What do the activities of a head plumber with a federal certificate look like?

A head plumbing fitter (formerly project manager for plumbing) is responsible for the technical and administrative management of plumbing installations. The job includes planning, work coordination and execution with the employees assigned to them. This includes the entire installation process, from ordering materials to acceptance of the installed systems in the form of cold and hot water supply and drainage systems. The head plumbing fitter is the direct contact person and advisor for end customers, architects and the public sector. In this function in the middle management of executing companies in the sanitary industry, own projects can be managed and led to success and junior staff can also be trained.

The following activities are part of the day-to-day work of a Chief Plumbing Fitter:

• Administrative management of assembly work:
  • Planning the systems in compliance with laws, standards and regulations
  • Create design sketches
  • Create material extracts
  • Organize prefabrication of system components
  • Ordering material
  • Create a schedule
  • Create employee assignments
  • Find out about regulations in the contract for work and services
  • Check assembly documents for completeness
  • Create all documents required for billing
  • Create final invoice

• Technical management of assembly work and team:
  • Monitor prefabrication and check results
  • Construction site organization
  • Management of the assembly group and discussion of work processes
  • Instruct plumbers and apprentices (show basic work techniques, explain fastening systems and convey sound insulation measures)
  • Record material consumption
  • Keeping work reports
  • Responsible for compliance with occupational safety regulations
  • Commissioning of the installed fittings, systems, components and piping systems
  • Technical acceptance of the work and functional checks
  • Elimination of any faults
  • Clear explanation of correct operation and maintenance to customers
  • Ongoing further training, as you have to be familiar with the constantly changing materials, systems and regulations in the building technology sector

• Contact and consultant for end customers, architects and the public sector
  • Leading construction meetings
  • Discuss work processes in advance
  • Define deadlines and responsibilities
  • Logging and information distribution

Target group and skills: Who are the head fitter plumbing courses with professional examination suitable for? What qualities and skills are required?

The head fitter plumbing courses are aimed at plumbers who:

• improve and perfect their manual skills,
• assume a supervisor function,
• obtain a higher vocational training qualification in the form of a federal certificate,
• and who would like to create the basis for further development as a certified master plumber (HFP).

The following skills and characteristics are required for successful plumbing work in the role of Chief Plumbing Fitter:

• Leadership qualities and a sense of responsibility
• Spatial imagination and organizational skills
• Commercial skills and flair for numbers
• Technical understanding and manual skills as well as an interest in physical processes
• Mobility
• Independence and ability to work in a team
• Reliability and flexibility
• Sociability and pronounced environmental awareness
• Sense of order and cleanliness
• Resistant constitution, no balance disorder / dizziness

Requirements for admission to the professional examination for head fitter for sanitary installations:

The following prerequisites are required for admission to the final examination "Federal Vocational Examination for Head Plumbing Fitter":

• Federal certificate of competence (EFZ) as a plumber
• and at least 2 years of professional experience in the sanitary industry after basic vocational training

or

• Federal certificate of proficiency (EFZ) in a related profession
• and at least 4 years of professional experience in the sanitary industry after basic vocational training

and

• has the required module qualifications or certificates of equivalence

The following module qualifications must be proven for admission to the examination and the award of the federal certificate as head fitter for sanitary installations:

• Practical work
  • 10.21 Piping systems
  • 10.22 Mounting systems
  • 10.23 Flagship technology
  • 10.24 Commissioning and error handling during installation
• Work organization
  • 11 .21 Work preparation 1 Supply
  • 11 .22 Work preparation 2 Disposal
  • 11 .23 Work preparation 3
  • 11 .24 Order processing 1
• Professional knowledge
  • 12.17 Water 1
  • 12.18 Gas 1
  • 12.19 Property drainage 1
  • 12.20 Technical arithmetic 1
  • 12.21 Construction technology
  • 12.22 Building technology
• Project planning
  • 13.13 Project planning 1
• Applied legal issues
  • 40.13 Legal basis
• Finance
  • 41.22 Calculation 1
• Personnel management
  • 44.15 Personnel management
  • Vocational training qualification (in accordance with Article 44(1)(c) of the Vocational Training Ordinance)

The individual modules are completed as compulsory modules in the preparatory courses for the professional examination. The module certificates are valid for five years. You will be informed in writing at least three months before the start of the examination whether you meet the requirements for the professional examination for head fitter for sanitary installations - in the event of rejection, including reasons and information on legal remedies.

