The unemployment rate among the youth in India is very high. In the case of engineering graduates and diploma holders, the unemployment rate is in the range of 30 to 40 percent. There are thousands of engineering colleges all over the country and tens of thousands of students pass out every year. The number of jobs being created annually is not at all enough to accommodate them. Further, the lack of exposure and practical training provided by many institutions are impacting their employability. Under the circumstances, it is important that unemployed engineering graduates explore the possibility of undergoing job-oriented programmes that could enhance their employability. HVAC is one such field. Read on to know more about HVAC Training and Job Opportunities.
What is HVAC?
HVAC expands to Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning and is a field that is suitable for both electrical and mechanical engineering graduates. It is a technology that is employed for regulating the temperature inside different types of buildings, and even vehicles, and ensuring the circulation of fresh air within spaces as per requirement. The type of HVAC system required for each country is different and is dependent on the weather conditions of that place.
In European countries, which generally experience cold weather conditions, the HVAC system is used for heating the air inside residential and commercial spaces. However, the HVAC system is used for cooling the interior spaces of residential and commercial buildings in Asian and Arabian countries.
In India, large buildings such as multispecialty hospitals, 5-star hotels, malls, supermarkets, and movie theatres, among others, install centralized air conditioning systems for cooling the inside air and ensuring the flow of fresh air. Such HVAC systems that make use of heavy machinery have been in use in the country for many decades now.
Multinational companies have been operating successfully in India for many years now. The main functions of the HVAC system are as follows:
- Drawing fresh air from outside, filtering to remove dust and bacteria, cooling, and distributing the clean air inside homes, multi-storey buildings, industrial spaces, and vehicles
- Regulating the temperature within a building so that the people who occupy these spaces feel comfortable
The HVAC system makes use of the ventilation arrangement to throw out the polluted inside air that is laden with moisture and has a foul smell, dust, and microbes. The HVAC field offers a lot of employment opportunities for people who have completed a degree course in mechanical or electrical engineering. HVAC systems are categorized as split air conditioners, centralized air conditioners, and cassette air conditioners and are used for meeting different requirements.
What are the job opportunities for an HVAC engineer?
HVAC is an indispensable engineering field as far as many nations are concerned. For example, it is as important as oxygen in the Gulf countries. That’s why HVAC has become one of the fields that open up plenty of employment opportunities in Asia, Europe, and other countries. In Kerala, the increase in incomes earned by middle-class people has led to a large jump in the sales of HVAC appliances.
As a result, this is a field that engineering graduates, among thousands that pass out every year, who continue to remain unemployed can consider. In the HVAC field, mainly chosen by mechanical and electrical engineers, there are plenty of job opportunities in areas such as HVAC Design Training, HVAC Maintenance, HVAC Installation Training, and Project Engineering.
HVAC design engineers are professionals who develop systems that work well in different climatic conditions in various countries to control the ambient temperature and quality and quantity of air inside buildings. HVAC installation engineers and site supervisors are those professionals who erect and commission the systems developed by HVAC design engineers in various construction sites. Engineers who work in this field are generally referred to as HVAC engineers. These professionals are required to have a clear understanding of the building codes and other rules and regulations related to buildings applicable in the countries where they work. A professional HVAC engineer should be capable of calculating the heat load and heat loss of the system they are handling for use at different places. The factors to be considered for calculating the heat load of systems to be installed in hospitals, educational institutions, and computer rooms are all different. Moreover, the designs of the systems to be installed in these places are also different.
What is the job of an HVAC engineer?
The job responsibilities of an HVAC engineer include:
- Determining the requirements of a building that is already constructed or under construction, keeping in mind the climatic conditions of the place
- Designing an HVAC system based on the heat load calculation of individual rooms as well as that of the building
- Preparing the HVAC system design drawings which mainly include detail drawings for:
o Ducts, pipelines, and machineries such as FCU and AHU sized as per the air conditioning requirements within rooms
o Diffusers and grills to be used at the air outlet points
In addition to preparing the design drawings, HVAC engineers also estimate the total project cost taking into consideration all equipment that the client wants to be incorporated into the system.
After designing the HVAC system for a project, the HVAC engineers start the installation of the equipment in construction sites with the help of site supervisors and engineers following all safety regulations and other standards and codes. The HVAC systems are always installed under the guidance of HVAC engineers. Further, the site supervisors and engineers obtain required clearances, update higher authorities about project progress, and participate in other related project meetings and receive instructions as well as give suggestions.
Moreover, on completion of each stage of installation, HVAC engineers compulsorily conduct a pressure test, light test, etc., and send test result reports to higher authorities and clients. As such, an HVAC engineer goes through various stages right from the start of the project till it is completed. Further, an HVAC engineer will also focus on experimentation and improvement of the HVAC system.
How can I become an HVAC engineer?
After completing a course in engineering, it is not easy to get a job these days without any additional skills. That’s why it is a good idea for anyone to undergo HVAC training after their engineering course. The institutions that conduct HVAC training courses primarily teach aspects related to HVAC system design. HVAC training centers train students in heat load calculations, HVAC codes followed in different countries, various formulae related to HVAC design, calculations using these formulae, etc. Students are also trained to calculate the load and cold air requirement for each room and determine the size of the ducts and pipes. Further, students are also trained to create drawings using the AutoCAD software.
AutoCAD drawing software is not new to engineering students. However, AutoCAD software training is essential for HVAC designing. This is because each project has to be submitted within a specified time limit. The AutoCAD software helps designers in completing projects on time. These days AutoCAD 2D and AutoCAD 3D software are also being used. However, Revit, a 3D software package, is being widely used in the design of HVAC and many other systems.
Building Information Modelling or BIM has greatly impacted the construction sector, especially in 3D designing. This includes HVAC system designing as well. This is because BIM mainly uses Revit software. Further, it enables engineers to create different and high-quality 3D sectional drawings accurately. This has boosted the importance of Revit software in the HVAC sector. As a result, an HVAC training program that includes Revit software training enhances the employability of engineering graduates.
As such, is it not a good idea for students who have spent lakhs of rupees as fees for the 4-year engineering courses to pursue a career in engineering after completing an HVAC training course rather than looking for other jobs? In fact, students can do some research online or otherwise to identify top institutes that provide HVAC training. Undergoing training in such an institute helps you to build a rewarding career in the HVAC industry.
If your search for the best HVAC training center in Kerala brought you to this page, you are at the right place at the right time. IASE, the best HVAC training institute in Kerala, offers an HVAC training course, catering to the needs of students from all districts of the state and even the nearby districts of neighbouring states. IASE has two institutions – one each in Thiruvananthapuram and Thrissur. While the HVAC Training institute in Thrissur caters to the needs of students from the central and northern regions, the HVAC Training institute in Thiruvananthapuram serves the southern region.
Finally, the best aspect about IASE is that the institution offers 100 percent placement support for its students. IASE has established strong relationships with Indian and multinational companies operating in and outside India, especially in the Middle East. All these companies contact IASE when vacancies arise for various HVAC engineer positing in their organizations. Therefore, youngsters who have completed their engineering courses can easily build a career in the HVAC engineering field as plenty of job opportunities are available in India and abroad.
