Are expensive Training worth it

bornwild

Member
Join Date
May 2010
Location
Riyadh
Posts
429
Hey all,

I was getting started with Siemens Starter and its different functions but I found it a bit confusing so i decided to enquire training with siemens. To my shock they quoted 4000 usd for 5 days course . Are they really that worth. ? Has any one taken some courses before. I dont want to spend so much just for 5 days but if it is worth i can give a shot.
 
In my experience, a week long professional training course is usually a few thousand dollars, whether it is Cisco, Siemens, or anything else. The pricing is aimed at companies, not individuals, and often for facilities who need to train a new guy on a variety of technologies in the plant.

Whether or not the training is valuable tends to depend a lot on the instructor. When you get training from a small company, they often only have one instructor, and their reputation may precede them. When you get training from a big company, sometimes its luck of the draw who the instructor happens to be.
 
You should consider everything you learn in the week-long training as use it or lose it. If you aren't going to be working with the equipment you're getting trained on you'll forget most of what you learned in a short time. If you're already in a job where you're using the equipment, your employer should pay for it.
In addition, you'll get more out of the training if you go into it with a specific project in mind. That way you'll be able to focus on those features of the equipment you're likely to be using. For example, if you'll be working on automating a milling machine, you're less like to use the PID function than a person who will be automating a heat treating furnace.
 
In addition to the instructor, the value of training depends on the match between your level of expertise and the course content. If you need PLC fundamentals and the course is geared to advanced technique it will be a waste. The converse is also true. Also get some names of recent attendees for the course being considered and get their feedback.

Talk to your local distributor before you sign up. A few years ago my Siemens distributor provided some outstanding training geared to my staff at very low cost. He did this because we were about to make a significant purchase. If you use a lot of equipment your distributor may be able to either train you or get you a break on cost.
 
I considered their courses quite a few times and may still take a couple of them in due course. I believe people with knowledge and experience with their software and hardware will benefit substantially more than those with little or no knowledge. It could also be to helpful include on a resume that doesn't have much formal education.
I wish I could have a look at there course documentation, old or new, to make a judgment of how well worth it, it may be.
 

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