ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The ACCA educational department, the ACCA Educational Institute ACCA-EI, has joined the American Council for Construction Education (ACCE) as a sustaining association member.

The ACCE board of trustees approved ACCA-EI for membership in June.

ACCA president and CEO Barton James will join the ACCE board of trustees at the upcoming annual ACCE conference in Denver, Colorado, at the end of July.

“A skilled workforce continues to be a top limiting factor for the success of HVACR contractors,” James said. “The ripple effect of untrained or poorly trained technicians continues to hurt consumers as well as taxpayers given that 50% of HVACR installations are losing more than 40% of the equipment's efficiency due to poor installation. We’re excited to support the educational needs of the HVACR workforce so that everyone can win.”

ACCE’s mission is to be a leading global advocate for quality construction education and to promote, support, and accredit quality construction education programs.

“ACCE is excited that ACCA has joined our board of trustees as a sustaining association member,” said Steve Nellis, president and CEO of ACCE. “ACCA’s support will enhance the value of our accreditation services for post-secondary degree programs for the HVACR workforce.”

The year marks the ACCE’s 50^th anniversary as an accreditation organization.

“As our construction industry continues to request our services for the accreditation of other construction-related degree programs, we will leverage our relationship with ACCA to demonstrate our ability to be flexible and provide the services that are needed,” Nellis said.