Impacts of fuel cells on the service sector

The introduction of a new product or technology is always accompanied by different circumstances that promote or prevent its success on the market. If there is no public acceptance, for example, fuel-cell technology will be hard put to gain important market segments. But there are also other barriers to be overcome. 

To analyse these problems, the impact of fuel-cell technologies on the service sector was analysed in Germany in a project of the BERTA programme financed by the German Federal Ministry of Economics.3 The possible impacts were examined with regard to job profiles, qualifications and the job market, to prepare the branches involved most optimally. 

Indeed, trade and small businesses will be strongly affected by the introduction of fuel cells. Considering the number of skilled workers in the different sectors, fuel-cell technologies will affect three of the four groups that have the highest employment rate in Germany (Fig. 13.14) electricians are affected by portable and stationary 

Automotive technicians Masons Electricians Heating-appliance technicians Hairdressers Metalworkers Precision mechanics Butchers Carpenters Painters 

The scenarios developed in the project showed a wide range of possible impacts for trade. In the worst case, the installer will lose clients as the energy supplier may offer an all-inclusive service to the customer. This means that the energy supplier will install its own fuel-cell heating appliances in the cellar or basement of the customer s house, provide electricity and heat and be paid an all-inclusive price by the customer. The energy supplier employs its own technicians for installation, maintenance and repair. The customer does not know whether the electricity is generated by the 

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