You
may have already heard that as from October 1st 2018, radical
changes came into effect in the gas industry in regards to training and
qualifications. These changes will affect all three categories of gas
engineers:
Category
1: Experienced engineers with an existing gas qualification.
Category
2: New entrants with transferable skills or experience.
Category
3: New entrants without transferable skills or experience.
During
this article, we will focus on the changes impacting Category 1 candidates –
experienced gas engineers with an exiting gas qualification. For further
information regarding the changes that will impact Category 3 candidates, please click here.
During
a long and comprehensive review of the whole gas industry, it was highlighted
that reforms were needed in the training and assessment of all three
categories. A number of changes have now taken place.
A
Category 1 engineer who wishes to add another appliance element to their qualifications
(i.e. extend their range in the same sector) would need to meet the following
criteria before they can be assessed in that appliance:
- They must have been
registered with Gas Safe for a minimum of six months
- They must undertake
training on the new appliance element they wish to add
- They need to supply
evidence of on-site experience of the appliance element; if this is not
possible the candidate will need to undertake ‘realistic work environment’
practical work at a training centre in addition to the training stated
above
For
example, a gas engineer may hold the CCN1 core gas safety and CENWAT boilers
and water heaters in Domestic Natural Gas and now wishes to add a new appliance
element such as CKR1 cookers.
The
amount of training the gas engineer must undertake is set out in the IGEM/IG/1
standards of training, which states the minimum guided learning hour they need
to attend for each appliance element. For example, if they are adding CKR1
cookers, the gas engineer would need to attend a minimum of 6.5 hours of
training before they are able to undertake the qualification assessment.
If a
Category 1 engineer wishes to add a different sector extending their scope –
for example, they currently hold core and appliances in Domestic Natural Gas
and wishes to add LPG Liquefied Petroleum Gas (CONGLP1) to their qualification
– they would need to meet the following criteria before they can undertake the
assessment in that area:
- They must have been
registered with Gas Safe for a minimum of six months
- They must undertake
training on the new sector they wish to add
- The gas engineer must
supply documented evidence of on-site experience in the scope applied for.
If this is not possible, the candidate will need to undertake ‘realistic
work environment’ practical work at a training centre, in addition to the
training stated above
The
amount of training they must undertake is again set out in the IGEM/IG/1
standards of training, which states the minimum guided learning hours they need
to attend. If they currently hold CCN1
core and appliances in Domestic Natural Gas and want to add Liquefied Petroleum
Gas (CONGLP1), they would need to attend a minimum of 13 hours of training
before they can undertake the assessment in that area.
These
changes affect all certificating bodies
and gas training providers in the UK as all are now required to follow the
standardised approach set out in the new IGEM/IG/1 Standards of Training in Gas
Work which came into effect on 1st October 2018.
This
can all sound very complicated and a mine field to navigate through, so if you
are not clear on your next steps or want some guidance please feel free to
contact Gas Training & Assessment to discuss further.
