave Johnson	Engineering Technician	Trident Refit Facility	WA
Michael Johnson	Controls Mechanic	Naval Station Everett	WA
Fred Keithan	Operating Engineer	General Services Administration	OR
Bryan Kiser	Facilities Management Intern	Madigan Army Medical Center	WA
Charles Kwasny	Facility Manager	Hanscom Air Force Base	New England
Garth LaComb	Facility Management Intern	Madigan Army Medical Center	WA
Francisco Lalas	Energy Manager	Naval Station Everett	WA
David Long	Maintenance Manager	U.S. Postal Service	OR
Jack Manchini	Maintenance Engineer	U.S. Postal Service	New England
Robert Manos	Chief Building Engineer	General Services Administration	WA
Kimberly Martel	Construction Electrician	Naval Station Everett	WA
Eddie Mason	Hazardous Materials & Management Technician	Naval Undersea Warfare Center	WA
Stewart McLaughlin	Assistant Facilities Manager	Bonneville Power/TECOM Inc.	OR
Glen Miller	Hazardous Waste Manager	Naval Station Everett	WA
Neil Moffatt	Production Controller	Oregon Air National Guard	OR
Diane Murdock	Staff Engineer	General Services Administration	WA
Martin Murray	Facilities Technician	Pacific Northwest National Laboratory	WA
Morris Ogunleye	Mechanical Engineer	Federal Aviation Administration	WA
Kevin Olinger	Stationary Engineer	Bonneville Power/TECOM Inc.	OR
Vic Parks	Building Technician	Pacific Northwest National Laboratory	WA
Larry Phillips	Electronics Technician	Naval Station Everett	WA
F. Lee Plumb	HVAC Mechanic	Naval Station Everett	WA
Hari Ram	HVAC Mechanic	Bonneville Power/TECOM Inc.	OR
Jeff Rencken	Project Manager	Pacific Northwest National Laboratory	WA
Steven Sala	Building Equipment Mechanic	U.S. Postal Service	OR
Don Schumacher	Manager Maintenance	U.S. Postal Service	WA
Robert Schumacher	Building Technician	Pacific Northwest National Laboratory	WA
David Shields	Engineering Technician	Trident Refit Facility	WA
Gina Wellsfry	Facility Technician	Pacific Northwest National Laboratory	WA
Rhonda Wierman	Facility Project Manager	Pacific Northwest National Laboratory	WA
Wayne Witzel, Jr.	Manager Maintenance Operations	U.S. Postal Service	WA

BOC Level II Awardees

Name	Title	Agency/Facility	State
William Church	Operating Engineer	General Services Administration	OR
Candance Hein	Manager	Oregon Air National Guard	OR
Fred Keithan	Operating Engineer	General Services Administration	OR