Renewable Energy Installer December/January 2014 | Page 13

Partner organisation MCS presents its regular column for REI
Opinion
Showing
initiative
he Microgeneration Certifi cation Scheme (MCS) is shortly due to launch two key
new initiatives to help installers get involved with the scheme, and take advantage
of the opportunities offered by the forthcoming domestic-level Renewable Heat
Incentive (RHI).
The fi rst aspect is helping installers to better understand how to become certifi ed
and making it clearer how to upskill and re-skill in response to changes, such as the
introduction of RHI. Last year we consulted industry on clarifying the criteria against
which companies are assessed in order to gain certifi cation. We had a formal public
consultation on proposed changes, supported by a series of workshops with installers
across the country. The scheme has taken on board all that feedback, and it’s resulted in
what we think is a much more straight-forward route to demonstrating competence.
Whilst the scheme will remain very much a company-level certifi cation scheme,
there will now be clear competence criteria associated to each technology’s MCS
Installation Standard (MIS). These criteria are based off the existing National
Occupational Standards (NOS) and mapped to the existing Qualifi cations and Credit
Framework (QCF). What that means in practice is that it will be much easier for
companies to demonstrate to their Certifi cation Bodies how the combined experience
and formal training of each of their operatives demonstrates the relevant competence for
the company to gain certifi cation. This is a big step forward in making the whole process
more transparent from the installer’s perspective.
The scheme has also been doing a lot of work to modify the installer standards for
the heat technologies (biomass, solar thermal and heat pumps) to make the standards fi t
for purpose to support domestic RHI. The MCS Working Groups, composed of installers,
manufacturers and trade associations, have updated the standards to ensure that MCS
heat technology installations can meet all the requirements that will enable government
to make MCS the requirement for customers wishing to access the incentive. A public
consultation took place in October, and the standards are now being fi nalised in light of
the comments received.
All of the above initiatives are expected to be implemented by spring 2014, in time
for the rollout of RHI. More detailed information, including the new standards, will be
published on the MCS website in December 2013.
T
In case it missed your attention, there’s
been some recent dialogue regarding energy
bills. As the inevitable annual price rises are
announced, people are reminded how much
of their disposable income is consumed by
the cost of energy, and how the percentage
appears to rise with every increase.
This situation provides us all with great
opportunities to open the conversation with
customers about how they might reduce
their exposure to such increases, by looking
at renewable energy and heating systems.
As unit energy costs rise, we can revisit
our investment and return calculations with
fresh enthusiasm. Whilst it would take a
foolish man to predict the future, I’d wager
that energy prices will continue to rise and
will outstrip wage infl ation by some distance.
All those sums quantifying the value
of replaced energy can be re-calculated; all
the return-on-investment calculations will
provide shorter paybacks. The case is most
compelling for those who don’t have access
to mains gas, where the cost of basic fuels
has increased even more sharply.
The provision of space heating and
hot water makes up 80 percent of most
household energy bills and therefore provide
householders with by far the biggest
opportunities for savings, despite the oft-held
ideas that unplugging phone chargers and
not putting the telly on standby will slash
bills.
So now is the time to tell the great
British public, don’t think about it as
improving energy effi ciency, think about the
prospect of not wasting money!
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