Teal International Corp., under the
direction of Larry Drake, recently launched HEATlibrary.com, a website
designed to share training and educational materials across corporate and
association lines throughout the HVAC and plumbing trades.
Teal International Corp., under the
direction of Larry Drake, recently launchedwww.HEATlibrary.com, a website
designed to share training and educational materials across corporate and
association lines throughout the HVAC and plumbing trades.
The “HEAT” in
heatlibrary.com is an acronym for Hvacr&plumbing Education and Training.
“Library” refers to an extensive database that will grow as educators,
associations and institutions contribute materials.
“The HEAT Library
is a culmination of more than three years of development and consulting with HVACR
and plumbing industry education providers,” said Drake in the announcement. He
is Teal International Corp.’s president and served as executive director of the
Radiant Panel Association until earlier this year. “For the 20 years I have
been involved with trade associations, there has always been a struggle to find
ways to cooperate and coordinate training between organizations. It seemed
everyone thought it was a good idea, but the concept was seldom implemented.
“Now, with the
power of the Internet and the digitizing of everything from text books to
webinars, the HEAT Library provides a central repository for educational
programs and materials from all segments of the heating and plumbing industry.”
With its advisory
board made up of several top executives in HVACR and plumbing associations,
trade publications and the professional educator arena, the HEAT Library has
its finger on the needs of the industry training world. Teal International Corp.
says input of the advisory board and online forums will help keep the HEAT
Library tuned to the needs of the industry.
Educators and
education providers can become members of the HEAT Library for very little
cost. As a member, they can upload an unlimited number of items into the
database. These items include almost anything that can be put in digital form,
such as Word documents, spread sheets, slide presentations, videos, e-books and
so on. Even live webinars can be listed in the library with time and dates.
Members can
restrict who will have access to their documents, such as trade associations,
educational institutions, manufacturers, wholesalers or even specify other HEAT
Library members by name. Members can also set a wholesale and retail price for
each item, and provide detailed descriptions with promotional materials.
Members may browse
the library and choose items to offer through their own network by selecting an
item, printing out the access information, and providing it to their customers.
Customers access the items through a special, customized portal page.
The HEAT Library
also contains areas accessible to any visitor. The online retail store has many
of the education and training items available for immediate download. Other
features include a set of calendars that list local and national training
events across North America, and open forums to post a discussion on events,
materials or industry education in general. The site also hosts full-featured
webinar rooms that can be rented by the month.
“Our first big
challenge is to stock the shelves, so to speak,” said Drake. “Any organization,
business or individual having educational materials to sell and/or share can
become a member and upload items to the library.”
The HEAT Library is
offering a 90-day free trial to new members in order to build content in the
library. For more information, visitwww.heatlibrary.comor call 970/744-6568.
Online Training Library Available Industry-Wide
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