Essential Install | Training
Owen Maddock, owner of Bristol-based home technology specialists,
ConnectedWorks, gently suggests you might need some training.
Filling knowledge gaps Manufacturer training
CEDIA – industry-specific, brand-neutral Training and sales
Owen explains: “For me, it was about catching up. My
previous job didn’t have a training budget, so the free
manufacturer training was all I had. When ConnectedWorks
started, I had a reasonable working knowledge of
installation practices, system design and data networks, but
I knew there were gaps and I wanted to fill them.”
In 2015, ConnectedWorks ‘grabbed the opportunity’ to join
CEDIA. They now carry all the main CEDIA certifications –
ESC-T Technician, ESC-N Residential Networking Specialist,
ESC-D Designer, and Owen is a CEDIA Accredited Presenter.
Owen expounds: “Brands come and go – they change
distribution, get taken over or just fall off the pace. If you learn
general principles to start with, it’s much easier to adapt.”
CEDIA training covers many aspects – networks, CAD, cinema,
documentation, rack building, lighting, and even branding.
“The team at CEDIA were great at helping me pick the
right courses to fill those gaps and pass my certification
exams”, Owen says.
Credibility
“Clients don’t know much about home technology,”
Owen points out, “that’s why they need our help. No-one
wants a self-taught solicitor, dentist or structural engineer.
Certifications enhance your credibility – with clients and
the other professionals on the project, and may also help
you justify why you’re a little more expensive.”
AWE offers courses
in smart home
control
64 | August 2017
Logic and Variables, understanding network requirements
and integrating third party control products, including
QMotion, Philips Hue and HEOS By Denon. The next
course is on October 11.
The AWE Smart Home Academy offers five expert
training courses, including The Foundation Workshop,
Whole House Integration with URC Total Control, HDMI
Owen emphasises the importance of manufacturer
training, noting recent developments in this area. “I
remember spending whole days being aggressively
sold to, but these days it’s very different” he says. Owen
underlines that recent training from Invision, HDA, Pulse
Cinemas, Meridian and Habitech have all been excellent.
“Knowledge is profitable,” Owen states. “Networking
training leads to improved hardware sales – I
understand the issues much more thoroughly,
and can explain – ‘You work from home a lot. Let’s
segment the network so your young daughters can’t
even see your work stuff.’ Straight away that’s a high
quality managed switch and VLAN-capable router.”
He continues: “In the same way, as a Cinema Design
Specialist I’ll specify a better cinema, justify my
selections, explain it all to the client, and get the job.
That robust network or better cinema then becomes
a very effective advert for ConnectedWorks and the
process repeats.”
There is a direct correlation between additional
training and an improvement in sales performance. This
is not just with the volume, Owen suggests, but also
with quality and success rate. “People say yes to better
equipment that is more suited to their needs. Do the
badges impress customers, or is it the confidence that
comes from thorough training? In all honesty, I couldn’t
tell you. But it doesn’t matter!”
and 4K Distribution with HDanywhere, Wirefree Blind
Course with QMotion and HDBaseT Expert Installer.
AWE lends its facility to CEDIA as an official base for
CEDIA education.
Crestron certification forms part of a new ETO (Electro-
Technical Officer) training course. The course, launched by
Just ETOs Ltd, has brought certified audio-visual systems
training to ETOs. The Yacht Entertainment Systems course
is a three day event run near Amsterdam and managed
by Scott Molloy and Sjoerd Appelboom. The course
serves as an overview of the most commonly encountered
system components including Crestron, all integrated in a
specially adapted media demonstration room.
Scott Molloy, Just ETOs’ managing director, explains:
“AV system skills are a crucial and unique requirement
in the yachting sector. Yet these skills are constantly in
very short supply. Gaining AV skills and certification is a
smart move.”
The first day of the course is Crestron’s CTI-Tech
course, a workshop which aims to give the attendees
the knowledge required to install and service a Crestron
system. Covering the basics of communication through to
firmware and program uploads, this course is targeted at
engineers who need key Crestron technical skills, without
programming knowledge.
On completion of this hands-on class, attendees will
gain the Crestron Technician Certification, and have the
skills and confidence to successfully install and maintain a
Crestron system.