colour blindness

Hi, ive been given the opportunity through a contact from my dad to become either an apprentice electrician or an apprentice refigeration engineer. Considering im 23, have done a degree in sports science and know how many people want a job in these areas, im both honoured and excited by the opportunity. However, im pretty sure that im not going to be able to become an apprentice electrician because im red-green colour blind and JTL will only provide funding for people with "normal colour vision". Personally, living in a world where there is supposed to be no discrimination I find this quite annoying. Especially as there arent even any solid green wires so its unlikely i could ever get a green and red wire mixed up. Anyway, I was undecided on which option would be better for me but this has sort of forced my hand. Then I had a horrible thought, will the same rules apply to a refrigeration engineer? Ive looked at a few websites such as learndirect and they do stipulate that you should have "normal colour vision" but others dont specify. I was wondering if any one could help? I really dont want to work in an office for the rest of my life!

Hi Leecook01,

Just do what ever you like and be an expert for the work you do. If you are expert already in your job they dont mind what ever you are.

Guapo;)

thats all very well and i intend to be but I im not going to become an expert if I cant go to college and gain any qualifications because the people who fund the apprenticeships stipulate that you nedd normal colour vision

I'd hope that discrimination was effective in Italy too. I could sue the morons to their very last cent. What is this all about? Sissies have more rights than color blinds?
I'm color blinded (actually I'm daltonist, not blinded), and don't see the difference between flashing yellow LEDs and green LEDs, but still I'm proud of my job and I'm performing at my best.
If you'll become a good engineer, you might have the possibility of travelling and seeing places and people.
Good luck.

Personally I can't understand why you could not be just right for the refrigeration trades. I have a friend who is color blind and worked in the business for over 50 years.

Obviously there will be some things you need to pay close attention to as the color coding of certain items such as refrigerant containers or gauges.

This is something most of us take for granted.;)

Indeed, i see no problem. Peter Ebdon is colourblind and once asked the referee to identify the brown near a cluster of reds in a world championship match at the crucible. i think mr o'brien was also colourblind as i asked him on a few occasions if the sky on his planet was red and green only to receive no answer.
ive met people with all sorts of disabilities who are a success at what they chose to do so do what you think is best.

Hi, LeeCook01

When I was young (19) my dream was to become a professional civil aviation pilot. Flying around the world with nice stewardess :)

I went to hospital for army pilots (not only me but all of us) to make a special psychophysical tests of 2-3 days and everthing was ok, except they told me I'm colour blind :eek: not fully but enough not to be a pilot :( . My dream become a nightmare. I was "grounded" for the first time.

Then I decided to become a flight engineer, if I cannot fly the bird I can be a crew member and I will fly anyhow ;) .
Meanwhile until I finished aerotehnical university and service (in army), flight engineers have been replaced with fu****g computers. I was "grounded" for the second time :(

Then by chance I came to work in one company dealing with refrigeration. From 1985 I am flying around globe (also with nice stewardess ;) ) not as pilot or flight engineer but like RE.

I do believe you can be a good engineer (even colour blind :) ) if you devote enough effort to finish your education.

Keep on young man :cool:

Best regards,

Josip :)

From 130 transport Reefer engineers we have a percentage with varying degrees of colour blindness and dyslexia.
I find these guys do occcasionaly need extra coaching on training courses, but thier diagnostic skills are usualy better than your average engineer mainly because they think about what they are doing.
:)

Hi,

pssst, I don't have any problem to choose between brunettes or blondes, must have only a good shape what has nothing with colour ;) 3-D is the most important.

Think the same is with other guys, or?

Best regards,

Josip :)

Josip,

When you were in school was geometry one of your favorite classes? :D

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Originally Posted by US Iceman

Josip,

When you were in school was geometry one of your favorite classes? :D

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Definitely ;)

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Ive looked at a few websites such as learndirect and they do stipulate that you should have "normal colour vision" but others dont specify. I was wondering if any one could help? I really dont want to work in an office for the rest of my life!

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Lee, I cannot comment on scholarship help. But if you were to graduate and gain some experience in the refrigeration or electrical trade, I would favor you over a color-sighted person. Why?

1. You would read the pressure of the refrigerant and the temperature of the refrigerant to determine its composition, not the color of the tank.
2. You would rely on electrical meter reading requisites instead of assuming what begins as "red" lands as "red."
3. Your so-called "handicap" is quite the benefit because you will rely upon well-rounded and disciplined troubleshooting skills while avoiding all the pitfalls that color-coding causes as it tends us color sighted people to believe that some thinking has already been done for us.

You drive a car. How do you know a red light from green? Or a headlight from a taillight? I don't know your specific abilities, but I know that you have to think better and more thoroughly than I do when confronted with decisions that involve color.

This makes you the superior thinker. The more thorough technician. The technician I would hire over the one who understands a few brand names and color schemes.

