The heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVACR) industry provides abundant employment opportunities for career seekers who want to learn a trade.

     "There is a real demand for qualified people in the service department," said Bruce Kalin, owner of Kalin's Indoor Comfort. "There are great opportunities for someone who wants to get into the HVACR industry - not only locally - but nationwide."

     Norman Lias, main instructor in the Air Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration program at Western Iowa Tech Community College in Sioux City, said he has seen the need for an influx of service technicians the past six years, particularly this spring. According to a recent issue of Air Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration News, 650,000 service technicians will be needed over the next decade.

     In the same issue of the trade newspaper, there were two pages full of classified ads from companies all over the United States that had jobs available, Lias said.

     Lias said local heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration companies call him two to three calls per week looking for students who will go to work for them. They want students who possess skills in basic refrigeration, electricity, writing and math.

     Heating, ventilation and air conditioning companies, such as Kalin's Indoor Comfort and Farrell's Heating and Air Conditioning, seek technically-oriented candidates to be service technicians and sheet metal installers.

     Service technicians perform routine maintenance, troubleshoot problems, and make repairs on furnaces and air conditioners. They may adjust system controls to recommended settings and test the performance of the entire system using special tools and test equipment.

     At Kalin's, service technicians typically have a technical college background, or are trained by the company. They work and continue to receive training internally or from a factory school.

     Some service technicians start taking heating, air conditioning and refrigeration courses at Western Iowa Tech Community College while still in high school, obtain some initial experience, and then come to work for a heating, ventilation and air conditioning company.

     Rick Farrell, general manager, Farrell's Heating and Air Conditioning, said he hires service tech applicants who possess at least two years of technical training or formal schooling so they know the chemistry and the physics of the industry.

     "You can only learn those in the classroom," Farrell said.

     Technical colleges, such as WITCC, teach HVACR students the basic skills they need to get started in the industry, including electrical theory, gas heating, resistance, oil and hydro heating, basic refrigeration, applied math or college algebra, or applied algebra/geometry, air nditioning principles, air conditioning troubleshooting, domestic and commercial refrigeration, air-to-air heat pumps, communication, blueprint reading, HVACR Load calculations, shop management, and air and fluid distribution.

     Most HVACR workers begin their careers as installers out of trade schools or through apprenticeships.

     Sheet metal installers remove existing equipment, install new systems, and put in new air ducts.

     Sheet metal installers sometimes have little or no training in the industry, but companies will start them out as a helper and train them if they have a mechanical aptitude, a willingness to work with their hands, and a desire to work in the field.

     "This could be a good opportunity for someone off the farm, someone just out of the service, or someone with experience in the construction industry," Kalin said. "Anyone who wants to learn a career and wants to work hard can join this industry...The more knowledgeable they are, the more valuable they are."

     Service techs and sheet metal installers must be licensed to work with freon or refrigerants in air conditioners.

     The Environmental Protection Agency requires that anyone who purchases or works with refrigerants must be certified in their proper handling.

     To become certified to purchase and handle refrigerants, a technician must pass a written examination administered by an EPA-approved organization, such as a trade school, contractor association or building group.

     Some companies will hire applicants without a refrigeration license, provided they take a course and pass the exam within a short period of time. Training programs to prepare workers for the examination are provided by heating and cooling manufacturers and other trade organizations and technical schools.

     Eventually, Kalin said, all technicians and installers will be required to have a license before they can be hired.

     Farrell said successful service techs and sheet metal installers must possess good "people" skills because they may work with as many as 10 customers a day.

     "They must be able to communicate with other workers and customers," he said. "It's imperative (for service techs and sheet metal installers) to communicate what they're doing and how they're doing it.

     "When they're interviewing, how they communicate with me is an indicator of how they will communicate with the customer."

     In addition to service technicians and sheet metal installers, HVACR companies also provide career opportunities for service managers, salespeople, service dispatchers, job cost estimators, bookkeepers, parts personnel, job foremen, a safety manager and a general manager.