Clifton Park, NY – "Time is running short to apply to be part of the first group of people certified by NABCEP (North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners) as PV Technical Sales professionals," says Ezra Auerbach, NABCEP's executive director. He continues, "There is still time to submit an application before the deadline of December 10, 2010, however potential applicants are strongly encouraged to begin the process within the next few days."

This new certification is aimed at PV salespeople who are responsible for site analysis, system design, ethical presentation and accurate analyses and projections of electrical, environmental and financial performance of PV systems. Don Warfield, Chairperson of NABCEP says “Superior PV system performance starts with the sales process. A poorly designed system or one that overpromises output will never meet the customer’s expectations.”

Only those PV professionals who posses the requisite combination of education and experience will be eligible to attain this certification. Applicants are required to produce documentation of their training and professional experience, so completing the application once started often takes a few days. “It's best to allow three to five days before the deadline to ensure that all supporting documents can be uploaded in a timely manner," says Auerbach.

Interested parties should visit the NABCEP website (http://forms.nabcep.org/) to apply. The first round of examinations for the PV Technical Sales Certification will take place from January 14 until January 29, 2011, at Pearson VUE Professional Testing Centers around the continental United States. 

Potential certificants will find the PV Technical Sales Certification Exam Resource Guide, available on the NABCEP website, to be a useful and practical resource for taking the PV Technical Sales Certification Exam. The foundation for this Resource Guide is the PV Technical Sales Job Task Analysis (JTA), a blueprint of the various skills required by a solar PV technical sales professional for the successful siting, design, analysis and performance of solar PV systems. The PV Technical Sales Certification Exam Resource Guide is available at: www.nabcep.org/certification/pv-technical-sales-certification/resource-guide