@Blueloo and ROI and NI gas engineers

[ianmcd]

Hi I decided to start a fresh conversation about the specifics of the difficulties in your area of gas service engineers, rather than take more discussion from the origional post, I have experience of working both in the north and the south, you have some specific difficulties in the recruitment and retaining of decent engineers, I have absolutley no interest in getting into the politics of it all, when it was decided to get natural gas back again, the whole island had a massive problem, how do you get qualified engineers to come over, Pheonix offered some good packages, re-settlement etc, but with many other places just because you have ACS or at that time was ACOPS meant you had passed the minimum course, didnt mean you were any good, but they had to start somewhere, I seen first hand a company from Scotland being brought in to help out, their vans were burnt out and bricked with locals screaming Brits coming to steal our jobs, That helped a lot, I went over with CORGI as it was at the time , now called Gas safe, same shoite different day, we were treated terribly, they simply didnt want to be regulated, a few lads I knew that moved over met local girls who just wanted to move to the mainland so they are all back here now, I wish I knew the answer to the problems that companies over there face, we struggle here to get decent operatives, and the standard is getting worse year in year out, so copying our training models is definately not the answer

 

[CBW]

So is it Phoenix who regulate the ROI? Do they still fall under HSE umbrella?

 

[ianmcd]

So is it Phoenix who regulate the ROI? Do they still fall under HSE umbrella?

In the republic it is called the HSA.i.e Health and safety authority, in the north as it is still part of the UK it is still the HSE, similar with Channel Islands they have their own format and seperate regulations, but tend to follow the UK HSE to a fashion, not always though

 

[DP]

Wife and I spent a week in Shanon in a self catering unit. Nearly got overcome by CO. Told the owners but fell on deaf ears. Said I would assist their gas engineer but by the end of the stay was going nowhere. Either the owners were not interested or their engineer needed trained- suspect owners as they did not follow up the complaint.
Did not use the oven there after.

 

[ianmcd]

Wife and I spent a week in Shanon in a self catering unit. Nearly got overcome by CO. Told the owners but fell on deaf ears. Said I would assist their gas engineer but by the end of the stay was going nowhere. Either the owners were not interested or their engineer needed trained- suspect owners as they did not follow up the complaint.
Did not use the oven there after.

Dan

we see it a lot here, Gas safe, the supposed regulator cow bow to big companies like BG etc and basically let them do what they like, In ROI the corruption is absolutely rife and the so called politicians will only act on anything that they get a bung to act on, now change it to grants to adhere to COP26 and the like , now you are talking, they are all interested now, because there is money at the end of the rainbow

 

[BlueLoo]

Ireland is a wild west of regulation, training, competence, etc. The further from Dublin you get, the worse it is.

If you want anything done properly, you either call in a semi state body like the ESB (who will still only do "template engineering") or, you find a Polish trade.

The Polish guys do seem to be much better trained than most.

The Irish education system either farts out business or management graduates or dumps you into a life of stacking shelves at Tesco. There doesn't seem to be much in-between tbh

I do as much work as i can myself because having anyone else do it competently is a massive pita.

 

[ianmcd]

@BlueLoo have to agree, that was my impression, was 2006 when I worked there, and they were paying us to advise them on how to train and regulate the gas industry, then with the other hand telling us to feck off we will do what we want, they in the old saying wanted reports to be written , not read