Training
Training benefits T
Stevie O’Neill, technical specifications engineer at EOGB Energy Products, discusses the crucial role of the commissioning process and why manufacturer training can be of huge benefit to heating engineers
o make sure an appliance is operating both safely and efficiently, governing bodies such as the Gas Safe Register stress that engineers must follow the appliance manufacturer’s installation and commissioning instructions and carry out the checks required by Regulation 26(9) of GSIUR. The GSIUR also states that an appliance is categorised as ‘immediately dangerous’ until a competent person commissions it. As with any appliance installation, the importance of making sure that all installation criteria are met and the appliance is correctly commissioned is of vital importance in order to ensure safety and efficiency.
The commissioning engineer
Commissioning is arguably the most important stage of any plant installation process to ensure it has been correctly installed and is ultimately safe to leave in operation. Initial guidance can be sought from IGE/UP/4 edition 3 and IGE/UP/10 edition 4 and other industry documents such as the manufacturer’s instructions. A commissioning engineer has a critical role within the industry and it will be them that ultimately allows the equipment to be left in operation upon completion of their work, which gives them a direct responsibility for that equipment. In many cases, when an appliance is installed, both the installation and the commissioning processes should be considered as one combined process. However, it is not uncommon under certain circumstances for an installation to require specialised manufacturer commissioning. As a result, it is necessary for a commissioning engineer to hold a critical understanding of numerous disciplines within the HVAC and process industries. It
is not possible for the industry bodies to provide all the necessary training and guidance required to allow any one operative to be competent in all fields of commissioning, so therefore the importance of specific manufacturer training can be appreciated.
Specific manufacturer training
Although it is acknowledged that product training courses are no substitute for the full industry standard competency level courses, it is nonetheless a critical factor in ensuring the safe and efficient operation of equipment. It is vital anyone working on gas/oil-fired equipment is qualified and deemed competent by the relevant governing body to carry out the required work. Specific manufacturer training will be considered a critical factor in proving competence when performing work on certain types of equipment, which further validates the above statement. Manufacturer training courses can vary wildly depending upon what the student is required to learn. Most manufacturers offer courses ranging from brief overviews of their products to in-depth
and specific training on appliances that the student encounters in their day-to-day duties. Upon completion of any manufacturer appliance
training course it is normal to receive a certificate stating that the named operative has successfully completed training on the named equipment. These certificates should be retained in the engineer’s portfolio and, although they may not be recognised as an official training body certificate, they will satisfy the criteria of proving one’s competence on specific appliances. Upon completing these training courses, the
operative will gain a greater depth of knowledge and understanding of specific appliances and this will generate a greater appreciation of the necessity for correct commissioning. Extra training from appliance manufacturers should be considered as an absolute necessity for operatives working on specific types of combustion and heat producing equipment. Additionally, a necessity exists for training bodies and competent person schemes to give serious consideration to introducing a formal qualification focused on the commissioning of heat generating equipment.
FREE AIR SOURCE HEAT PUMP TRAINING S
ince the launch of its heat pump product training course in late 2015, Hitachi’s specialist heating team has welcomed over
700 installers into its aircademy training centre in Maidenhead to get ‘hands on’ with the full range of Yutaki heat pump products and controllers. Led by Andy Henson, Hitachi heating’s
technical engineer and training manager, the course was initially run over two consecutive days covering design, installation and electrical considerations as well as the monobloc and splits products. Following feedback from both
28 August 2017
distributors and installers, the content has now been packed into an intensive one-day course to make it easier for busy contractors to fit training into their work schedules. “Since the start of 2017 we have welcomed
more than 250 heating engineers into our Yutaki product training and we’ll be continuing to run our programme across the summer,” said Andy Henson. “We’re also training a number of installers
from Ireland and Scotland courtesy of our distributors in those areas. Getting heating
engineers excited about the opportunities presented by air source heat pumps is great for both manufacturers and distributors, and will help get the message out to the domestic market about the many benefits of installing renewables,” he concluded. The new intensive one-day course runs weekly in Maidenhead (and by request in Dublin). For a limited time only, Hitachi is providing its Yutaki heat pump training completely free of charge to suitably qualified installers. Contact
aircon.training@
jci-hitachi.com
www.heatingandventilating.net
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56
