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NATE Announces New, Entry-level Tests

Dec. 30, 2015
The first of these two tests will offer a ‘Ready-to-Work’ certificate (not a certification) for those who are entering the industry without formal HVACR training. The second exam will help contractors determine when an employee is ready to perform a routine maintenance check on their own, or perform small tasks without the need for supervision.
North American Technician Excellence (NATE) has announced that the HVACR certification organization will begin to offer entry-level tests: one will be for technicians who are new to the HVACR industry. Another is a “benchmark” test that will help track technician progress toward full NATE certification. “The first of these two tests will offer a ‘Ready-to-Work’ certificate (not a certification) for those who are entering the industry

without formal HVACR training, and be a huge help for technicians and contractors alike,” wrote Wade Mayfield, NATE chairman, in an editorial appearing in the latest edition of The NATE Magazine.

“The exam will have a heavy focus on safety, tools and basic skills, and come with NATE training guides for study and preparation,” Mayfield said.

Find The NATE Magazine online by visiting: bit.ly/NATEdigitalnovember

The second exam will help contractors determine when an employee is ready to perform a routine maintenance check on their own, or perform small tasks without the need for supervision.
  
“The new Heating and Cooling Support Technician certificate will help answer that question by incorporating both theory and practical understanding into the test questions,” Mayfield said. “As the technician works and trains, and gains more knowledge he can progress onto the current NATE Heating and Cooling Professional Technician or the NATE Refrigeration Professional Technician certifications, as they exist today.”

Also in the latest NATE Magazine:
• NATE’s Chief Operating Officer John Lanier, will assume the same role for The Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI), in addition to serving NATE.
• Read about the new NATE Consumer Contractor Connection (C3) program, and what it means to contractors who seek more immediate contacts with prospective customers.
• The Leonardi HVAC Training Center in Denver, Colo. offers a fantastic classroom facility for HVAC instruction and practical, hands-on learning.