The Australian Refrigeration Council is proud to support CCN and Next Gen as an important commitment to supporting the very best emerging talent in the climate control sector.
Not only does NextGen raise the profile of the sector, it promotes climate control as a career of first choice. This
is something that ARC promotes through several channels, such as careers expos and direct mail to schools, but nothing highlights the brightest and best more effectively than NextGen.
By making this commitment to the future, we are in turn encouraging young people to make a commitment to this specialised trade for their own futures. Climate control industry offers so much more than the more narrowly defined traded – endless variety on the job, the challenge of working with the latest technology, long term job security and great pay.
It’s also an industry that makes a difference to our fundamental quality of life. The important work done by men and women in the sector cannot be overstated.
Our day-to-day life just wouldn’t be possible without refrigeration securing vaccines, transporting food, and keeping our home and work environments comfortable. The world would be a very different place without reliable, energy efficient climate control and cold chain management.
To secure the future of our industry and continue to attract the brightest new people, we need to nurture and reward young talent. We need to provide real world opportunities during their training and early years to encourage a love for the work and an understanding of the important role they play.
Few industries offer more diversity – aviation, manufacturing, marine and mining sectors, to name a few – plus a great variety of options within the wider stationary and automotive sectors.
Reflecting this diversity are the many different organisations which represent and support the interests of our industry as a whole, and ensure a vibrant sector in which young people can thrive and prosper.
We’re united in our goal to grow the profile and status of this industry and by recruiting the best and the brightest we can create a professional sector that is respected and recognised by the community.
Our industry’s role is always evolving. We’re committed to protecting the environment through our skills and our constantly changing technologies. Ultimately, improved technology means a cleaner, more efficient workplace and greater recognition of the important contribution made by the climate control sector in all its forms.
The technical nature and environmental impact of the industry are great attractions for modern students. The industry makes a real and positive difference – and the technology is exciting.
There’s no doubt new technology is having a massive impact on the everyday tasks undertaken by technicians, adding complexity and making for interesting, challenging and rewarding careers.
Nowhere is this more apparent than in the fine young people who make up the Next Gen “Top 20 Under 25” – a diverse and impressive group if ever there was one.
All of these young people are already making their way in our industry, and in so many different ways. Whether climate control was a lifelong interest or something they discovered along the way to a career, it is something that they embraced enthusiastically when they realised what it had to offer.
Some came into the sector straight out of school, others tried another trade first, quite a few learned about it from a friend or family member already working in the industry. But all of them, new apprentices and qualified tradies alike, share the same enthusiasm and commitment that will ensure the future success of our industry.
Climate control technicians have a huge contribution to make to Australia’s future, not least our Top 20 under 25.
Without skilled, qualified and licensed climate control technicians, we can’t build new homes or hospitals, nor can we transport food. There are very few aspects of our everyday life that aren’t touched by this vital industry. We can be rightly proud of our NextGen winners so go ahead and nominate for 2023.