Architectural Glass and Metal Technician
An Architectural Glass and Metal Technician handles, measures, cuts, prepares, fits, installs, replaces and repairs all types of glass and glass substitutes, typically in commercial, residential and transportation settings. An Architectural Glass and Metal Technician fabricates and installs curtain wall framing, aluminium storefront frames and entrances, doors and hardware, structural silicone glazing, skylights and sloped glazing. Specifically, an Architectural Glass and Metal Technician:
- lays out, measures, prepares, fabricates and installs/replaces architectural glass and metal components and air/vapour barriers in systems such as entranceways, windows, skylights and curtain walls
- works with and installs plastics, granite, aluminum panels and other similar materials used as glass substitutes, as well as films or laminates that improve the durability or safety of the glass
- works from mobile equipment, scaffolds and swing stages, sometimes at great heights, to manoeuvre glass panels that are lifted by cranes and other lifting equipment.
Red Seal trade
Apprenticeship Resources
Apprenticeship Training Standard (PDF) Curriculum Training Standard – Level 1, 2, & 3 (PDF) Trade ReportAPPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM
An apprenticeship training program consists of on-the-job and in-school training. The Registrar of Skilled Trades Ontario, under the authority of section 14 of the Building Opportunities in the Skilled Trades Act, 2021, has set the hours of apprenticeship training for the trade Architectural Glass Technician at 8,000 (approximately four years), which consists of 7,280 hours on the job work experience and 720 hours of in-school training. These hours are consistent with apprentice training hours previously set out in regulation under the Trades Qualification and Apprenticeship Act, R.S.O 1990.
ON-THE-JOB TRAINING
An apprenticeship involves practical training provided on-the-job by a skilled worker, or trainer. The skills or competencies to be developed are set out by the trade’s Apprenticeship Training Standard and are recognized by the industry as being essential to the practice of the trade.
As these essential skills are developed, the apprentice’s sponsor or trainer signs the relevant sections of the training standard to indicate that the apprentice has met the individual training objectives by demonstrating the skills required of a skilled worker, or journeyperson, in the trade.
IN-SCHOOL TRAINING
An Architectural Glass and Metal Technician apprenticeship includes three levels of theoretical training, which includes but is not limited to instruction in:
- trade tools and equipment
- material handling and access equipment
- glass cutting, shaping and installation
- glazing systems
- seals, gaskets and caulking
- doors and entrances
- prepare for onsite installation
- fasteners
- fabricate, assemble and install windows
- curtain walls
- glazing films
Depending on the training delivery agency, in-school training may be available in one of the following ways:
- block release (full-time, for a set number of weeks)
- day release (one day per week from September to June)
- part-time (night-school programs)
- alternative delivery (online, correspondence, etc.)
Architectural Glass and Metal Technician is a trade named under the Building Opportunities in the Skilled Trades Act, 2021.
This trade has an apprenticeship program that is administered by the Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development. Upon completion of an apprenticeship program, the Ministry issues a Certificate of Apprenticeship.
This trade has a certifying exam. When the certifying exam is passed, Skilled Trades Ontario will issue a Certificate of Qualification in this trade. Because this trade is non-compulsory, this certificate does not have to be renewed, and the information of individuals practicing this trade will not appear on the Skilled Trades Ontario Public Register.
In Ontario, the trade is part of the Interprovincial Red Seal Program—the national standard for the trade across Canada— under the title Glazier: www.red-seal.ca.