Thanks to a Next Step Maine Scholarship from the Maine Development Foundation, Energy Advisor Ham Niles will study advanced thermography at the Infrared Training Center in Boston in July. Ham received his scholarship at a cermony at the State House, left.

Evergreen's Energy Advisors already use infrared analysis to assess heat loss and to determine where air sealing and insulation can increase a building’s energy efficiency, but this training will take IR to the next level.

“This is such an incredible opportunity,” said Ham. “To be able to dig into this tool and really learn how to use thermal imaging in a more sophisticated way – I can’t wait.”

 The Infrared Training Center is internationally respected, and its certification is the gold-standard qualification within the thermography industry. The Next Step Scholarship will cover about one-third of the cost of the four-day certification program; Evergreen will cover the rest.

“Ham has really immersed himself in the building science needed to develop his skills as an energy auditor, and nominating him for the Next Step Scholarship made sense,” said Elise Brown, Evergreen’s Development Director. “Advanced infrared training will really give Ham – and Evergreen – a new depth of skill in diagnosing building problems and engineering efficiency retrofits that solve them once and for all.”