Matt Zambrowski is ready to do battle for a place in the international finals in Germany.
Keep cool is what Kurri Kurri apprentice Matt Zambrowski must do lest his medal hopes perish.
The fourth year apprentice refrigeration mechanic is counting on that maxim when he competes at the National World Skills Competition in Melbourne.
“You have to control the nerves,” he said. “If you don’t stay calm you make silly mistakes.”
The 21-year-old won the Hunter competition to book his place at Melbourne on May 7 to 9, where he’ll battle eight others for a ticket to Germany.
He will have to build and commission a refrigeration system; commission and build an airconditioning system; and then do some fault finding.
There is only one place available in Germany for the international conclusion of the competition.
“At a national level you would expect the competition to be pretty tough, so I’ll have to see how I go,” Mr Zambrowski said.
Despite having finished his TAFE requirements, he’s gone back to the books in preparation for Melbourne.
“I’ve been going back to TAFE one night a week to work on my calculations and pipe work,” he said. “It involves some tricky calculations and your pipework, all silver soldering, has to be up to scratch too.”
Mr Zambrowski works for the national refrigeration company Hastie Services and attended Tighes Hill TAFE.
“The variety of the job keeps me motivated, travelling to different places and meeting different people every day,” he said.