As far back as the Roman Empire, plumbers were already necessary. In that era they were called plumbum. Persons that worked with lead were known as Plumbarius and then it became plumbers. Lead was used in roofs and drain pipes and it took thousands of years for folks to know it was deadly. Taking from the plumbum word, the table of elements has the symbol "Pb."

To work as a plumber the person must have studied and become skilled enough to work with fixtures and pipes that are in houses and buildings. The ideal way is to train with a qualified professional who has many years of experience working in plumbing and at the same time attend school.

The Modern Apprenticeship (MA) not only gives the theory and knowledge, but also the much needed practical side to work along someone that is experienced. This is necessary to obtain an NVQ Level 3. It is usually a three to four year course and the student must have an employer that is going to allow the hands on training necessary.

A plumbing and mechanical service training officer will be assisting and checking on the student's progress until the NVQ is achieved. It is not an easy profession. The student must have the intelligence to work with very complex equations. There is some math skills involved for determining the layout of a venting system in a building, reading drawings and specifications of a water supply.

Measuring, installing, cutting and testing pipes for leaks are all in a day's work. A professional plumber has to know any regulations and safety rules involved in his work. When entering a college, the faculty usually expects the student to have passed their math and science courses. This is a profession that is always evolving and it is important to keep learning after the schooling is over. To go even further in the profession there is the MA programme.

The PMST (Plumbers & Mechanical Services Training Ltd) is set up by the SNIPEF & BEST to assist prospective students in their career such as in mechanical services, plumbing and maintenance at the NVQ 3 Level in Northern Ireland. This entity represents from small to large companies. Aside from the plumbing field they also represent in gas and mechanical services.

Although being skilled is essential to be a success, plumbers also need other necessary skills that might not be taught in the classroom. They must also be able to interact with their clients and be empathetic to their needs. There is a plumber in the United States famous because he became incredibly rich. The reason to his success was not that he had the best skills in the world. He also went a step beyond every other competitor. He made it a point to do everything he could so that the customer was satisfied.

Some of the things that made him stand out were by wearing the slippers that surgeons use to make sure that the home would be impeccable after he left. Cleaning up completely after finishing his job, even bathing in between jobs!