Administrative Management Systems Inc. (AMS) is beginning to develop a third-party personnel certification program for architectural glass and metal technicians (AGMT), and it intends to gain ANSI accreditation in accordance with ISO/IEC 17024.

Following an open forum summit in February, AMS was invited to submit a proposal to the Finishing Trades Institute for the development of the AGMT program. AMS has since been granted approval to begin the first phase of what is estimated to be an 18- to 24-month project.

The first phase will include defining the competency and practical requirements for an architectural glass and metal technician with direction and input from committees of industry experts and stakeholders. An open process to identify industry participants for inclusion on the steering committees will begin immediately.

“The best opportunity for success of the program rests with steering committees and eventually a certification board that evenly represent the three primary stakeholder segments of the industry,” says Ben Beeler, the program’s co-designer and operations manager. “The glazing technician population, glazing contractors and the user community must work in balanced concert to achieve a program that meets all the industry’s requirements. We are looking far and wide for as much assistance with this endeavor as possible.”

A conceptual model for the program will start with personnel certification of basic competencies of the trade and then build on them through additional certification tiers or endorsements, according to AMS.