We all know the story of Benjamin Franklin, his kite, the lightening storm and how the three combined to help create what we now know as electricity. Over 250 years have passed since Franklin changed the world, and since then thousands if not millions of people have worked as electricians. We know about old Ben, possibly the world’s first electrician, but what don’t we know about the men and women who help make our every day lives possible?
1. A master electrician trains as long as a doctor studies
A master electrician is the best electrician there is. He or she is the most experienced, most capable and most educated, having been trained in the classroom and on the job for at least eight years. A doctor, through university, med school and their residency, also trains for roughly eight years. Like a doctor, an electricians must be licensed after they finish their apprenticeship. In Melbourne, Victoria electricians such as Tesla Electrical must register with Energy Safe Victoria.
2. There are four areas an electrician can specialize in
Wen a doctor is still in school, they usually choose what they want to specialize in. Whether it be oncology, pediatrics or plastic surgery, a doctor has an important decision to make. So does an electrician. They can specialize in one of four fields. The residential field is any electrical work done within homes. Commercial is electrical work done for businesses, schools and government agencies. The third kind of electrician, industrial, will work in factories and processing or manufacturing plants, doing large scale jobs with complex machinery. Outside lineman are electricians who bring electricity from the plant to homes, businesses and factories. They are the fourth kind of electrician and work at substations and transformers.
3. An electrician needs to be fit
There aren’t too many jobs that require you to be in tip top shape, but an electrician is surprisingly one of them. Most days, an electrician will need to climb up ladders, carry heavy equipment, crawl through small spaces and even dig holes or break through walls. To do this day in, day out, an electrician needs to be fit, strong and have the stamina to do what he or she needs to do in the safest and most cost effective time as possible. Electricians also have to work in all weather conditions. Whether it be freezing cold, a hot muggy August afternoon or pouring rain, being in good shape will make an electrician’s job a lot easier.
4. A lot of famous men were once electricians
Before they achieved fame and fortune, many well known men once worked as electricians. Elvis trained to be an electrician before he was discovered by Sun Records. George Harrison was also an apprentice electrician before joining the Beatles. Mr. Bean, also known as Rowan Atkinson, has a Masters degree in Electrical Engineering from Queen’s College Oxford, and Alfred Hitchcock began studying engineering at age fifteen.
