Training

Registered educational charity and sister company to the Association of Plumbing & Heating Contractors, APHC (Training) Ltd., has 100 training rewards worth £150 each to give away to plumbing and heating companies.

APHC (Training) Ltd. administers the reward scheme to help safeguard the long-term professional development of the industry by incentivising plumbing and heating engineers to up-date their knowledge and gain new skills.

The £150 reward can be used for a certificated course with a recognised training provider such as APHC, BPEC, City & Guilds and all UKAS approved ACS providers.

Rinnai UK’s 2017 training programme has been designed to cater for the growing number of engineers and specifiers looking to utilise the energy saving benefits of gas fired continuous flow water heaters.

Since the introduction of ErP last year, Rinnai has seen a massive increase in interest for its complete and comprehensive range of highly efficient A-rated continuous flow water heaters, and a commensurate surge in demand for training on the units. The company supplies models from the small domestic multi-point units to bespoke industrial hot water solutions.

Shower pump manufacturer Salamander Pumps is strengthening its commitment to customer service, innovation and product development, with an in-house apprenticeship programme that has seen its first student graduate into a permanent role, while seven of its staff are combining work with studying for qualifications.
 
The Sunderland-based company’s wide range of brass, shower-specific and whole-house pumps includes HomeBoost, the regulations-compliant intelligent mains booster pump that can deliver 1.6 bar with a flow rate of 12 litres a minute, even with a combi boiler.

Plumbing is one of the world’s oldest professions dating back to Roman times.
It was even considered a great choice of career by Albert Einstein, who declared in November 1954: “If I would be a young man again and had to decide how to make my living, I would not try to become a scientist or scholar or teacher. I would rather choose to be a plumber or a peddler in the hope to find that modest degree of independence still available under present circumstances.”

With more than 230,000 jobs expected to be created in construction by 2020, a growth of 2.5% each year – 3.5% in Greater London – there has never been a better time to get into the industry.

Despite Brexit fears thousands of jobs in the energy sector are still up for grabs.

Under a government initiative to ensure the UK becomes more energy efficient, around 53 million smart meters, which monitor both gas and electricity usage, are to be fitted in over 30 million homes and businesses in the UK by 2020.

The project needs around 11,000 qualified engineers to fit the meters but a significant skills gap in the sector has resulted in a shortfall, with leading trade course provider ECTA Training estimating that up to 6,500 smart meter engineer jobs are still available.

APHC has expressed doubts about the feasibility of plans for the development of vocational qualifications, following a speech made by Phil Beach CBE in collaboration with Ofqual last week. Speaking at the GovNet Skills and Employability Summit, Mr Beach discussed the development of vocational qualifications and assessments, suggesting how trust in them might be maintained in a period of reform.

Mr Beach begun his speech by detailing the many changes occurring in the vocational qualifications sector, in particular the Post-16 Skills Plan which has been designed to provide 16-19 year olds with valued routes into the workplace and the new trailblazer apprenticeship standards.

John Savage, managing director of Flame Heating Spares, who founded the region’s fastest growing Heating and Plumbing merchant, has claimed a prestigious honour.

The up and coming North East entrepreneur was named the Institute of Directors (IoD) North East Young Director of the Year at the annual IoD Yorkshire & North East awards.

Mr Savage, 36, launched Flame Heating Spares with a single branch in Gateshead, in 2011 and the company now operates six branches across the North East and employees more than 20 people. He started his career as a warehousing apprentice for a national plumbing merchant before working his way up to become an area manager, prior to establishing Flame with his business partner and sales director, Gary Riseborough.