Special to CONTRACTOR

CHICAGO — The Hydronics Institute Division of the Gas Appliance Manufacturers Association is resurrecting its legendary I=B=R Schools with an all-new textbook and new instructors.

HI introduced the revamped schools Jan. 27 at the 2003 AHR Expo in Chicago with a two-hour seminar that covered boiler installation, near-boiler piping, accessories and controls. About 75 people attended the session.

The I=B=R Schools were taught by HI since the 1950s but were stopped in the mid-’90s. Creating a new I=B=R School has been the dream of Slant/Fin Regional Sales Manager Joseph Coppola, chairman of HI’s education committee, for the last five years. The 63 manufacturer members of HI have funded development of the schools.

The centerpiece of the two-day program will be an all-new textbook. The much anticipated new generation of I=B=R Schools will teach the fundamentals of residential hydronic design and installation based on Residential Hydronics Heating Design/Installation - Guide 2000, a 400-page textbook recently released by HI with more than 300 full-color illustrations.

GAMA has contracted with Refrigeration Service Engineers Society to administer and promote the schools. The relationship taps into RSES’ administrative and marketing experience in the area of instruction and certification. RSES will oversee advertising for the schools, handle registrations and obtain the venues. Coppola told CONTRACTOR that he hopes HI will be able to conduct 30 to 40 schools per year.

For 2003, GAMA will conduct the I=B=R Schools in various locations around the country. They will consist of two days of training in the design and installation of hot water heating systems, including boilers, baseboard heating, radiant heating, controls, accessories, venting, piping, wiring and zoning.

A seasoned group of instructors has joined the I=B=R team and will share the teaching duties across the nation in 2003. They are:

• Jim Roche - The retired instructor from Burnham is celebrating his return to teaching as part of the I=B=R team. Roche also taught the AHR Expo seminar.
• Jim Goins - A veteran boiler engineer and technical writer and illustrator.
• Dan Almeida - An installer for more than 20 years and a teacher from New England.

The instructors are preparing their curriculum and course materials, and RSES is scheduling classes. Classes will commence early in 2003. Tuition is $395 for the two-day seminar, which includes a copy of Residential Hydronic Heating, itself a $95 value, plus other course materials.

For more information about the I=B=R Schools, contact RSES at 847/297-6464 or at general@rses.org.