Armstrong workers going back to school

Armstrong County is sending five maintenance workers back to school.

The county is spending $2,000 to send three public works employees and two jail maintenance workers to Lenape Technical School to learn how to repair heating and cooling systems, said Dan Lucovich, director of human resources.

If our workers know how to do this, we should be able to save money by doing repairs in-house instead of going out for contractors, Lucovich said. Any heating or cooling repair is expensive, so we figure the county will stand to save money by having our guys trained to handle it.

Public Works Director Roy Carney said roughly half of all maintenance issues are related to problems with ventilation systems in county buildings. Carney, who's trained in heating, ventilation and air conditioning system repair, now handles most of that kind of work for the county.

While most of the maintenance workers have a basic understanding of HVAC repair, Carney said he wants to make sure they are all properly trained.

It's really hard for me to get out and fix every issue, especially because we have so many buildings, Carney said. Having more people properly trained means we'll be able handle more issues quickly. It's really a good investment.

It marks the second time the county has sent its maintenance employees back to school. Last year, several attended Lenape Technical School to brush up on their electrical wiring skills, Lucovich said.

We're really fortunate to have a great educational resource like Lenape Technical School in the county, said Armstrong County Commissioners Chairman Dave Battaglia said. When we can use our own educational facilities and do our own repairs, everybody wins.

Brad Pedersen is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 724-543-1303, ext. 1337, or bpedersen@tribweb.com.

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Armstrong workers going back to school