ACR Journal

February | March 2021 FITTINGS 16 Dan Wild, Business Unit Director for Conex Bänninger, discusses the continuing value of training, especially if ACR engineers are to keep up-to-date with new technologies. The importance of training in a digital world for the ‘modern’ ACR Installer Volume 7 No.2 When it comes to training, in many ways we are living in a brave new world. Opportunities to meet in person, shake hands, then sit down together and share a cuppa as we discuss new products and installation techniques have all but disappeared. Ours has always been a very practical industry, where the skills needed each and every day are literally in the installer’s hands, learned on-site in a training session or on-the-job. But, alas, life has changed. This part of working life has gone almost entirely digital. This was probably always going to happen, but circumstances have accelerated it. I used the word ‘brave’ because what used to be face-to-face has become face- to-interface, whether that’s tablet, laptop or mobile phone. No longer is the person delivering the training on-site or in the same room; the installer or engineer is now having to put their trust in someone on the ‘other side’ of a digital screen. Installers and manufacturers have had to adapt and there are advantages to this new way of learning. Including, no travelling, which subsequently saves time. Often the sessions are recorded and can be accessed at any time in the day, or night. If a training course is in a modular format, the installer can complete a module, save it and then come back to the next one at a later time. The industry has moved fairly rapidly to this new way of learning. Modern practices Less rapid for some has been the adoption of press technology for air conditioning and refrigeration applications, although the numbers are growing daily. The vast majority of those who have tried it have converted, never to go back. But there remain significant numbers for whom the traditional brazing technique is still the ‘go to’ pipework jointing method, and have yet to try press. Press technology has been in use in the wider heating and plumbing industry in the UK since the 1980s, but it’s only comparatively recently that vision and innovative design have created the opportunity to launch it within the ACR arena. The goal was to develop a press fit system that would operate successfully with the higher pressures required for air conditioning and refrigeration applications. As an example; the Conex Bänninger fitting, >B< MaxiPro, is designed for use with pressures up to 48 bar. For those yet to make the move from brazing to press, the benefits are worth restating. Safety! Press is flame-free. As a mechanical joint is completed with a press tool, there is no requirement to carry around unwieldy gas bottles. As this can be so inconvenient when installing an air conditioning system when multiple units are often on the roof. All those trips up and down the stairs! Not only does press negate the need for these hazardous materials used in brazing, because it is flame-free, there is no need for a hot work permit. Speed! Or put it another way, productivity. Completing a press joint is quicker than traditional brazing. Once initial preparation has been done, it takes just five seconds to complete the joint, using a press tool