The main thrust of this development can largely be attributed to Government legislation introduced to help improve the energy efficiency of buildings – by setting a minimum standard which buildings must adhere to. These regulations concentrate on the whole fabric of a building to improve energy performance standards and reduce carbon emissions.

For manufacturers, this has ultimately raised the bar on product development and the response has been excellent. There is now a range of highly efficient, cost-effective and innovative air conditioning systems on the market that meet and exceed legislation requirements, offering installers and specifiers more choice and options.

Another major factor that has contributed to the constantly evolving market is the surge in demand for air conditioning products. It has been well documented in the media that 2006 was one of the hottest years on record, and industry experts have predicted that there will be a steady rise in UK temperatures in the future resulting from climate change. Obviously, this has forced building services managers to address climate control issues and seek a solution that will improve the comfort of the internal environment, not only to drive up energy efficiency, but to proactively help improve the productivity of a business’ employees and the comfort of their customers.

Meeting requirements

The launch of new products into the marketplace ultimately has a knock-on effect in terms of the number of calls manufacturers receive for technical data. In order to make this transition as smooth as possible and ensure end-users can benefit from new technology, it is vitally important that the right training courses and support are available and easily accessible.

Not only does this mean the front line engineers on-site, but it also includes everyone involved in a project, from the consultants, to installers, to in-house application and sales based engineers. This will ensure a smooth project from start to completion, from installation and commissioning, to handover and the end-user demonstration. Therefore with the right training solutions in place, it will help keep everyone in this process up-to-date with the latest industry developments, giving them a competitive advantage, as they will be able to offer a superior service to their customers.

As one of the leading air conditioning specialists in the UK, Daikin is committed to providing a first class service offering to its customers. Part of this commitment is our responsibility to help installers and specifiers develop their skills or refresh their existing knowledge. This is done through the provision of an extensive range of training programmes at our recently refurbished Technology Centre in Woking and regional training facilities located in Glasgow, Manchester and Birmingham. In 2006 alone, over 1500 engineers involved in application, installation, commissioning, service and maintenance of air conditioning systems visited one of our facilities.

The centres promote the technology inherent in current Daikin products, such as water cooled VRV. The Technology Centre at Woking also contains Daikin’s new Altherma product – a residential heating, hot water and cooling system and Conveni-pack – a convenience store refrigeration and air conditioning system.

The training courses are run by an expert training team and provide delegates with a thorough understanding of the very latest air conditioning, heat pump, VRV and refrigeration systems, including installation, commissioning and servicing and maintenance. There is also a course on advanced intelligent computerised control packages for effective building control and monitoring.

For those installers who require training support for more unusual projects that are not covered by a training programme, tailor made courses can also be designed against specific customer requests. This ensures our customers can receive bespoke training support to suit their individual needs.

Addressing the skills shortage

We also recognise that the skills shortage has loomed large over the air conditioning industry for a number of years due to an ageing workforce, coupled with fewer younger engineers undertaking the necessary training courses to gain the vocational skills required to enter the industry.

To help combat this, we have made a commitment to training the building services engineers of the future by offering training courses for apprentices. The course helps them form a basic understanding of advanced air conditioning systems, building confidence in correct general installation practices and commissioning procedures. The ultimate aim being to help provide highly trained and multi-skilled engineers for the industry in the future, and to support this we are also working closely in conjunction with the air conditioning industries regional colleges following requests for information about the content and style of training courses we are offering on modern day technological advancements.

Raising industry standards

Daikin’s aim is to raise the potential for the dissemination of air conditioning technology within the industry to even greater heights, providing an effective balance between theoretical and practical knowledge. This will help raise the satisfaction of the end-user client who will ultimately gain the maximum benefit from the research and development investments we make each year.

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