Our splintered industry

[justlead1]

Hi Building Control have the same problem as unguilded has posted here, a massive amount of knowledge to absorb. Which like plumbing it's absorbed by some but not all. Providing lead welding is not performed on the roof (fire risk) on general buildings there is not a problem but on heritage stuff it can be a different matter, owing to a few beautiful buildings being burnt down by lead welders. Your point Systems3 is valid, but another reason for my choice is price work it"s the only thing that has motivates me.
The bathroom/shower room part of the trade is booming for the people who sell the kit but the plumbers who do the work fail to investing in a showroom and selling the service. (For probably 30% more than they get at present) The high street still works and the shops are getting cheaper.

 

[Guest123]

Hi Building Control have the same problem as unguilded has posted here, a massive amount of knowledge to absorb. Which like plumbing it's absorbed by some but not all. Providing lead welding is not performed on the roof (fire risk) on general buildings there is not a problem but on heritage stuff it can be a different matter, owing to a few beautiful buildings being burnt down by lead welders. Your point Systems3 is valid, but another reason for my choice is price work it"s the only thing that has motivates me.
The bathroom/shower room part of the trade is booming for the people who sell the kit but the plumbers who do the work fail to investing in a showroom and selling the service. (For probably 30% more than they get at present) The high street still works and the shops are getting cheaper.

The problem there is that it costs at least 10 grand to kit out and open a shop and that's on top of the 10 grand it costs to start up as a plumber in the first place. I get my business as you do by specialising in one particular field. Yours is lead, mine is bespoke designer bathrooms. All my furniture that goes into a bathroom install is hand made and built to my customers requirements with matching (often very expensive) basins and accessories. I enjoy the whole process from designing to installation and the look on the customers face when they see the finished work often makes it all worthwhile. I'm getting too long in the tooth to be jumping around roofs now with rolls of lead and burning gear! To be successful these days, I think you have to be different from what everyone else is doing.

 

[justlead1]

Hi Systems, i agree, but if it works you have a business to sell when the years run out.

 

[Guest123]

Hi Systems, i agree, but if it works you have a business to sell when the years run out.

Or I hope to pass on to my wee boy when he's older.

 

[paulnwales]

i have not done any lead work for at least 10 years, its the roofers around here that get the work. personally wer i live you seem to have to do a bit of most aspects of p&h, i find if i turn a client away saying i dont do that sorry i never hear off them again.

 

[philtheflush]

policing is all well and good but how much more will this cost and where will it end, you pay for training you pay for qualifications you pay to renew your qualifications you pay to upgrade your qualifications you pay for more trainingyou pay to be a member of a body you pay to renew your membership. you police it and you will pay! and so will the customer! and nothing will change you will still get the cowboys because people will always want it done cheaper

 

[fuzzy]

there must be a system that works, honestly we can do it in other areas, there must be an achieveable, reasonable, cost effective way

 

[truemanufan]

Cowboys should be prosecuted! Not just for gas work for all water work too! All work should be done to current standards and no corner cutting

 

[david williams]

why not become a plumber,12 week master plumbers!! the future is bleak.

 

[Puddle]

why not become a plumber,12 week master plumbers!! the future is bleak.

Still bringing up that old post David ,the future is as bleak as we make it

The trade stands for change,we instigate it ,throughout time it has always been the plumbing trade that picks up things,develops them and sets them out on their own,look around ,so many trades have began under the plumbing wing ,now they can support themselves but originate from the plumbing umbrella

We will do the same with renewables when the time comes

Splintered industry? we are a continually evolving industry,we can not be rapped up in a neat little package with one governing body,we do not stand still long enough,our trade has/will develop things and ideas long before the governing body appears for it and we can not slow things down to let any governing bodies stay with the pace of things,this is why we have a rule MI over ride any existing regs,to allow development

The word plumber stands for multi skills and open mindedness and hunger for development and willingness to utilise those developments
Have said before,you do not learn plumbing in 6 weeks,6 months or 5 years,you learn it over a life time
A plumber continues to evolves into what ever area or situation he finds himself in,if he or she can not do that and want to spend all your time repairing tap washers and installing washing machines,they are not a plumber

A splintered industry,covering lots of areas with lots of official bodies,some over crossing each other with new areas coming on line all the time....yes it is...thats plumbing

If you want everything nice and tidy,go stack shelves at Thorntons or one trick pony

There is a argument about the cost of joining all organisations,especially renewables as regards giving the bigger companies an edge but that iss a different argument

imho

 

[fuzzy]

good point puddle about an evolving industry. my point is it should be divided up, it has become so vast. nothing wrong with that, but these days plumber can cover so much, do we need new titles to describe what we do?

 

[justlead1]

When in the pub and offered tobacco at half price i bite there hand off. Highly illegal, with many enforcement agency's policing this action. Like me, Joe public will always look for a deal.

 

[fuzzy]

When in the pub and offered tobacco at half price i bite there hand off. Highly illegal, with many enforcement agency's policing this action. Like me, Joe public will always look for a deal.

and you dont even smoke!

 

[Guest123]

and you dont even smoke!

Might be the whackie Backie! LOL

 

[Puddle]

good point puddle about an evolving industry. my point is it should be divided up, it has become so vast. nothing wrong with that, but these days plumber can cover so much, do we need new titles to describe what we do?

When the time is right and with enough demand it does divide up but it all takes time,it can not be rushed

We have all lots of titles in the trade and plumbing has always covered so much,probably said the same when we were glazing and bringing on the electrical side of things,the only problem is what to call the stage one new comers/fast trackers if you like ,as much for their sake really as they think that with a bit of training they become fully fledged plumbers capable of earning a good wage,this has never been the case,as said being a plumber is as much about experience as any training and all that experience just leads you to know what training you really need

We talk about cowboys operating outside the system and any official bodies but to me fast tracking a person through some of these colleges and training centers,fleecing them of so much money,giving them a qualification and officially letting them loose in peoples houses after a few weeks is I think even more criminal and very unfair to the trainees aswell as customers.This trade demands a lot of conference in what you do also and by the industry not giving trainees prober support we are doing them a great disservice

as a footnote ,it seems to me the industry and governing bodies underestimates the skills needed by individuals in this industry to cover the different aspects involved and carry out the work involved in a honest and correct way

If you are a experienced plumber,do a simple test,sit down and list your skills,you will be surprised how long the list gets,if we do not immediately realise what is needed maybe it is unfair to expect governing bodies to realise and allow for it

Sorry I have gone on and off topic but that is the trade,I do not believe one body could be effective and also believe one of anything breeds corruption



imho