training and certification of CMT technicians

[boffintech]

Are training and certification of construction materials testing technicians taken seriously by engineering firms in Georgia? (Or in any state for that matter?)

I’m guessing that on any given day there are around 1200* CMT techs working for the 70 something CMT labs/engineering firms in the state. (* This estimate excludes techs working on the geotech side of things like drilling/exploration, clean soils laboratory, exploration, and construction. This estimate includes techs working in field and lab testing of asphalt, concrete, and soils.)

According to recently published directories of the National Institute for Certification in Engineering Technologies Georgia is home to a mere 143 certified Construction Materials Testing technicians.

Of these 143 NICET certified CMT technicians in Georgia a paltry 33 have at least one Level III or one Level IV certification. (In addition to a passing score on an examination, a Level III cert requires a minimum of 5 years of verified and documented OTJ experience. A Level IV cert, the highest, requires a passing score on an exam and a minimum of 10 years of verified and documented OTJ experience.)

Of the 143 NICET certified CMT technicians in Georgia only 5 have completed the NICET CMT program by obtaining a Level IV certification in all 3 CMT subfields (Asphalt, Concrete, Soil). These 5 NICET certified technicians make up the top 1/2% of all CMT technicians in GA.

Why don’t engineering firms take training and certification of their technicians seriously?

 

[RDK]

Because the market does not demand that the technicians are certified.

Specify that only certified technicians can perform certain duties and you will get more technicians certified.

Hire only certified technicians and pay them for their knowledge and expertise. Encourage those uncertified technicians in your employ to become certified through paying for the courses and certification as well as a pay increase upon certification.

That is of course assuming that the certification process is meaningful in the first place.




Rick Kitson MBA P.Eng

Construction Project Management
From conception to completion

http://www.kitsonengineering.com

 

[henri2]

I guess it really depends on several factors such as:

1. Jurisdictional requirements--example certification, work experience. Is NICET certification mandatory for public and private sector construction projects in GA? If it is not, then training may not be a high priority.

2. Level of difficulty of exam. Are the NICET exams very tough to pass without training? How do they compare to say, AWS's CWI exam and ICC special inspection exams?

3. Supply --where there is no jurisdictional requirement for certification and or the exams are easy, there'll be a large pool of techs and no incentive for employers to train.

4. Demand---tough exams/jurisdictional requirements creates a demand for techs and in this situation, companies will have a hard time finding qualified techs and may be forced to train their employees.

5. Accreditation---this ties in with item 1 above. Some jurisdiction require CMT compnaies to be accredited and one of the conditions of accreditation (A2LA and IAS) is that the lab offers training to its techs.

6. Loyality---some employers may have invested a lot in training employees for certification exmans...only to see employees depart right after they pass...

7. Attitude to training---you do have some CMT companies who will train their employees even if there is no requirement for certification or training because they believe it is the right thing to do.

Bottom line, many employers will only train techs if they have to...and in western states where ICC and AWS certs are in demand (jurisdictional requirements), a lot of CMT companies do have their techs trained.

NICET does not seem to have done a good job in marketing itself to state and local government juridictions. They are involved in way too many disciplines. Out here in CA, they are not a factor. I also think their five step certification process over 10 years is not realistic and lacks appeal. They should keep it simple; associate and full certification like AWS.

Suggestion

You seem very serious about acquiring knowledge in the field you are engaged in and that is commendable. Why don't you approach your company owners and suggest they team up with other CMT companies...approach a civil eng dept of a local university and discuss the feasibility of putting on a training program (for NICET, AWS, ICC certs etc) through the continuing education dept?

 

[Ron]

boffintech...you are to be commended for your outlook on certification. Many technicians consider it a chore, not a career enhancement.

In many states, technician certification is taken seriously, most often led by the DOT in that state. They often set requirements and then the CMT labs have to comply if they want to do the state DOT work. Georgia doesn't seem to push that very hard. In fact, I know of many engineers in Georgia who don't bother to sign/seal documents the way it is typically done in other states. I had one very senior engineer with a former employer state to me that he could count on one hand the times in 30 years he's had to use his seal on documents in Georgia (his state of practice/residence).

In Florida, technicians who do work on FDOT projects must be certified in the state's program. NICET and others help, but do not substitute for those requirements.

Keep pushing it....it's a good thing.

 

[RDK]

In Canada we have a technician certification CET or Certified Engineering Technician. Registration while voluntary is almost universal among those qualified for the title.

The reason is that most consulting firms and government agencies consider it a mandatory qualification and pay the registration fees for their employees.

Thus they will be certified if the market demands that they be certified. If there is no incentive to be certified then only a few who want the qualification for its own sake will bother.

The same can be said for the different PE and P.Eng rates between the two countries and even the different PE rates by discipline in the US.




Rick Kitson MBA P.Eng

Construction Project Management
From conception to completion

http://www.kitsonengineering.com