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Strickland Announces Advanced Energy Jobs Training Award
First Round of Energizing Careers Program Grants Awarded $1.7 Million to Five Ohio Companies, Assisting 800 Employees

Columbus, Ohio – Governor Ted Strickland continues to focus on growing and improving the advanced energy industry of Ohio by announcing today the first round of the Energizing Careers Program awards to five companies in Northwest and Northeast Ohio. The awards will fund training for up to 800 Ohio workers.

The $6 million Energizing Careers Program was launched in June 2010 as a means to train Ohio’s workforce for careers in the state’s growing advanced energy manufacturing sector. The awards were made possible through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act State Energy Sector Partnership Training program, funded through a grant from the U.S. Department of Labor.

“Building on Ohio’s strength as a leader in green energy technology and investing in our workers are central to our plan to grow Ohio’s economy from the ground up,” Strickland said. “These training dollars will help workers gain new skills in growing industries and help keep Ohio companies on the cutting edge of their fields.”

The Energizing Careers Program, administered by the Ohio Department of Development’s Workforce and Talent Division, assists companies providing components for the wind, solar and biomass industries. The program provides customized training for improving worker skills in Ohio’s expanding advanced energy manufacturing sector, helping Ohio companies remain competitive.

“Ohio’s workers are the heart and soul of our economy. This program helps to ensure they have the tools they need to succeed in their careers,” said Lisa Patt-McDaniel, Ohio Department of Development Director. “The advanced energy industry sectors are key to Ohio’s prosperity.”

The Energizing Careers Program reimburses the cost of training up to $6,000 for full-time employees, with preferential project funding to companies located in the 44 Ohio counties impacted by the restructuring of the automotive industry. The second round of Requests for Proposals will be announced soon for companies interested in expanding workforce training in the advanced energy manufacturing sector.

Companies receiving Energizing Careers Program training dollars in the first round include:

Buckeye Silicon, Inc. (Lucas County) will receive up to $239,000 for worker training to produce solar grade crystalline polysilicon. Buckeye Silicon is a renewable energy supply chain manufacturing company that supplies this key ingredient to solar panel manufacturing companies and other supply chain companies in the solar industry. The company’s process is 80 percent less expensive, 90 percent more energy efficient and 65 percent more cost effective than traditional industry standards.

First Solar, Inc. (Wood County) will receive up to $1,025,760 for worker training to manufacture photovoltaic modules. First Solar has developed a breakthrough thin film module product and has the capacity for high-volume production. The company has the lowest production cost per watt in the photovoltaic industry. With locations around the globe and more than 4,700 associates, First Solar is changing the way the world is powered.

Nextronex Energy Systems, LLC (Wood County) will receive up to $210,000 for worker training to manufacture the Ray-Max 150 Solar Inverter and the Ray-Max Energy Maximization System. The company sells its products to solar integrators/contractors. The Ray-Max 150 is the first model made in the United States with 1,000 volt DC capacity, offering increased efficiency and lower copper costs. Nextronex manufactures the only utility grade solar inverter system in Ohio and throughout the Midwest.

UniControl, Inc. (Cuyahoga County) will receive up to $46,000 for worker training to manufacture controls and instruments for the fossil fuel and biomass industries. UniControl is integrating the technology of advanced process control logic for biomass-fired combustion in industrial, commercial and institutional heating, ventilating and air-conditioning applications. Burners and boilers combusting biomass fuels require accurate controls and instrumentation to optimize fuel efficiency and reduce hazardous greenhouse gas emissions.

Xunlight Corporation (Lucas County) will receive up to $229,000 for worker training to develop and manufacture high performance flexible and lightweight solar modules. Xunlight has revolutionized the development of thin-film, silicon-based photovoltaic solution. The company’s solar modules are environmentally safe and highly efficient. The combination of flexible and lightweight materials allows for the implementation of small-to-large scale energy generation strategies for a variety of applications. Xunlight is rapidly expanding its manufacturing capacity as the demand for solar modules continues to grow.

For more information on the Energizing Careers Program, visit http://www.ohioworkforceboard.org.

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