Q: I am one of four owners of a new telecommunications company and am trying to find job descriptions for personnel in this industry. The union has classifications but no real job descriptions with physical and qualification requirements, which are essential for my new personnel. I need job descriptions that include skill requirements for the various job-classification levels. For example, what skills would be required of a six-month installer and of a two-year technician?
Pamela Floyd
IJ&M Communications Inc.
Detroit
A: Congratulations on the new company! Job classifications and skill requirements--sounds like the bicsi Installation Program. This program was designed to provide a three-level competency-based approach to confirming the skills and knowledge requirements of the telecommunications installer. These levels--apprentice, installer, and technician--are determined by the years of experience within the telecommunications field. For example:
- Apprentice--Requires less than two years` experience, with little or no telecommunications installation experience. Eighth-grade-level math and reading skills are required, and basic electricity/physics courses are recommended.
- Installer, intermediate level--Requires two to five years of telecommunications installation experience, including installation of cable-support systems (cable trays, cable racks, J-hooks, and bridle or D-rings), preparation of workstation outlet locations (installed wall, floor, or modular furniture jacks), placement of horizontal station cables and backbone riser cables, terminating and testing twisted-pair copper cabling, firestopping walls, and a working knowledge of the ansi/tia/eia cabling standards and the National Electrical Code (nec).
- Technician, expert level--Requires five or more years of telecommunications installation experience, including conducting job-site surveys (including visual inspections and identifying problems); building telecommunications closets (including mounting racks, crossconnect blocks, backboards, and grounding hardware); placing copper and fiber cables (backbone and horizontal); terminating twisted-pair, coaxial, and fiber-optic cables; testing twisted-pair and fiber-optic cables; troubleshooting copper- and fiber- cabling systems; splicing copper and fiber cable; performing cutovers (retrofit or upgrade) of cabling systems; and a working knowledge of ansi/tia/eia standards and the nec as well as local area network cabling, such as Ethernet and Token Ring.
For additional information, contact Dick Dunfee, BICSI Manager of the Installation Program at (813) 903-4718 or e-mail: [email protected].
Donna Ballast is a communications analyst at the University of Texas at Austin and a BICSI registered communications distribution designer (RCDD). Questions can be sent to her at Cabling Installation & Maintenance or at PO Drawer 7580, the University of Texas, Austin, TX 78713; tel: (512) 471-0112, fax: (512) 471-8883, e-mail: [email protected].