Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16CAREERops HVACR Service Technician Program Was the Right Choice 10 “Our instructor, William McLaurin, was outstand- ing. He was so patient, just the very best teacher. Within the first week, I knew I made the right choice!” – Kevin Baker looking to tran- sition out of the Army, he wasn’t quite sure what he was going to do. He had been a Combat Engi- neer, stationed at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington State. His focus in the Army was to perform route clearance, involving locating and disposing of IEDs (improvised explosive devices), and he used these skills in Afghanistan when he was deployed in 2011. Kevin’s path was secured aer seeing a brochure about the United Associa- tion’s (UA) Veterans in Piping® (VIP®) HVACR (heating, ventilation, air-conditioning and refrig- eration) Service Technician program. He said he was intrigued by this program that would take soldiers who were still on active duty, and he signed up for an information session and then for an interview. He said, “I was in the first active-duty HVACR Service Technician class. I believe there were 80 applicants, and they chose 10. I was lucky enough to be one of those 10. e program was being run out of Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 32 in Seat- tle, WA. Our instructor, William McLaurin, was outstanding. He was so patient, just the very best teacher. Within the first week, I knew I made the right choice!” e U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that the HVACR field will experience growth of 21 percent during the years from 2012-2022. is percentage of job growth is huge. With new tech- nologies available in today’s marketplace, older HVACR equipment is far less efficient than today’s models, costing consumers more money to run, offering less comfort, and also taking a larger toll on the environment. In an effort to “go green,” while saving money and providing better comfort levels for their homes and workplaces, consumers are making the change to newer HVAC systems and are more conscientious about having routine maintenance performed. is all equates to jobs, and Kevin felt he was signing up for a career that would offer him an excellent salary and benefits. Today Kevin is a third-year HVACR service technician apprentice, working for Johnson Con- trols in Denver, CO—the area that Kevin chose upon graduating from the VIP program to start his UA career with Pipefitters Local 208 in Den- ver. “I have my own truck,” he said. “I typically know what I’m doing for the week. At this point, I’m able to do some maintenance calls on my own, but on any installation or repair jobs I am paired with a journeyman. Next year, I might be able to When Kevin Baker was Kevin Baker