Good luck in the trade. Your office must be in one hell of a mess if they have you separating the color coded work orders! :)

Well said Dan! ;)

hi guys, thanks for all the support. On thursday i was told officially that i was unable to enter the industry unless i had "normal colour vision." I was told that i needed to be able to pass the ishara colour test (which i have already failed) or the City University Colour test. I did that yesterday and apparently i was just in the normal colour range so im delighted! I know i'll have to really concentrate but i feel happy that i can do the job and i won't be a risk. Cheers for the help once again:D

I dont know how this colorblind thing works...

You say you are red-green colorblind, does that mean you see red and green as the same color? or does it mean you see those two as white or something else?

What do you see in this picture?
http://intro.bio.umb.edu/111-112/111...lind/plate.jpg
(if the image does not show up, right click- properties- cupy the url and paste it in your webbrowser to see it)

if it is that you see red and green as the same... I cant see how that should be a problem for you as an electrician, as red and green is not a color you find on the same cable, nor is it a color that is on two separate conductor pairs on a cable...

The standard here in Norway is white - red(or brown) - black for powercables, signalcables have white insulation marked with numbers from 1 thru whatever :)a

I think you would make a superb engineer in both refrigeration and electrics, since your dependance of "finding out and being sure" would be higher than your dependence of "seeing and thinking his is right"
Many a times have I been fooled by checking cables that "seem" to be in the right place and concluded that a misconnection is out of the question, only to find when checking the cable with my Fluke later, that the cable was indeed wrongly connected...

Anyway, I wish you the best of luck in finding a profession you are comfortable with (tho I hope you choose refrigeration, since we have electrics and a lot more) :)

If someone was to put the standard colour of green or red, say as it appears on signs or traffic lights I would have absolutely no problem in telling you which is which. However, its when different shades of those colours are presented together at the same level of brightness when i cant differentiate. Barring working under strange lighting, i really dont think i would have a problem differentiating the colours of wires. As for the example you have, that is from the ishihara test (which i failed) and the shades and brightness are intentionaly designed to be difficult for someone who is colour blind. I would guess that the number is 13 on that example but i really dont know. Anyway it seems i will be able to choose my career path as a result of passing the other colour test. As my dad started as an electrician (he's in more of a managerial role now) he has sort of encouraged me to follow that route, although he believes both are excellent careers. I was just wondering if any of you could give me an insight into why being a refrigeration engineer would be a route to follow?

The number in the picture I posted is 15... but that isnt important...

refrigeration is so many things, it depends really on the path you choose... Me in industrial, I do anything from programing in a plc on a large industrial plant to changing the oil on a small provision plant, and I must say, from the things I work with colorblindness shouldnt be a problem :)

How many tmes have we gone on a job that was installed according to the electric code? yup, in my estimation you need to have a good electrical meter, know how to use it and always use it when dealing with electricity. nes pa?

Hi, Tycho :)

if you are asking me I can't see anything :eek: on that Ishihara colour palette.

First time when they gave me that test asking me which number I see? There was not any nuber :confused:

I was thinking the numbers are inside coloured dots and I brought palette close to my nose and eyes. They were thinking I'm jocking and I was thinking (when not found any nuber) they try to make a fool of me.

Finally they show me another palette (maybe top left) and I realized what I have to see and they realize I am a colour blind man.

Guys here is a link, check your colour blindness:

http://www.toledo-bend.com/colorblind/Ishihara.html

and something more to see and learn here:

http://colorvisiontesting.com/

Come back ;)

Best regards,

Josip :)

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Originally Posted by Dan

3. Your so-called "handicap" is quite the benefit because you will rely upon well-rounded and disciplined troubleshooting skills while avoiding all the pitfalls that color-coding causes as it tends us color sighted people to believe that some thinking has already been done for us.

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Dan, that's a really good and right statement you made here.
Same applies to all those who want to lear nthe job via some basic thumb rules.

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You drive a car. How do you know a red light from green? Or a headlight from a taillight?

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Hey Dan, in Belgium, the light on the top is the red one :D :p
Just joking, I got your point.

LeeCook01,

If I was you, I should choose anyhow refrigeration.
And do you know why: a good refrigeration tech has to be a good electrican tech but a good electrician tech is rarely a good refrigeration tech.

A refrigeration tech must be a welder, an electricain, have some understanding of electronics, a mechanic, a programmer in some way, and you must have some higer theoretcial backgroudn to understand the whole picture.

without a lot of bs that seems to be the norm in a lot of posts that i have read, as an engineer the color vision would not be quite as critical as that of a refrigeration service technician working with a bundle of 20 to 100 wires of varying colors. the normal service technician is exposed to varying degrees of coloring. this is especially critical in the controls side of the house, where multi colored wiring is prevalent. good luck in your decision. be prepared for the razing that goes on within the trade that i have been exposed to for almost 35 years.

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Originally Posted by dph

without a lot of bs that seems to be the norm in a lot of posts that i have read, ....

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If that's the law, then you have to follow the law, bs or not. Regulations and law can not allways be understood by normal peoples.

BTW, nice intro you made:o

I never look at the colors. Colors can be misleading. I always use a multimeter.