Solar, Sourcing Renewables  -  October 23, 2019

UC Irvine engineering students tour solar site

A group of engineering students from UC Irvine recently toured the Sunpin Solar 96.75 MW ColGreen North Shore solar project in Riverside County to explore the emerging solar development industry.

Sunpin reported that there are 242,343 Americans working in solar as of 2018. The students from the Engineers for a Sustainable World that participated in the presentation had the chance to learn more about the fundamentals of solar energy and the jobs available in solar project development.

“As engineering students, we learn about the science behind solar panels but never about the logistics and maintenance of a solar power plant,” Nicole Alvarez, VP External of Engineers for a Sustainable World, said. “It gave us a new perspective on solar power.”

While touring the solar facility, the UCI students were walked through each stage of the solar energy production cycle, learning about modules, racking systems, inverters, substations and other equipment used in the process. This training of the next generation of solar engineers included a presentation on the development process, from land acquisition and construction to project completion.