Wind turbine program attracting North American recruiters

By Alejandra Pulido-Guzman - Lethbridge Herald on April 14, 2022.

Herald photo by Alejandra Pulido-Guzman Representatives of wind companies take part in an open house at the Wind Turbine Technician lab at Lethbridge College.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDapulido@lethbridgeherald.com

Representatives of multiple wind companies from across Canada gathered in the Wind Turbine Technician (WTT) lab of Lethbridge College to showcase opportunities for future graduates.
As part of their Wind Industry Day on Friday the WTT program gave students and members of the community an opportunity to hear from various companies looking to recruit LC graduates.
One of the companies present was Bladefence. They focus on composite fiberglass repairs on wind turbine blades and are located in Toronto and Texas.
Project manager with Bladefence, Emily Trudell, said they came to Lethbridge College because they have a technician that works for them who is a graduate of the WTT program and they wanted to recruit more.
“We thought it was a great opportunity to come down and check out the facility and it’s actually really impressive, so we’re really impressed,” said Trudell.
She said they are also looking for opportunities for people to grow with the company as they have only been operating in Canada for the last four years.
Another company that travelled from Ontario was C&C Wind Energy Services, a third party contractor that works in the construction and service of wind turbines.
Human resource manager for C&C, Monica Boyce, said they came to Lethbridge College looking to recruit in what is a booming industry for traveling wind technicians.
“Students coming out of the wind turbine program at the Lethbridge College in our opinion come most prepared for the job and tasks at hand. They come with the right training and basically in our opinion come out quite prepared to enter the workforce,” said Boyce.
Lethbridge College’s one-year, nationally recognized program is designed to meet the international certification standard and prepares students to write competency exams as well as the first-period Electrician Apprenticeship provincial exam.
Students learn from instructors who have experience in the wind turbine industry, earn numerous safety certificates, and gain practical experience as they work on actual wind turbine components in the shop and scale the training tower that’s located right on campus.
Lethbridge College opened its doors to the public Friday night to showcase the tools, equipment and technology used by students in the program, as well as the opportunities awaiting those interested in working in one of these in-demand jobs.

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