Meet Our Graduates

Robert Simmons, an Industrial Electrician, works at West Fraser- Barwick, a wood products company producing lumber, engineered wood (OSB, LVL, MDF, plywood, particleboard), and other products including pulp, newsprint, wood chips, and renewable energy. He is responsible for the installation, troubleshooting and maintenance of equipment.

‘I needed a better understanding of programming as we use Rockwell RSLogix 5000 software in our plant. I liked the simulation software in the PLC Technician II program; it allowed me to create a program, run it, see the result of the programming and troubleshooting when it was not running properly.’

‘My role has not changed; however, the program did clear up some programming issues especially with regards to a control word in conjunction with masking.’

Michael Sovereign has been working for New Gold Inc in Rainy River, Ontario “for five years, first as a Maintenance Electrician and for the past two years as a Process Control Specialist. My responsibilities include administrating, configuring, and maintaining a DeltaV DCS system as well as other plant automation, including industrial communications and PLCs.”

“I wanted to learn more about PLCs because it is in-demand, and I enjoy working with computers. I had looked around for PLC courses before, but the cost was high and in-class learning was not feasible while working full time. When I found the PLC Technician II program at George Brown College, I was thrilled! The cost is reasonable, and the benefit of learning at my own pace while working allowed me to have a work/study/life balance.”

“The PLC Technician II program gave me the skills to troubleshoot PLC programs and an understanding of the concepts of PLCs, which contributed directly to my success in learning and understanding the DCS system at work. It is important to note that I spent considerable time learning the DCS so when position of Process Control Specialist open, my foreman recommended me for the job. “

V.R. currently works in Transportation Services as a Facilities Engineering Electrician. His responsibilities include electrical repair, maintenance, and installation. ‘In the automation field, I primarily work with DDC controllers and field devices, which are like PLCs but more directed to commercial HVAC systems.’

 He particularly liked ‘the programs flexible delivery format and hopes the training will open up some opportunities in the future.’

Jose Andres Avecillas Andrade is an Industrial Engineer where his responsibilities include preventive and corrective maintenance of AGVs (automated guided vehicles) and automation systems, as well as support for onsite and online PLC’s and robots. 

Jose wanted to ‘learn more about PLCs and delve more deeply into programming them’ especially as works in ‘a highly automated facility. My employer has given me the opportunity contribute to other areas of the company, allowing me to put into practice what I have learned.’

‘I like the way the PLC II content was presented and explained using examples and the simulation software.

Terrance Ryan enrolled in the PLC Technician Certificate program to broaden his skills and find new employment opportunities. ‘For many years I have worked in electrical construction, as a journeyman electrician, but now wish to get into electrical maintenance. Knowledge of PLC's is vital for this type of work.”

‘I thoroughly enjoyed the program. The simulation software, PLCLogix, was easy to use. I could set up and debug my own projects. In addition I was fascinated with how Boolean algebra could be used to simplify circuits. Being able to access the program tutors by phone 6 days a week, was extremely helpful.’

John Howe is an Engineering Manager and Electrical Engineer.  He registered into the PLC Technician Certificate “as a refresher program that would fill in some of the gaps in my knowledge.  In my current role I do not install or troubleshoot PLC systems, but I support those who do.  I was very satisfied with this program and can better assist the people I work with.”

The “staff was excellent and quick in helping with my administrative issues. I give full marks to George Brown College and recommend this program to those looking to increase their knowledge of Allen Bradley ControlLogix PLCs.”

Sumit Khangura enrolled in the PLC Technician program to supplement his Electronics Engineering Technology degree, as it did not provide an in-depth study of PLCs. He explained that his employer, Nav Canada, ‘didn't even ask me about my degree, they wanted to know more about my certificate in PLCs.’

Sumit is an Installation Technician ‘responsible for doing any and all PLC and automation related work.’

He believes that taking the PLC Technician program and learning about PLCs ‘really helped me when interfacing PLCs to scale controllers.’ He cites a specific time at work where there was ‘an issue with bit formatting which I was able to troubleshoot. I determined that the PLC was displaying the wrong weight due to using the wrong datatype; a byte instead of a double was initially used in the ladder logic program.’

There are a number of features of the program that he liked, first, ‘the certificate was self-paced, I could go as fast or as slow as I wanted and did not have to adhere to a professor's schedule and second, the simulation software ‘was an excellent tool to learn programming ladder logic.’