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If you’re looking to become the best painting contractor, education is a key component to our craft. Cochran & Mann counts down the top commercial painting certification programs and training courses in the United States to give you a jumpstart:  

Benjamin Moore Contractor Education & Training. Benjamin Moore, a company that offers paint and stain for home interiors and exteriors, offers educational resources for painting contractors that include the following courses:

• Color Foundations
• Color and Light
• Creating Healthy Living Environments with New Paint Technology
• High Performance Floor Coatings
• High Performance Coatings for Industrial Applications
• Low VOC Paints as a Component of Sustainable Building Concepts
• Origins of Colors and Pigments
• Paint 201: Practical Solutions and Problem Solving Techniques
• Three Centuries of Color

The Master Painters Institute (MPI) Training. MPI, an organization that creates standards for paint application and quality, offers the following four courses:

• Essentials of Paint and Painting Technology, which teaches students about coating technology, paint types, color concepts, paint application, safety best practices, and environmental regulations and compliance.
• Architectural Painting, which teaches students about new construction painting, surface preparation, and more.
• Maintenance Repainting, which teaches students about maintenance repainting, surface/coatings evaluation, quality assurance best practices, surface preparation, and priming.
• Inspection, which teaches students about detailed specifications for new construction, repaint specifications, job quality, and inspection equipment.

Painters USA’s Training Program. For industrial and commercial painters, Painter USA, an industrial and commercial painting contractor serving major U.S. cities, offers more than 75 certifications, including the following classes:

• Confined space
• Aerial lift
• Swing stage
• OSHA 10, which is a 10-hour course that gives employees an entry-level understanding of recognizing hazards in the workplace and the role OSHA plays in partnership with employers in construction, general industry (healthcare, manufacturing, and warehouse distribution), and maritime safety
• OSHA 30, which is a 30-hour course that provides OSHA 10 basics for the same industries and a supervisor program that offers “in-depth coverage of hazard recognition, abatement and prevention as well as worker rights,” according to the Red Cross
• Industrial prep
• Industrial coating application
• Leadership and crew management

The company’s on-staff instructor is an accredited Core Curriculum & Painting Instructor by the National Center for Construction Education & Research, which gives up-and-coming painters and wallcovering technicians the best opportunity to learn from a certified professional.

PPG Paints Refinish and Commercial Technician Certifications. “Technicians with at least one year of painting experience meet the requirements for certification by successfully completing a training course specifically tailored to the product systems covered by these programs,” according to the PPG website.

Courses are offered at PPG Business Development Centers and various U.S. field locations. “Training sessions include a minimum of eight hours of classroom and hands-on training. Certified technicians can renew and/or maintain their certifications by completing additional product training every two years.”

The Society for Protective Coatings Coating Application Specialist Certification Program. This coating program certifies “individual craft workers who have experience and training in all aspects of hands-on surface preparation and coating application of complex industrial and marine structures.”  

Sherwin-Williams Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP) Supplies & Certification. According to the Sherwin-Williams website, “Federal law requires all contractors performing...painting projects that disturb lead-based paint in homes [or child-occupied facilities] built prior to 1978 to be certified and to follow specific work practices to prevent lead contamination.”

Because of this restriction, Sherwin-Williams is offering an 8-hour certification training session “by an EPA-accredited national training firm and will include the following topics:

• Regulations
• Prepwork
• Dust containment
• Clean-up
• Recordkeeping
• Jobsite supervision

Those “who successfully complete the course, including a short exam...receive the [U.S. Environmental Protection Agency] certification required to perform work in pre-1978 buildings.”

Whether you’re looking for education from certified teachers or long-time professionals, these classes are perfect for a painter at every level. Hone your skills or develop new painting techniques using this list of top commercial painting programs and training courses.

If you’re ready to take your skillset to the next level, apply to work at Cochran & Mann, an impressive commercial painting and wallcovering company in Frederick, Maryland: