The 3 Counties Energy Agency (3cea) is celebrating after gaining Engineers Ireland accreditation for its commitment to the continuous professional development (CPD) of its 23-strong staff which includes engineers, technicians, marketing and administrative employees.
The 20 year-old agency is now an Engineers Ireland CPD Accredited Employer and part of an exclusive network of organisations that have demonstrated commitment to the professional development of their staff.
L-R: Paddy Phelan, CEO 3cea; Caroline Spillane, director general, Engineers Ireland; and John Carley, chairman 3cea. Image: Vicky Comerford
The much-coveted best practice framework accreditation will help the agency to recruit and retain talented staff and win projects.
The not-for-profit 3cea has worked tirelessly across the southeast since its inception in 2002 to move the region to a low carbon, clean energy future. It has grown its team over that time from just three to 23 employees.
3cea works with communities, local authorities, businesses and the general public across counties Carlow, Kilkenny, Wexford, Waterford and further afield in the renewable energy sector. The highly-regarded and highly skilled team at 3cea is constantly researching and upskilling, expanding its knowledge in energy saving, energy storage and production.
Paddy Phelan, 3cea CEO, paid tribute to the entire team, particularly those who worked on the Engineers Ireland CPD accreditation project: “Continued professional development is essential for 3cea. We work in a rapidly changing industry with new technologies, new standards, new requirements coming to market all the time.
L-R: Paddy Phelan, CEO 3cea; Colm 0'Mahony, energy engineer; Caroline Spillane, director general, Engineers Ireland; Michael Deen, communications officer; Ralf Kampe, EU project officer; John Carley, chairman 3cea; and Bill Lowe, office manager. Image: Vicky Comerford
'Acute skills shortages'
“We work hard to ensure our entire team is prepared for all of these challenges. Providing a good CPD offering provides exciting opportunities for our team to develop and grow. We are committed to career development and to helping meet acute skills shortages within our sector world-wide. With this in mind, we offer work placement and graduate opportunities to third level students in this region. Many of these undergraduates have gone on to join our team over the years.”
A spokesperson for the Engineers Ireland audit panel said 3cea was clearly committed to the continuous professional development of its growing team. “3cea has demonstrated strong senior management support for CPD. Our audit team recognised the comprehensive nature of the skills matrix and the work that is ongoing to broaden its application across different teams.
“3cea has experienced significant growth and development in recent years. Indeed since 2018 the Agency has substantially expanded its presence in the south-east region of Ireland. This ongoing organisational growth will necessitate improved systems and policies, and the CPD accreditation process is regarded as a major influencing factor in the achievement of this strategic improvement objective.”
Gráinne Kennedy, energy engineer with 3cea, who led the accreditation bid, said: “Over a quarter of our team are Engineers Ireland affiliated and more are to join throughout the year. Others are working towards Chartered Engineer status.
“3cea has a very strong policy that supports employees who want to extend their knowledge and join professional organisations. Such an ethos drives continuous professional development and augurs well for the future of 3cea and the energy transition across the southeast region into the future.”