Graduates from the Electrical program usually choose work in one of three main areas
Construction
Construction Electricians install wiring and electrical devices in residential, commercial and industrial buildings and equipment. They are required to be certified through the state. Trainees work under supervision of a journeyman. To become a Journeyman Electrician, you must work 8,000 hours and pass a test. SCC Electrical program graduates are awarded 1524 hours. Construction Electricians do some or all of the below tasks:
- Conduit bending
- Pipe threading
- Pulling wire
- Terminating wire
- Installing panels, transformers, outlets, lighting, HVAC equipment
- Wiring motors and motor controls
Construction Companies
The SCC Electrical Maintenance and Automation department has a good relationship with the union apprenticeship and students are given pay adjustments and class credit for completing the program.
Other places of employment:
- IEETT Inland Empire Electrical Training Trust
- Employed by numerous Electrical Contractors
Utilities
Utility electricians install, maintain and test transformers ,switchgear, batteries and monitoring equipment for power generation facilities, dams, substations and power distribution equipment. They do some or all of the below tasks:
- Repairing and replacing large transformers and substation switchgear
- Using electrical test equipment
- Working in bucket trucks and lifts
- Trained to use high voltage protective clothing and tools
- Calibrating and testing power monitoring equipment
Utility Companies
- Avista Utilities
- Modern Electric
- Vera Power
- Puget Sound Energy
- Seattle City Light
- County PUDs
- Veterans are eligible to work at Bonneville Power Administration and Army Corps of Engineer hydropower projects
Maintenance
Maintenance electricians install, maintain, perform preventive maintenance, and troubleshoot and repair automated equipment in large commercial buildings and production facilities. Work locations include sawmills, mines, food processing plants, aluminum mills, pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities, breweries. Maintenance electricians are typically setup to receive and investigate trouble calls and report to production and are often put in charge of entire sections of plants and large complex equipment. They do some or all of the below tasks:
- Testing and troubleshooting automated equipment
- Inspecting and adjusting equipment
- Installing and replacing equipment
- Conduit bending
- Wire pulling
- Terminating wires
- Programming and testing automated equipment
Maintenance Companies
- Kaiser Aluminum
- Boise Cascade
- Inland Empire Paper
- Wagstaff
- ASC Machine tool
- Alliance Machinery
- City of Spokane
- Franz Bakery
- ETS Automation
- Control Freek
- Vaagan Brothers
- Metal Roll Forming Systems
- MoCo
- Lamb Weston