
The fire safety specialists at Pye-Barker are factory trained and certified to handle your safety needs, but what does it mean and why should you care?
What Does It Mean?
A “factory trained” technician is someone that has successfully completed a specific course offered by the manufacturer. A “certified technician” is one who has completed special classes and/or training in an area of expertise to gain knowledge or perfect a skill, and successfully proven his retention of that knowledge or ability to use that skill. At Pye-Barker we are always on the lookout for skilled, factory trained, and certified technicians. We also encourage and pay our employees to attend factory training courses, to keep their certifications current, and gain new skills.
Why Should I Care?
The fire protection equipment installed in your facility is designed to protect your property and the lives of those on site. Once this equipment is installed, it must be maintained to ensure it meets the required, regulatory codes. The person who services this equipment is largely responsible for how well it functions, and verify that it is code compliant. Hence, it is important that the technicians servicing your equipment have been factory trained or proven proficiency in their specific area of fire safety. When a fire system activates, several events are put into motion simultaneously; a properly trained technician possesses the specific knowledge necessary to test these various functions and uncover any deficiencies that would render the system inoperable.
Where Do I Gain Industry Knowledge?
As a Pye-Barker team member, you will be sent to various training classes or may attend a course at one of our Regional Training Centers. Leading manufacturers in our industry such as Amerex, Ansul, Fireaway, Gamewell, Vigilant, and many others offer training to our employees due to our relationship as authorized distributors of their products. Agencies such as NICET (National Institute for Certification in Engineering Technologies) offer certification programs in which knowledge is measured with exams, experience through a work history evaluation, and performance by supervisor verification. The requirements vary by program and progress in difficulty through NICET’s “Career Track” levels. Dozens of Pye-Barker technicians possess NICET certifications and many facilities now require NICET certified individuals to work on their fire and life safety equipment.