Fire protection technician to pump operator
A fire protection technician already meets 38% of what the pump operator role asks for. The move turns on 12 required skills not yet in the profile.
62/ 100
1 How much of what a pump operator is expected to do is already part of a fire protection technician’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the pump operator role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A pump operator role treats 7 of its required skills as things a fire protection technician already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- fire prevention procedures
- fire safety regulations
- fire-fighting systems
- hydraulics
- operate fire extinguishers
- perform preventive maintenance on fire fighting vehicles
What stands in the way is 12 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 12 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A pump operator role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a fire protection technician background worth leading with.
- already held perform preventive maintenance on fire fighting vehicles constructing
- already held maintain safety systems assisting and caring
- already held operate fire extinguishers assisting and caring
- already held use different types of fire extinguishers assisting and caring
- already held fire prevention procedures services
- already held fire-fighting systems services
All 12 carried skills, including the 7 the pump operator role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 18 missing skills fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn operate pumps for fire extinguishing required
- still to learn operate hydraulic machinery controls required
- still to learn operate hydraulic pumps required
- still to learn maintain hydraulic systems required
- optional, not held operate emergency vehicle optional
- still to learn ensure public safety and security required
- still to learn extinguish fires required
- still to learn manage major incidents required
- still to learn coordinate fire fighting required
- still to learn manage emergency care situations required
- still to learn work as a team in a hazardous environment required
- optional, not held relay messages through radio and telephone systems optional
- optional, not held educate public on fire safety optional
- still to learn hydraulic fluid required
- still to learn first aid required
2 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a pump operator role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 operate pumps for fire extinguishing practise this
- 02 ensure public safety and security practise this
- 03 operate hydraulic machinery controls practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 12 skills that carry over
- already held fire prevention procedures knowledge
- already held fire safety regulations knowledge
- already held fire-fighting systems knowledge
- already held hydraulics knowledge
- already held operate fire extinguishers skill
- already held perform preventive maintenance on fire fighting vehicles skill
- already held use different types of fire extinguishers skill
- already held environmental policy knowledge
- already held maintain safety systems skill
- already held perform minor repairs to equipment skill
- already held perform risk analysis skill
- already held use different communication channels skill
The 2 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held pollution legislation optional
- optional, not held environmental legislation optional
- optional, not held operate emergency equipment optional
6 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held operate emergency vehicle optional
- optional, not held pollution legislation optional
- optional, not held relay messages through radio and telephone systems optional
- optional, not held educate public on fire safety optional
- optional, not held environmental legislation optional
- optional, not held operate emergency equipment optional
16 held skills the pump operator role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role advise on safety improvements skill
- not needed by the target role arrange equipment repairs skill
- not needed by the target role estimate damage skill
- not needed by the target role execute vehicle maintenance skill
- not needed by the target role habitat restoration knowledge
- not needed by the target role handling of dangerous goods knowledge
- not needed by the target role health and safety regulations knowledge
- not needed by the target role inspect fire equipment skill
- not needed by the target role order equipment skill
- not needed by the target role organise fire drills skill
- not needed by the target role organise fire station skill
- not needed by the target role pollution prevention knowledge
- not needed by the target role pyrotechnic articles legislation knowledge
- not needed by the target role test safety strategies skill
- not needed by the target role undertake inspections skill
- not needed by the target role write work-related reports skill
4 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn first aid required
- still to learn hydraulic fluid required
- optional, not held pollution legislation optional
- optional, not held environmental legislation optional
Other moves recorded from fire protection technician
Common questions about this move
Can a fire protection technician become a pump operator?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A fire protection technician already covers 38% of what a pump operator is expected to do: 12 skills carry over, 7 of which the pump operator role treats as required.
What skills does a fire protection technician need to become a pump operator?
12 required skills are missing, plus 6 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by working with machinery and specialised equipment. The single most important is operate pumps for fire extinguishing.
How hard is the move from fire protection technician to pump operator?
Its learning distance is 62 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.