Industrial Instrumentation & Electrical Technician 

Program Objectives:

• Demonstrate safety knowledge and practices in the shop.
• Demonstrate ability to install, maintain, troubleshoot, and repair various types of measuring and control instruments and peripherals such as measuring, transmitting, indicating, recording, and controlling devices, final elements, PLC, DCS, optical instruments, and control areas of electronics, motor controls, and different types of measuring systems.   
• Demonstrate Industrial Electrical skills needed in the field. 

What is the Industrial Instrumentation and Electrical Technician program?

The industrial instrumentation and electrical technician program equips learners with the knowledge to troubleshoot, repair, and maintain various measurement instruments used in industrial settings. Such systems include those used to measure or control pressure, temperature, flow, and level.

Furthermore, Northwest Louisiana Technical Community College (NLTCC)'s Industrial Instrumentation and Electrical Technician program prepares technicians for additional duties like:

Installing Measurement Equipment

The industrial instrumentation and electrical technician program prepares learners to professionally install measurement instruments across various commercial settings. For instance, instrumentation and control engineers can work in established hospitals, research facilities, and manufacturing plants.

Developing Maintenance Procedures

At NLTCC, instrument technicians learn to formulate detailed procedures that help maintain various instruments in their duty stations. In return, the maintenance procedures save time while enhancing employee safety. Furthermore, the maintenance procedures ensure that equipment gets quality maintenance every time.

Interpreting Blueprints and Manuals

The blueprints of equipment used in industrial, clinical, and research facilities are complicated to comprehend. They contain industry jargon and other technical procedures that can easily confuse or mislead. As such, the course helps instrumentation and control engineers to interpret the blueprints, minimizing errors that can arise during assembly or installation.

Compiling Maintenance Reports

Besides troubleshooting, repairing, or fixing equipment, instrument technicians from NLTCC, learn to prepare detailed maintenance reports after fixing faulty components. The reports are a guideline for future maintenance, saving companies from making duplicate service requests.

Ensuring Compliance

After completing the Industrial Instrumentation and Electrical Technician program from NLTCC, instrument technicians can help entities comply with various calibration and electrical regulations. For example, the technicians can help comply with IEC safety standards, enhancing workplace safety.

Training Colleagues

Instrument technicians from NLTCC do not just learn how to troubleshoot, maintain, or repair equipment; they also get solid knowledge coupled with the confidence to help train staff members on how to operate new systems efficiently. The skill, instrumentation, and control engineers from NLTCC help companies minimize errors, improve safety, and extend the lifespan of the systems.

Skills Needed for a Career in Industrial Instrumentation and Electrical Technician

Being a technical course, learners who wish to have a successful career as industrial instrumentation and electrical technician need solid technical knowledge or a passion for STEM as their core strengths. With a good grasp of technical concepts, the learner pursuing the course will have an easy time in college and the job market.

In addition to the technical skills, people pursuing NLTCC's industrial instrumentation and electrical technician program need additional skills like:

Good Analytical Skills

Instruments typically spend their career identifying and fixing issues with the equipment used to measure, control, record, or transmit variables like temperature, pressure, and level. That is why good analytical skills are essential in a career.

The analytical skills help instrument engineers assess various electrical and automation systems, identify problems, and then find solutions to restore malfunctioning equipment to optimal working conditions.

Reliable Communication Skills

Like many careers, communication is vital for electrical and instrument technicians. For instance, they receive complaints from equipment operators, train other professionals to operate equipment, and report to senior administrators.

Therefore, the learners interested in this course should have a reasonable ability to listen to customer concerns and communicate processes fluently. Communication skills will also come in handy when presenting concepts and explaining findings.

Excellent Creativity

The world's automation and electrical fields change from time to time. That means instrumentation and control engineers will likely encounter several technical issues they have never witnessed before.

On that account, learners pursuing the industrial instrumentation and electrical technician program need superb creativity to find a way out of new challenges. After all, organizations regard them as sole problem solvers in the event of systems malfunction.

Attention to Detail

Accuracy and precision are vital in troubleshooting, repairing, or maintaining electrical and automation equipment used in industries and other commercial settings. That is because simple errors could lead to costly mistakes.

As such, learners pursuing a career as instrument technicians need superb attention to detail to spot minor issues and execute complex repairs with great precision. There is no room for error when dealing with instrumentation and electrical issues.

Superb Resiliency

Pursuing industrial instrumentation and electrical technician career is a challenging feat. The technicians handle complex problems, and at times, they could be on call all around the clock to ensure malfunctioning equipment starts operating within the shortest time possible.

Therefore, people eyeing this career need an outstanding ability to work under severe pressure and deliver quality results.

Ability to Work in a Team

In many cases, instrument technicians work in a team of other engineers and other professionals. For instance, when troubleshooting medical equipment, they have to work with electricians and clinicians to ensure equipment runs efficiently.

For this reason, anyone pursuing this career needs a good ability to cooperate with teammates. They should be able to listen to other people's opinions, support other teammates in finding a solution, and work with new faces.

Educational Commitment

The knowledge offered at the Northwest Louisiana Technical Community College isonly part of what is needed to have a successful career. That is because technology keeps changing, and developers keep releasing advanced equipment.

To keep up with the ever-changing technology, aspiring instrument technicians must have lifelong educational commitments. They need to study new technological advancements as they come to remain competitive. Non-committed technicians will likely experience difficulties troubleshooting, repairing, and maintaining new equipment.

Reading Comprehension

From reading manuals and blueprints to troubleshooting reports, working as an instrument technician requires strong reading comprehension skills. The skills help technicians comprehend the setup information, thereby eliminating issues that could result during equipment installation.

Furthermore, reading comprehension helps technicians quickly troubleshoot equipment and make sense of past maintenance reports. Reading and comprehension can also come in handy while studying.

FAQs

How long does it take to become an instrument technician?

On average, it takes around two years to complete the Industrial Instrumentation and Electrical Technician course. However, the study duration can vary greatly depending on one's commitment to completing the program. At Northwest Louisiana Technical College, the course takes four semesters to complete. Each semester

What does an instrument technician do in a hospital?

In a hospital or health care setting, an instrument technician operates, troubleshoots, repairs, and maintains various diagnostic equipment, including x-rays, ultrasounds, patient monitors, Electrocardiogram machines, and anesthesia machines. 

 

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