Spring Brings a Downpour of Training Opportunities
CoolSys techs nationwide have gained education and expertise in natural refrigerants this spring, thanks to three recent training opportunities. In all, 194 techs participated in the training events, which featured systems from a variety of manufacturers.
Pilot for New CEPTEK Trainer
In March, Brett Wetzel, manager of Technical Troubleshooting & Training, led 20 CoolSys refrigeration and HVAC systems techs from around the country and a member of the CoolSys leadership development team in a trial run of training for the CEPTEK CO2 transcritical system. The participants were chosen from among 50 techs nominated for the opportunity.
During the event held in Dallas, Texas, the group went through hot-off-the-press curriculum Brett wrote specifically for the course. Although the CEPTEK CO2 trainer is not scheduled to arrive till late summer or early fall, a CoolSys client in Dallas kindly allowed the group to visit its site to see the system in operation. After the course, participants shared their feedback with Brett to help him refine the content.
Watch for opportunities this fall to participate in the full CEPTEK training during our October through December training season.
NASRC Training Summit
The first-ever Natural Refrigerant Training Summit — co-hosted by the North American Sustainable Refrigeration Council (NASRC) and Southern California — drew over 350 participants. CoolSys was well represented by 75 attendees at the April event in Irwindale, California.
Brett was enthusiastic about the content of the 17 training sessions available at the summit. “A lot of times at these events, it’s just ‘Look at my stuff. This is what we’re doing,” he says. “But every session of this summit was really a training session.” If you didn’t get a chance to attend, you can check out these training slides and recordings, as well as photos from the event.
Director of Training Ryan Herda was equally enthusiastic: “NASRC provided a valuable opportunity to blend transcritical concepts with a recruiting event,” Ryan said. “CoolSys took full advantage with strong representation from our technicians, talent acquisition, operational management, and corporate leaders. Events like these help showcase the evolving refrigeration industry as a sustainable career path with CoolSys front and center.”
Danfoss CO2 Class
Sometimes “opportunities” take a lot of hard work. Other times, they just drop in your lap. Such was the case when Danfoss asked permission to park its Big Red Pack CO2 trainer at the CoolSys headquarters in Fullerton, California, in March and April.
The company took Big Red to the NASRC summit, but for two weeks before and after, it was available for CoolSys techs from around the country to get hands-on experience with Danfoss’s technology. In all, 104 techs learned the ins and outs of the system. “The Danfoss rack had components that aren’t part of the CEPTEK trainer we’re purchasing, so that was really valuable training,” Brett says.
A Shoutout to CoolSys Light Commercial
Brett notes that the process is still on track to begin offering training for CoolSys Light Commercial techs in Houston, Texas, by the fourth quarter of this year. Watch for more information about this and more training news in future issues of CoolTimes.