ABYC to Offer Bay Area Marine Trades Training Certification

If you live in the Bay Area, it can feel as if people forget there’s a Bay in the middle of it. Northern Californians seem to spend their working lives ‘in the cloud’ with their hands on a keyboard. What’s often overlooked is the high demand for skilled workers who know how to work with their hands and can service the numerous recreational and commercial vessels on the Bay. In fact, one of the great laments of Bay Area marine businesses is the lack of people available for all kinds of jobs in the marine trades — from sailmaking to engine or refrigeration repair. San Francisco Bay is a busy port that includes shipping, tugboats, ferry and fishing fleets, charter schooners, recreational power and sailboats, and even  autonomous globetrotting sailboats from Saildrone. Even classic tall ships like the Matthew Turner have sophisticated diesel-electric drive systems that only a well-trained and knowledgeable tradesperson can service.

Fortunately, there is an upcoming workshop for people looking to gain the skills to work in the marine trades.

If you’re someone who’s already in the trades, or perhaps have tired of keyboards and fluorescent lights and are looking to work on boats, the American Boat and Yacht Council will be offering a  three-day course offering graduates an ABYC Marine Systems Certification. ABYC states, “[Our] nationally accredited certification program provides standards-based, continuing education for marine technicians. There are hundreds of systems on modern-day boats. The ABYC Systems certification teaches you how to design, maintain, install and repair these systems with the confidence you need to succeed in today’s marine industry. This certification is the gold standard within the industry addressing air conditioning to zinc anodes.”

The course will be held at KKMI in Richmond, February 4-6, 2020, each day from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

For more information click here or contact: Casey Bates, [email protected], (410) 990-4460 x100