How Do I Become a Piping Foreman?

The typical education track used to become a piping foreman, also called a pipefitter foreman, usually consists of schooling combined with an apprenticeship and then several years of on the job training. Additional education may also be required, as well as a reputation for excellence in their work. Most foremen have many years of experience working in their field.

Most of the time, the first step to become a piping foreman will be to first obtain some type of trade school or technical school education. This may be a certification program or a two year college degree. Either during or after this training, students typically begin an apprenticeship working for a journeyman or higher level pipefitter on the job. This often lasts between four and five years, although lengths vary by state. Once this apprenticeship period is over, students can take an exam to become a licensed journeyman.

A journeyman will be able to work his or her way up in order to become a piping foreman by working hard, showing leadership capabilities when working with their apprentices, and sometimes by obtaining additional education. Many times journeymen will be promoted from within the companies in which they were trained. Alternatively, after they have several years of experience working in a professional capacity, they will be hired by another company.

A piping foreman has a lot of responsibility on his shoulders. If you want to become successful, you will have to be comfortable not only in doing your job, but in managing others. You will need to be able to oversee and maintain piping systems and all workers on your crew as they repair, maintain, and construct new piping systems. You will have to have an excellent eye for detail, and be comfortable with managing others while maintaining positive repertoire with your workers.

Additional training may sometimes be offered by the company where you are working in order to encourage workers to advance within the same company. This promotes employee loyalty and ensures that any given business has trained workers who are able to do the job specifically the way a company wants. You can increase your odds of being able to become a piping foreman by taking advantage of any training, workshops, or classes offered through your employer.