Residential, commercial, industrial and agricultural customers met their energy goals in 2014 thanks to a strong network of Energy Trust trade ally contractors and other allied professionals, including architects, engineers, designers, builders and real estate agents.

Trade allies like you help Energy Trust serve 1.5 million utility customers in Oregon and southwest Washington. This wide and diverse network creates jobs in communities around the state. More than 2,400 local businesses employ 14,700 people who complete Energy Trust customer projects. Of those companies, 81 percent are small businesses with 20 workers or less.

A few of the ways Energy Trust supported trade allies in 2014 included:

• To help trade allies across programs make the case for energy-efficiency upgrades, we sponsored sales certification trainings around the state.
• A new Allies for Efficiency training series for New Buildings allies attracted more than 420 architects, engineers and other individuals looking to learn about constructing high-performance buildings
• Existing Homes three-star trade allies offered instant incentives for heating and water heating equipment, making it easier for customers to submit incentive applications and resulting in more projects
• Online customer referrals helped generate customer leads for solar trade allies, reducing the cost of acquiring new customers.
• To boost awareness of opportunities for minority- and women-owned businesses to join the network, outreach staff attended the 2014 Governor’s Marketplace Conference and Oregon Association of Minority Entrepreneurs trade show.

To learn more about 2014 accomplishments that Energy Trust achieved through your valuable work, view our 2014 Annual Report.