Learning material and contents of the plumbing training course for head fitter:

The subject matter of the preparatory courses for the professional examination for the professional certificate as head fitter for sanitary installations is based on the specifications of the sponsor of the federal examination, the Swiss-Liechtenstein Building Technology Associationsuissetec.

The learning content of the plumbing training course to become a head fitter for plumbing is divided into modules and covers the following topics and areas of expertise:

• Practical work
  • Piping systems
    • Steel tube processing
    • Copper and stainless steel installations
    • Plastic and metal composite pipe installations
    • Sewage systems
    • Accident and fire prevention
  • Mounting systems
    • Systems
    • Planning
    • Realize
    • Fastening systems
    • Sound insulation
  • Showcase technology
    • Instruction
    • Basic working techniques
    • Piping systems
    • Fastening systems
    • Sound insulation
  • Commissioning and error handling for installations
    • Commissioning and troubleshooting of valves and systems
    • Commissioning and troubleshooting of gas and heater components
    • Commissioning and fault handling for cables and line systems
• Work organization
  • Work preparation 1 Supply
    • Fabrication sketch / illustration
    • Material pull-outs for assembly
    • Calculating combinations and axis offsets
    • Installation technology and fastening systems
  • Work preparation 2 Disposal
    • Fabrication sketch / illustration
    • Material pull-outs for fastenings and brackets
    • Calculating interlacing and overcranking
    • Installation technology and fastening systems
  • Work preparation 3
    • Pre-wall systems
    • Fire protection practice
    • Sound insulation practice
    • Installation and fastening technology
  • Order processing 1
    • Project organization, assembly processing, materials management
    • Deadline, coordination, acceptance
    • Facilities, work team, training
    • Occupational safety
• Professional knowledge
  • Water 1
    • Structure and tasks of the water supply
    • Cold water supply
    • Hot water supply
  • Gas 1
    • Gas and combustion theory
    • Structure and tasks of the gas supply
    • Domestic installations with natural gas
    • Domestic installations with liquid gas
  • Property drainage 1
    • Building drainage, wastewater and rainwater
    • Lifting systems
    • Separation systems
  • Specialized arithmetic 1
    • Mechanics
    • Hydrostatics
    • Hydrodynamics
    • Thermodynamics
  • Building technology
    • Building construction
    • Building physics
  • Building technology
    • Heating technology
    • Ventilation and air-conditioning technology
    • Refrigeration technology
    • Electrical engineering
• Project planning
  • Project planning 1
    • Drawing standards / types of representation
    • Detailed plans
    • Cable sections and installation instructions
    • Recess plans
    • Cold water supply systems
    • Hot water supply systems
    • Drainage systems
    • Gas
    • Project presentation
• Applied legal issues
  • Legal basis
    • Basics of liability law and contract law
    • Fundamentals of employment contract law and the collective labor agreement (CLA)
    • Principles of the contract for work and services (with standard SIA 118)
    • Structure and functioning of our state system
    • Structure of the Swiss legal system
• Finance
  • Calculation 1
    • Cost components / allocation types
    • Calculation
    • Standards / Conditions
    • Reports / extent for billing
    • Information element calculation
• Personnel management
  • Personnel management
    • The basic skills in communication
    • Using communication techniques
    • Fundamentals of leadership
    • The management function
    • The personal management style
    • Management by objectives (MbO)
    • Assessing employees
  • Vocational trainer course
  • Vocational training qualification (in accordance with Article 44(1)(c) of the Vocational Training Ordinance)

Some schools recommend a preliminary course in specialized arithmetic.

