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Simon Copeland, Plumber
Simon has been working in the plumbing industry for over 12 years. He has worked in a number of different aspects of the job from minor repairs to major commercial projects. Whilst at college Simon was awarded Seeboard H.E.A.T. / I.O.P. Student Award. After being time self-employed, he has worked for MJC for the last four years.
Bricking It Interview
Why did you want to be a plumber?
Before I started as a Plumber I firstly began working in an office,
but this was not for me as I preferred to get my hands dirty, so I
started to work out on site plumbing. I had a head start at an early
age as my Dad and my Uncle are both plumbers and I realised that this
was the job for me.
What's the best job you've ever worked on?
Every job is totally different so they are all unique but I would say the one job that springs to mind would be when I installed a new central heating system and 3 bathrooms in a Guest House on the Isle of Wight – once work was done for the day I hit the beach for a few hours of windsurfing, nice!
What do you do?
In my role in the company I mainly install Heating Systems, Service Boilers and install Luxury Bathroom Suites, all to a very high standard. Working with the general public sector you need to have good social skills. On the commercial side of the business I work in Private / NHS Hospitals, Schools and Public Buildings where we would work with Local Authority Welfare Aid Departments.
What are your hours / wages like?
The hours I work are from 8am to 6pm Monday to Friday with one week in the month when I am on a 24 hours call out rota. Our rate of pay is in line with the current HVCA Rates.
What qualifications do you have?
After gaining my City & Guilds Craft Certificate in Plumbing which
is essential to get started in plumbing, I then went on to gain my
City & Guilds Advanced Craft Certificate with distinctions in
all. Since then I have acquired the following qualifications:
What's your advice to would-be apprentices?
Check your local colleges for courses and aim to find an Employer who will support you through your college years. Once you have qualified and you start to work on your own remember you are only as good as your last job! Never rush things and always listen to your mentors even though you may think you know better.
For more information on MJC check out www.mjc-heating.co.uk. Channel 4 is not responsible for the content of third party websites.
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