[ Spotlight: Green Deal ]
assessment’ by a certifi cated Green Deal Adviser (GDA). This assessment is used to create a Green Deal report for the client. The report includes recommendations for the installation of various measures. The client can then show this report to a Green Deal Provider, and obtain a quote for the installation work. GDAs must be recognised by a UKAS-accredited certifi cation scheme, as either a sole trader GDA or as part of a Green Deal Assessment Organisation. This allows them to carry out a Green Deal assessment and issue Energy Performance Certifi cates (EPCs). A GDA may be contracted to a Green Deal
Provider, but in this case the GDA has to declare to the client who they are contracted to, and still provide an impartial energy assessment that could be accepted by any other GDP for action. Green Deal Installers must be certifi cated to
install and commission the selected Green Deal measures. Certifi cation to a core competency (based on quality management) is required, plus certifi cation to the measures the installer wants to install and commission. The core and measure-specifi c requirements
for certifi cation are based on PAS 2030. However, a current MCS certifi cation is ‘deemed to satisfy’ the core requirement for installing microgeneration under the Green Deal (depending on the scope of the MCS certifi cation). Contractors who do not want to become authorised installers may still be able to work for an authorised installer as a sub-contractor, or simply as a provider of ‘ancillary work’ (for example, rewiring as a result of other Green Deal work). Which takes us back to the other question: ‘Do
we need the Green Deal to get new (energy saving) work?’ In general, the answer is ‘Not always’. The Green Deal may provide new opportunities, such as boosting microgeneration, but it is far from being the only game in town. Contractors can still aim to provide clients with all the energy solutions they need, under whatever business arrangements suit them best. Some contractors may even be wary of passing their hard-won clients into the Green Deal
About the author
Paul Reeve (CEnv) is head of Business Policy and Practice at the Electrical Contractors’ Association (ECA).
It could mean diversifying into new types of installation, or teaming up with other contractors who have the required know-how
system while, conversely, some will see the Green Deal as an eff ective way of helping prospective customers, particularly those with high energy bills, to make the sums work and opt for a bigger energy solution for their premises. Whatever route contractors take, the business
opportunities naturally depend on the range of energy saving and microgeneration measures that they can competently install. This is particularly true under the Green Deal, and it could mean diversifying into new types of installation, or teaming up with other contractors who have the required know-how. For many contractors, diversifi cation, upskilling
and access to ongoing, competent support will be the key to Green Deal and wider energy-related opportunities in the domestic and non-domestic marketplace.
ECA Green Deal activity The ECA’s ongoing Green Deal activity includes: Working with DECC and others to increase the business opportunities for building services contractors, and on the further development of PAS 2030, the installer certifi cation document; and
Making further representations to DECC to ensure that the Green Deal covers as many electro-technical measures as possible, linked to a suitable standard of installer competency. The ECA runs an online Energy Solutions forum
for registered members (see
www.eca.co.uk). This discussion and information forum covers the Green Deal, including how to get involved and the latest on microgeneration systems and energy effi ciency measures in general. Any ECA registered member can sign up by completing a short registration form at:
http://forum.eca.co.uk A free Energy Solutions telephone hotline is also
available to ECA registered members. This provides expert advice on non-domestic energy saving and microgeneration queries, including those linked to the Green Deal.
March 2013 ECA Today 27
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