Our 4th Class Part A does not have Prerequisites.  

It is recommended that students have a minimum of Grade 11 Math, Physics, and English.

This 4A covers the following topics.  Each unit has learning materials, quizzes, and a unit quiz and there is a final exam (that must be proctored) at the end of the course.

Unit One – Mechanics

• Basic Mechanics; Forces & Moments; Simple Machines; Scalars & Vectors; Velocity & Acceleration; Energy, Force, Power, Pressure & Work; Friction; Stress & Strain; Power Transmission

  Students must understand the fundamentals of mechanics: how forces act, how machines provide advantage, and how motion is described. They should be able to calculate equilibrium, speed, work, energy, and power, while also understanding friction, material stresses, and common power transmission systems.

Unit Two – Elementary Principles

• Chemistry & Matter; Thermodynamics; Heat Transfer; Steam Thermodynamics

  Students need a working knowledge of chemistry basics, the laws of thermodynamics, and how heat moves by conduction, convection, and radiation. They must also understand how steam behaves under changing temperature and pressure.

Unit Three – Codes

• Codes Introduction; Jurisdictional Legislation; Codes & Standards

  Students must grasp the role of laws, codes, and standards in safe plant operation, especially in relation to boilers, pressure vessels, and piping. This includes knowing why regulations exist and how they protect people and equipment.

Unit Four – Plant Safety

• Plant Safety Introduction; Safety Programs; Material Handling; Fire Safety; Fire Extinguishing

  Students should know how safety is managed in industrial plants, including formal programs, handling hazardous materials, fire prevention, and the use of extinguishing methods.

Unit Five – Environment

• Environment Introduction; Emissions Gas & Noise; Liquids & Solids

  Students must learn how plant operations impact the environment through gas, noise, liquid, and solid emissions, and understand mitigation and compliance strategies.

Unit Six – Welding

• Welding Materials; Welding Introduction; Weld Inspection

  Students should understand basic engineering materials, how welding is performed, and the inspection/testing processes that ensure weld quality and safety.

Unit Seven – Plant Piping

• Piping Systems; Valves

  Students must become familiar with common piping systems, fittings, drainage devices, and the major valve types used in boilers and industrial plants.

Unit Eight – Electricity

• Basic Electricity; Magnetism; Metering Devices; Generators & Motors; Transformers; Circuits

  Students should understand electrical fundamentals, AC/DC principles, magnetism, and how electricity is generated, transformed, measured, and safely distributed.

Unit Nine – Instrumentation

• Instrumentation Introduction; Process Measurement; Control Components; Programmable Controllers; Computer Applications; Electrical Control Systems

  Students must know the role of instrumentation in plants, including pressure, flow, and temperature measurement devices, as well as controllers, actuators, and electronic/electrical control systems.

Unit Ten – Communication

• Sketching; Diagrams & Drawings; Plant Communication

  Students must be able to create and interpret sketches, line diagrams, and schematics, and use plant communication systems effectively.

Unit Eleven – Boiler Design

• Boiler Design Introduction; Firetube; Watertube; Electric; Special Boilers; Boiler Differences

  Students need to understand how boilers are designed, including the construction of firetube, watertube, and electric boilers, along with heating-plant specific designs and key code differences (ASME Section I vs. IV).

Unit Twelve – Boiler Systems

• Combustion; Fuel Delivery; Draft; Feedwater; Blowdown; Cleaning

  Students must know how boilers operate as a system: combustion fundamentals, fuel handling, draft systems, feedwater supply, blowdown procedures, and boiler cleaning methods.

Potential students are required to submit an application.  Upon acceptance tuition is due.  Once tuition is paid student’s will receive an email with further instructions on when and how they will access their course, along with a copy of our student manual.

The cost of our 4A Power Engineering Course is $850 plus GST.  Textbooks and ABSA examination fees are not included in the tuition.

The textbook for PE4A course will be PanGlobal’s Fourth Class Power Engineering Part A, Edition 3.0 or newer. Used textbooks are permitted.  It is recommended to have Academic Supplement 2.0, Jurisdictional Safety Codes Act and CSA Codes Extract (Optional)

This course offers the option to purchase one, non-refundable course extension for $150.00+gst, which gives you 3 additional months to complete the course.  Students have 3 attempts to pass unit quizzes, if failed 3 times they will need to contact administration to pay a fee to rewrite and gain access to the test again.

The passing grade for the Final Exam is 65%.  This exam is written in person with a proctor.  For a $100.00+gst fee, the student is allowed to rewrite the Final Exam after a period of 21 days.  A rewrite is permitted until the student obtains a passing grade.

Students have 6 months to complete the course.  A passing overall grade of 65% is required.  Quizzes are 20% of the final mark, unit tests are 30% and final exams are 50% of the final mark.

Alberta Boiler Safety Association examinations are not included in this course. Students must apply to ABSA in order to write the interprovincial examinations.