Show notes
Nick Martocci, founder of Tower Training Academy, discusses their nationally recognized apprenticeship programs for wind turbine technicians and battery energy storage specialists. The company focuses on creating partnerships and initiatives that support career development and veterans' transition into the renewable energy sector.
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Allen Hall: As renewable energy technology gets more complex and specialized every day, the industry needs skilled professionals ready to climb those towers and maintain critical systems. This week we speak with Nick Martocci founder of Tower Training Academy in Las Vegas. Tower Training Academy offers nationally recognized apprenticeship programs for both wind turbine technicians and battery energy storage specialists, helping everyone from recent high school graduates to career changers develop essential skills and certifications, while providing lifelong career support.
Welcome to Uptime Spotlight, shining Light on Wind Energy's brightest innovators. This is the Progress Powering tomorrow.
So we were just talking, it's been a year since we've spoken to you and I follow your Tower Training Academy YouTube page, LinkedIn page. I think you're on Instagram also.
Nick Martocci: Yep. Instagram. We got [00:01:00] Facebook. A lot of social media. Uh, a lot has happened in the last time since we've chatted. Uh, been able to send a few more apprentices through the wind turbine program.
Uh, I've been able to help out a lot of veterans. We had one veteran actually come through my program, uh, work with us vets to help veterans, uh, transition, uh, into the renewable sector, if you will, and help them out also with transferring them out of a bad situation. Uh, the veteran, he just. Fell onto some harm times and, uh, no, no lie before he was with my program, was actually living in his car and so he got with us vets and uh, was able to get a little assistance from them.
Also got with Salvation Army, got some assistance from them and the US vets actually pointed him towards my program. We were able to get him a sponsorship and to this day it's changed his life and he's still, even right now out in the field. Doing torque contention work. [00:02:00] That's awesome.
Allen Hall: That's a great story.
And I, on your LinkedIn page, I've noticed a couple of ribbing ribbon cutting ceremonies with local dignitaries.
Nick Martocci: Yeah, we had a congresswoman Susie Lee, her office was very, very helpful with getting, uh, some other help that we needed. Uh, moved along with, uh, a few other pieces, but she was out there to help us, uh, announce that we actually did become a, the first.
Approved apprenticeship for the Department of Labor that's active for our battery energy storage apprenticeship program. And so now we have both programs since last year. Uh, that was something that we had to kind of keep hidden behind the green curtain, if you will. And so I was working on that and now that's already up and running.
Uh, we had one apprenticeship approved before us a few years ago and they haven't sent anybody through it and. At the end of this month. Right now we're in March, so at the end of this month [00:03:00] we'll have 10 coming through my program already.
Joel Saxum: I think that's super important for the industry right now where that, that the renewables industry, because battery storage growing.
Right? I, I mean, I live in Austin, right? So it's just batteries after batteries going into the Ercot market and there's a lack of people, lack of technicians, lack of engineering expertise, to be honest with you. Yeah. About how do we, how do we handle battery storage systems from an o and m perspective. We know how to install 'em.
Nick Martocci: Yeah.
Joel Saxum: Or if, I guess if you ask the insurance companies, they don't think we know how to install 'em yet, but, but we know how to, we know how to get 'em out there. How do we maintain 'em? It's awesome that you guys are doing this because I don't know of any other real facility putting battery storage o and m capable people.
No.
Nick Martocci: It, it, it was a lot of grunt work, if you will, of putting everything together for our standards. Uh, I, I used a lot of other handrail systems that are out there as far as ideas. Uh, kind of like this Tony Stark moment, if you will create a framework and just keep messing with how this [00:04:00] works and integrate changes.
Uh, a big piece was to, and again, I wanna thank them, is a DO uh, a DO helped me out with a lot of the standards. They do a lot of the training for me. So that partnership there is, uh, a big piece that really helps out the technicians themselves with the certifications because it is accredited. Through is E.
