Flame Heating, Cooling, Plumbing, and Electrical is a family owned company that started over 60 years ago in 1949. Based in Warren, Michigan, the company prides themselves on being the contractor of choice by having over 55 trucks on the road and having rapid response teams that can reach customers without a long wait. And while their customers enjoy quick service, one of the keys to making that service so great is NATE certified technicians.
Flame currently employs 39 NATE certified technicians and makes getting certified a part of their career path.
“Every technician we hire is required to become NATE certified within one year of getting their job,” says Matt Marsiglio, Service Manager. “We help our employees reach this goal by providing them with classes and training materials. If we are going to make this a goal for them, we are going to help them reach that goal.”
And as encouragement to reach the NATE certification goal, they have career advancement rewards tied to their program.
“We tie NATE certification into the promotion process,” adds Marsiglio. “Our technicians need to earn NATE certifications to move up in their careers. We also pay our certified technicians more. By having these added incentives, it encourages our technicians to go the extra mile to earn the certifications and it not only makes them better, but it makes our entire company better and the industry better.”
And the company’s support doesn’t stop with gaining the initial certification. Since NATE certification requires technicains to earn continuing education credits, the company makes sure that their technicians have access to those classes, so that technicians don’t have anything hindering their continued success.
And if you were to ask the Flame team why they put such a strong focus on NATE certification they have a simple answer.
“NATE certification ensures that there are knowledgeable technicians in the field that re continuing to learn and stay up-to-date with the changing products,” says Marsiglio. “It gives technicians a sense of accomplishment when they earn the certification and NATE certification could be the single biggest distinguishing factor between you and your competition.”
To learn more about NATE certification and how it can help you company, visit www.natex.org.