Paul Hannania, Panel Upgrade Experts, Calgary, AB — Fastest Professional Electrician, Canada West

Hannania

Jan 14, 2019

By Line Goyette

After eight months, 263 events, 17 broken clocks, and thousands of competitors, Ideal Industries’ 2018 National Championship Qualifying Round in Canada came to an end last October, and the Third Annual Ideal National Skills Competition took place December 1-3 in Orlando, Florida. The competition brought together some of the best electricians from across North America.

This marked the first Ideal National Championship that had been extended to Canadian competitors. In all, nearly 40,000 electricians across North America took part in local timed competitions organized by Ideal Industries. From these 40,000, a professional representative and apprentice were selected from each state, as well as from both Western and Eastern Canada based on their times. A team comprising one professional and one apprentice were also selected from each area.

Paul Hannania, from Calgary, won the fastest professional electrician for Canada West and made it into the second round of the National Championship in Orlando. “I progressed to the second round, maybe not fast enough [to win], but I finished it. It is not always easy working with new tools that may not always work exactly as expected.” For those watching him, he did an incredible job aligning the pipes before pulling the wires in.

Paul has dual Canadian and U.K. citizenship, and dual certification as an electrician. Born in Calgary from parents who had emigrated from England, they returned to live there while Paul was still a young child. He learned the trade with his father.

“My father has his own business, I did my apprenticeship with him, and at one point I decided to come back to Calgary.”

Hannania 2

When Paul was younger, he wanted to be a carpenter but quickly realized that in England, at least, he saw a better opportunity in the electrical industry.

“My parents had friends in Calgary and we had kept in touch. I always kept a connection with that town while I was growing up in England. I followed the Olympics, it was my home.” It has now been 10 years ago since he resettled in Calgary and is very happy there. “I worked with different companies and I had to do the Red Seal exams.”
Five years ago Paul founded his own business because, he says, he likes to do things his own way. “I really enjoy the customer liaison, meeting the customer, the business aspect of my job.”

Before earning his Red Seal certification, Paul had founded another company and laughingly confesses to having made many mistakes, which allowed him to learn a lot, and quickly, about how to manage a small business. “I learned that marketing is everything. Your presence online says a lot about you, and good customer reviews are the best marketing tools you could have. Customer satisfaction is the most important thing.”

Having worked for 10 years as an electrician in England before relocating to Canada, Paul finds that when talking about electricity the differences between the two countries are small. “The wiring is a bit more technical, voltage is different, but this is not important.” His professional transition has worked well.

“The biggest change was running my business. Now deadlines are more important, finishing things on time is important. Safety requirements have increased and safety is now more stringent.”

A Tesla-recommended installer for the company’s electric vehicle chargers in Calgary (he’s Calgary’s leading installer of Tesla chargers), interested in solar energy and everything that revolves around the electrical panel, at the age of 37 Paul is not just exceptionally fast and proficient as an electrician, he is also an inspiring young leader. Visit his company website.

Learn more about Ideal Industries’ National Championship

Line Goyette is Managing Editor of EIN; linegoyette@kerrwil.com

Related Articles


Latest Articles


Changing Scene

  • Skills Ontario Supports Ontario’s Investments in Skilled Trades in Budget Announcement

    Skills Ontario Supports Ontario’s Investments in Skilled Trades in Budget Announcement

    March 28. 2024 As demand for skilled trades professionals rises, Skills Ontario is commending the government for continued investments in skilled trades and technology programing, working to address the shortfall and need to build the workforce of the future in Ontario.  The skilled trades shortage is costing Ontario approximately $25 billion in foregone GDP. A… Read More…

  • IVRY Launches 7 New VR Lessons

    IVRY Launches 7 New VR Lessons

     IVRY Technologies, a division of IDEAL Electrical, is launching seven new virtual reality (VR) lessons in Canada as part of its Virtual Electrical Training (VET) Series 2 training module. The cutting-edge training will serve as a learning resource for International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) training centers across Canada. Read More…

  • PEI Budget 2024 Signals Continued Focus on Healthcare, Housing and Affordability for all Islanders 

    PEI Budget 2024 Signals Continued Focus on Healthcare, Housing and Affordability for all Islanders 

    March 28, 2024 Hon. Jill Burridge, Minister of Finance, presented government’s 2024-25 operating budget to the legislative assembly, outlining $3.2 billion in investments for Prince Edward Island with a continued focus on healthcare, housing and affordability measures. “This budget signals where we’re headed as a province and shows Islanders where we will be making key… Read More…

  • BC’s Budget 2024 Prioritizes Actions for Low-Carbon Economy

    BC’s Budget 2024 Prioritizes Actions for Low-Carbon Economy

    March 28, 2024 Josie Osborne, Minister of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation, and Brittny Anderson, MLA for Nelson-Creston, met with community climate leaders in Nelson to discuss how Budget 2024 can help support people in the region to transition to a low-carbon economy and meet shared CleanBC goals. “Our government’s budget this year reflects the… Read More…