ACCA Joins Alabama Power in Celebrating New PAHRA Approved HVAC Training Center
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The Air Conditioning Contractors of America (ACCA) joined Alabama Power and business and state elected leaders Friday, October 12 to celebrate the new HVAC (heating, ventilating and air conditioning) Training Center in Jasper, AL.
The HVAC Training Center is a partnership between Alabama Power and Bevill State Community College and nearly 50 manufacturers and distributors collaborated to make it a reality.
The HVAC Training Center, which is the first of its kind to provide training on multiple types and brands of HVAC equipment, boasts 33,000 square feet of indoor facilities, including technology labs, seminar space, and classrooms. There is additional space for the program to expand in the future. Each lab is equipped with cutting-edge training equipment, including multiple types of heat pumps, simulators, geothermal systems, brazing, duct fabrication, whole house dehumidification systems, high-efficiency water heating, and ducted and ductless systems.
“ACCA was honored to join our partners in celebrating this state-of-the-art HVAC Training Center. The collaboration between Alabama Power, Bevill State Community College, and nearly 50 key players from the HVACR industry to provide a facility to train technicians addresses our industry’s need for skilled workers. Having this training facility PAHRA accredited, making it just one of a handful of the country’s 600-plus HVACR technical colleges that is making a commitment to producing superior technicians, underscores Alabama Power’s understanding of the needs of America’s HVACR contractors,” said Interim President and CEO for ACCA Barton James.
“It is exciting to see Alabama Power and Bevill State working together to improve and enhance the HVAC learning experience,” said Becky Hoelscher, Director of AC Aftermarket Sales, Emerson Commercial and Residential Solutions and Chairman of the Partnership for Air Conditioning, Heating, Refrigeration Accreditation (PAHRA). “It is great that so many members of the industry came together to support this facility through donations. The team at Emerson is looking forward to seeing the next generation of trained technicians that this facility will produce. Our hope is that schools in every state will follow this model, to help ease the constraints of the current workforce shortage.”
“We are honored to work with Bevill State and our other partners to deliver this state-of-the-art HVAC Training Center,” said Alabama Power CEO Mark Crosswhite. “It has been designed to provide the best possible environment to gain the expertise needed to provide superior HVAC service to customers, all while growing and elevating Alabama and its workforce.”
Alabama Power and ACCA have a long-standing relationship that has formed an effective template for workforce solutions for ACCA’s members and beyond. The opening of the HVAC Training Facility in Jasper will have a positive impact for the entire HVACR Industry.
You can download photos from the event at www.flickr.com/photos/acca.
For more information on the new HVAC Training Center, PAHRA, and ACCA’s involvement, contact ACCA’s Director of Communications at melissa.broadus@acca.org or 703-824-8842.
Photo Caption: ACCA and PAHRA representatives celebrated the opening of Alabama Power and Bevill State’s new state-of-the-art HVAC Training Center. From left: Joel Owen, Manager HVAC Training Center, Alabama Power; Anthony Spagnoli, Testing and Education Manager, NATE; Becky Hoelscher, Director of AC Aftermarket Sales, Emerson Commercial and Residential Solutions and Chairman of the Partnership for Air Conditioning, Heating, Refrigeration Accreditation (PAHRA); Warren Lupson, Executive Director at Partnership for Air Conditioning,Heating & Refrigeration Accrediation (PAHRA); and Barton James, ACCA Interim President and CEO.
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