Certified Mitsubishi Engineers

[waynes]

Hi ALL! Just wanted to know how many of you guys have been accredited as a Mitsubishi Certified Engineer. I see that the exam will be available soon here. Wanted to know how intense the exam was, etc. Have a nice day/ night to all

[TimWilborne]

Is this available only for Mitsubishi employees? I have never heard of it but would be interested. TW

[Goody]

You dont have to be Mitsi employees. A few years ago I was aproached by a mitsi accredited supplier to become a certified engineer. It sort of worked like this; Mitsi sell maintenance contracts to companies that have lots of crucial mitsi installations. 1star, 2 star and 3 star (mitsubishi roughly translated means 3 stars by the way) depending on which contract you buy - 1 star to 3 star means how fast they will get a certified engineer to your premises. 3 star means 24 hour support and an engineer within one hour (dont quote me exactly but this was the idea) For my part, I would get a certain area to cover and a guarenteed minimum payment for each call. The down side for me - and I really gave it some thought- was that I had to pay for the course several thousand £££'s. and pay for a hotel for 3 weeks while I took the course and leave my business to flounder while I was taking the course. I am a 1 sometimes 2 man band that could not afford to leave all my customers for 3 weeks. 3 weeks lost work - 3 weeks hotel bills and the price of the course with no guarentees of work generated from it - was in the end more than I was prepared to or could do. So like most of the rest of us - I read the manuals and blunder through :) I would have liked to have done it - but I could never fit it in and to be honest, I never go short of PLC work.

[Crossbow]

Actually the Certified Engineer program is from Mitsubishi UK. You can read about it at www.certified-engineer.com. They haven't launched anything similar in the US yet, but I know it's under discussion. Certified Engineers are typically with distributors and system integrators, and it's a way to ensure that the people are capable engineers with Mitsubishi products. There are numerous tests on different products, and to be a Certified Engineer requires passing many of them on diverse products. There are several levels depensing on the tests passed and points earned. It really has nothing to do with response times or work loads. And you don't need to take the classes to pass the tests if you've been using the products. But it helps.

[waynes]

Hi guys/ gals, Thanks for the replies. I have spoken to my sales guy at the distributor (CBI Electric in South Africa) and he has told me that it entails writing exams/ tests. You are then awarded points based on the score that you have received. Initially, you do not have to go to any course, but as Crossbow stated, it will help. I you do however fail the course, you have to redo the course (beginner/ intermediate/ advanced/ super advanced). Apparently the tests are for different components: PLC, HMI, SCADA, Drives, etc. The big thing here that will have a lot of guys in panic, is that you will have to employ at least 1 certified engineer to become/ remain a technology partner (TP). Also, your customers will feel at ease knowing that they have a person that is able to actually do the work, correctly. Goody, what was the estimated price and how long were the exams? I think 3 weeks is a bit excessive. No one is able to let one of their PLC guys go for that long! Is there anyone here with this certification?

[Colin Carpenter]

I know Mitsubishi UK used to do something like that, in fact, they used to show the certified engineers on their UK web site, but I can't find it now, so maybe they've taken it off? Strange thing was that I knew a really good company that couldn't get the certification and a really duff company that did get it. Seems like there was a little more involved than just a degree of competence ... more to do with economics, orders and sales..... if you believe the really good company's view of things, though, of course, that could just be sour grapes. If the "CAT" still visits the forum, he'd definitely know more about it having been closer to the action than me. In fact, the Web Site posted by Crossbow seems to have taken the place of the section that used to be on the main Mitsubishi site, but it seems a fair bit lacking to me. I would have expected to have been able go to the site to actually find out a list of who was certified in the UK, but I couldn't find it. I wouldn't mind betting that the site hasn't been updated for quite a while. Edited February 16, 2007 by Colin Carpenter

[Crossbow]

Colin, I went back in the site and found the list in 2 clicks. On the home page, bottom left, pick 'New -> MCE Reference List' and then in the middle of that page, pick 'Access the list of qualified Mitsubishi Certified Engineers'. It's broken out be the company name of their employer. And the certifications have ZERO to do with sales. Each person takes a supervised written exam, and if they pass, they earn points. If they do not pass, they must come back later to try again. The points have nothing to do with who they work for. I've spoken at length to the program manager about it.

[Colin Carpenter]

I admit it is there if you look for it .... I was looking for a more obvious "tab" on the Web Site. But there are other worrying things about the list which makes me think it's not an active one. Last time I looked (several years ago), there was one company on the list that I noticed because I knew them. They are still there, but they don't actually have any MCE engineers, only two that are working towards it. Strange. Also, the entries for LC Automation are a bit odd, with Chippenham having a silver rating and head office having a blue rating. Now, in my opinion LC Automation are an EXCELLENT company, and they have helped me out of more sticky situations than I care to remember, but, at the moment, I don't think they have any real tech support at Chippenham, but they do have 3 or 4 top notch people at head office. I stand to be corrected on this one, and if someone from Mitsubishi UK could confirm that the MCE list is still active and promoted by Mitsubishi from their own web sites, then I might well sign up for the exams, especially as they seem pretty cheap at £70 per exam ..... which almost seems too cheap. Footnote (after typing the above) In fact, I was right, I've just noticed just below the link to the MCE is a small note saying last updated 05/04/04 - so no new MCEs for almost 3 years then!! Doesn't seem like an active, vibrant scheme to me.

[Crossbow]

I notice that now too. I'll ask my contacts at Mitsubishi UK if it's still a working process.

[Colin Carpenter]

Thanks, I'm always a little dubious about these schemes that come into being, flare briefly, then fade away into nothing. It would be good if it worked, but it would need Mitsubishi UK to keep things up to date.

[Crossbow]

I thought I had posted this, but I don't see it here. The links at www.mistubishi.co.uk/automation are updated as of 2/7/2007. Go into Contacts and then select the MCE List. They couldn't tell me why the www.certified-engineer.com site was not updated. But the current list is available on the Contact page of their main website. It is still an active program. In fact other countries are starting to get it on the program. On another note, I know all about the 'flash' certifications. i did all the work and attended the classes and got my Scheider Certified Transparent Factory Engineer. Which basically means I know Ethernet and web pages and how they apply to the Modicon PLCs. And no more than 3 months after I got my certification, they trashed the whole program and sacked the contracted training company who developed it. Oh well... it's another line on the ol' resume.