Sanitary courses - costs and financing:

Depending on the provider and duration, the costs for training as a head plumber vary. On average, the following amounts are to be expected for the training costs:

• Course fees:about CHF 13'860.- to CHF 21'450.-
  After taking the exam, you will receive around 50% of this back from the federal government on application (regardless of the result)*.
• Examination fees:CHF 800.- and CHF 100.- organizational services (as of 2023, additional costs for module examinations totalling CHF 2,880.- and approx. CHF 600.- for vocational training course)
  The examination fee is set by the body responsible for the professional examination. It is paid by the candidate after confirmation of admission to the examination for training as head fitter for sanitary installations.
• Extra costs:At some schools, the costs for enrolment fees, teaching materials, training documents, books, intensive exam training, simulation exams, school diplomas and interim qualifications, for example, are not included in the course fees. Please contact the provider of your choice directly to find out what additional costs you can expect for the course.

*Since January 1, 2018, preparatory courses for federal professional examinations, such as the training course for head plumber, have been financially supported by the federal government. Graduates of these courses can therefore be reimbursed up to 50% (max. CHF 9,500) of the course costs paid after taking the federal examination. In cases of hardship, the federal contributions are also pre-financed in exceptional cases.

Duration of study, teaching times and learning effort for the further training course in plumbing:

• The training and further education for sanitary engineers is modular in structure (i.e. some of the skills are assessed in module examinations prior to the professional examination and are only tested across modules in the final examination) and lasts three to four semesters while working. The training for the professional examination for head plumbing fitter comprises around 800 lessons.
• The teaching times vary depending on the provider of the further training course for head fitter in plumbing. Classroom teaching takes place on one to two days (or half days) per week or one weekday and Saturdays or block weeks (sometimes additional).
• Thanks to the extra-occupational concept of the Head Fitter for Plumbing training course, you can apply and consolidate the learning material in practice straight away. Nevertheless, you should allow sufficient time for lesson preparation and follow-up as well as for self-study. Depending on your previous knowledge, working style and learning speed, we recommend that you allow the same amount of time for the additional workload as the regular course duration.

Note: Some schools offer so-called "taster lessons", which provide an insight into the lessons and the learning atmosphere. A suitable learning environment is important on the way to successful completion of the advanced training course for plumbing technicians.

Degree, diploma and title:

The professional examination "Chief Plumbing Fitter with Federal Certificate of Competence" is held annually in German, French and Italian, provided that a minimum of 10 candidates meet the admission requirements.

Candidates for the professional examination for head plumber will be notified at least 30 days before the start of the examination. The invitation includes the examination program (with details of the place and time of the examination as well as permitted aids) and the list of experts.

The professional examination for head plumbing fitter comprises the following two parts:

• Case study (written, 4 hours, double weighting):
  • It consisted of five tasks in the specialist areas of property drainage, recesses, hot water requirements, material extract and specialist arithmetic, such as correcting an incorrect drainage diagram, calculating rainwater drainage, creating a recess plan, calculating hot water requirements and storage tank size for hot water preparation, material extract for the order for a basement distribution system and six specialist arithmetic tasks. By successfully completing the case study, the candidate proves that he/she is able to recognize complex problems from the professional environment, analyze them and develop practice-oriented solutions.
• Expert discussion (oral, approx. 45 minutes, 1-fold weighting):
  • The subject of the expert discussion is made up of questions from the entire subject area of the modules of the professional examination, including the task of the case study. The candidate demonstrates to the experts that he or she can implement the module content in a networked and application-oriented manner.

Diploma and title

Graduates of the professional examination receive a federal certificate and are entitled to use the federally recognized and protected title "Chief Plumbing Fitter with federal certificate" or "Chief Plumbing Fitter with federal certificate".

• In French: "Contremaìtre sanitaire avec brevet fédéral"
• In Italian: "Capo montatrice di impianti sanitari con attestato professionale federale / Capo montatore di impianti sanitari con attestato professionale federale"
• In English: "Chief Sanitary Engineer with Federal Diploma of Professional Education and Training" (Attention: This is only a recommendation/translation and not a protected title)