Requirements, license levels, and the issuing authority, sourced from Michigan's official board.
Michigan registers boiler operators and stationary engineers in five classes through the Bureau of Construction Codes, but MCL 339.5931(1) states that an individual may operate a boiler and associated auxiliaries without obtaining that registration, so the operator credential is a voluntary title while boiler installation and repair work does require a state license.
| Requirements | Operator and stationary engineer registrations: N.I.U.P.L.E. (National Institute for Uniform Licensing of Power Engineers) certification is required before the application is submitted, or proof of licensure or registration in another country, state, county or city with substantially equal requirements may be submitted in lieu of it; the written examination for all classifications of boiler operator and stationary engineer is delivered and administered by NIUPLE. A low pressure boiler operator applicant needs at least 1 year of experience operating or maintaining low or high pressure boilers, steam prime movers or associated auxiliaries. A high pressure boiler operator applicant needs at least 2 years of experience operating a high pressure boiler, or a low pressure boiler operator registration plus at least 1 year of high pressure experience, or at least 1 year of a qualified training program, qualified technical education program or approved apprenticeship. Third class stationary engineer routes include high pressure boiler operator registration plus 1 year of high pressure operating experience, or 3 years of experience operating boilers in a high pressure plant with an aggregate heating surface of more than 4,000 square feet, among others. Second class routes include third class registration plus 1 year at that level, or 4 years in a high pressure plant with more than 7,500 square feet of aggregate heating surface, or an approved engineering or heating and power technology bachelor's degree with qualifying employment. First class routes include second class registration plus 2 years, or 6 years in a high pressure plant with more than 20,000 square feet of aggregate heating surface, or a 4 year approved apprenticeship or qualified training program, or an approved 4 year degree with at least 1 year of employment, internship or cooperative education in a steam electric generation plant or high pressure steam heating process plant. License fees at application are $80 for low or high pressure boiler operator and $100 for each stationary engineer class. Installer and repairer licenses: applicants must have at least 5 years of experience in all phases of boiler installation, or of boiler repair, in the class applied for, and examinations are administered by PSI at five testing centers statewide. Installer classes run from class 1B (low pressure boiler not exceeding a 1,000,000 BTU per hour firing rate) up to class 5B (a boiler of any capacity or firing rate other than a nuclear heat source boiler) and class 6B (nuclear heat source boilers), plus a class P license for non-boiler external piping. Repairer classes run from class I (repair by means other than welding, riveting or other fabrication process) through class V (erect and repair nuclear heat source boilers), plus class P. |
| Reciprocity | MCL 339.5907(3), cited on the Bureau's own application form, provides that on receipt of an application and the appropriate fee the board may register an applicant without examination if the applicant is a boiler operator or stationary engineer licensed or registered in another state or country, or in a municipality whose requirements are at a minimum substantially equivalent to Michigan's, and that other state, country or municipality extends the same privileges through reciprocity to a boiler operator or stationary engineer registered in Michigan. Proof of licensure or registration elsewhere may also be submitted in lieu of N.I.U.P.L.E. certification, and the license must be current. |
| Renewal | Boiler operator, stationary engineer, boiler installer, boiler repairer and boiler inspector credentials all renew every year by December 31, and renewal can begin 90 days before expiration. Renewal is $80 for low pressure and high pressure operator holders and $100 for stationary engineer, installer, repairer and inspector holders, with a matching late fee after 60 days. An operator or inspector credential expired more than 3 years requires re-application, and an installer license expired more than 3 years requires re-application and re-testing. LARA states that no code update course is required to renew. |
| Notes | Michigan registers boiler operators and stationary engineers in five classes through the Bureau of Construction Codes, but MCL 339.5931(1) states that an individual may operate a boiler and associated auxiliaries without obtaining that registration, so the operator credential is a voluntary title while boiler installation and repair work does require a state license. |
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Sources: www.michigan.gov, www.michigan.gov, www.michigan.gov. Always confirm current requirements with the issuing authority.
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