Department of Energy BENEFIT Award Subcontract from Northeastern University

October 21, 2021

This project team will develop Building Operator: Grid-Occupant (BOGO) training modules to expand the training of entry-level building operators beyond a focus on energy efficiency and peak demand reductions, to include energy flexibility. Such grid-interactive efficient buildings (GEBs) can shed, shift, and modulate their load to provide added value to the grid. Integral to realizing the $15B/yr market opportunity of GEBs, this course curriculum must include additional content on maintaining the indoor environmental quality (IAQ) expectations of occupants, which may necessitate an occupant-centric control (OCC). These modules developed will support the development of the new Building Operator Certification (BOC) Fundamentals program targeted at vocational technical (VoTech) high schools and community colleges (CCs), to fill the vacancies of this workforce growing 10% per year faster than the national labor market. The learning modules will combine classroom and e-learning with hands-on simulators and apprenticeships. The project team will develop, pilot, assess, and disseminate the BOGO training modules to ensure they meet the needs of the industry and are scalable across educational settings.