And so that allows them now not only to have those skills and that training and certification, but also allows for that forward progression in their careers. Because like I said, it's accredited so they can take those credits and start working on their degrees as well. So this is something that allows, not just for that immediate, okay, let me get a career piece going.
But now also that forward thinking piece of actually what's the next step for me as far as becoming a manager, getting my degree, things of that nature. Anything that I put together with my programs, there's always a what's next for that person. Just like I was telling you guys about last year, the biggest thing that bothers me is that what's next for me as a person in this industry [00:05:00] with a lot of jobs, it's clock eight, clock out.
Yeah. Hope to see you tomorrow. Yeah, I, that's why I have IFC there to be able to help out with that progression. And now I'd love to announce also that they're now a 5 0 1 C3. They're a nonprofit. And all of the donations go and we've partnered with PBS, uh, or partnering, working, um, with PBS to be able to offer PMP and CMP certifications.
So that program management, project management certification.
Joel Saxum: Yeah. Okay. So I know you were before the i is it IFC Infinite Fidelis
Nick Martocci: consultants?
Joel Saxum: That's what, it's the easiest
Nick Martocci: way to say it is IFC. Yeah.
Joel Saxum: Because we were helping technicians not only go through the training, get the skills, but then. Placing them with, with people, placing them in companies, getting them onto their first day at the job.
And I know you were helping people even build resumes and all kinds of great stuff to actually, you know, take your fellow man and carry him along for some success. So I like to see that now even, even with that, the [00:06:00] addition of the idea of putting PMP uh, training into people. Now they can become project management professionals and kind of, I'm not, I'm not just, I'm not, I'm not a technician anymore.
Now I'm upskilling. Now I can get to this next level. That's, that's awesome.
Nick Martocci: Because the big piece is the development of the workforce. They've gotta be able to, one, be empowered with their knowledge, make sure those standards are understood. One, also for their safety, but two for their personal and professional development,
Allen Hall: because they're not gonna be a technician forever and they need to on move on to next.
You can only clean towers for so many years, right? That's right. Right. Yeah. You work on batteries. Yeah. For so long now, tower Training Academy is in Las Vegas, and that's a. Becoming more of an energy resource area is a lot of projects surrounding Las Vegas, not necessarily in Las Vegas. Where are the technicians, the future technicians coming from to train at your facility?
Nick Martocci: So I've had folks come from all over the USAI. I've had folks from Maine, from Massachusetts, from Utah, [00:07:00] Arizona, California, all coming Texas, Oklahoma, uh, because my apprenticeships are national apprenticeships. My reach is the entire US right now, and I know this is a military term, but lower 48. Um, but so far lower 48 is really what I've seen the most engagement with.
And so I've also worked on getting on a lot of workforce programs for, with the states, uh, also known as ETPL, uh, which is, uh, a, a eligible training provider, which means that OLA funds federal funds will be there to help assist individuals to be able to pay for the training as well. I. And so paying for the training is another big piece.
Uh, some companies will sponsor individuals, others will have to have an individual basically take care of the bills themselves, if you will. So having those wheel of funds and other funding grants, things of that nature, teaming up with IFC, infinite Fidelis Consulting, having them be able to help fund through donations, training and certifications for [00:08:00] people is a big, big piece.
Wow.
Allen Hall: Okay. 'cause usually when we talk to training facilities. The people that are attending are within probably 60 to a hundred miles Yeah. Of that facility. Yeah. Yeah. There's not a lot of draw outside, which in my neck of the woods in Massachusetts right now, there's not a lot of places to go. So you're gonna travel somewhere?
Yeah, right. Why not travel to Vegas? It makes a lot more sense, especially since you have a program set up to accept people like that and makes it a lot more accessible. To the general
Nick Martocci: population? Well, the big piece, I mean, Al also, and I get, and I've spoken with a lot of folks, uh, the, there is a concern with negative, uh,