Does training and familiarization vary from one rental company to another? Lindsey Anderson reports

*Access, Lift & Handlers originally ran this story in its May/June 2012 issue. The story incorrectly listed the hands-on evaluation ratio of instructors to trainees for NES Rentals. It should have stated the hands-on evaluation for NES Rentals is based on a 1:6 ratio (one instructor per six students.)

Does training and familiarization vary from one rental company to another? Lindsey Anderson interviewed a range of businesses - from independents to corporates - to find out.

It's a conversation topic many in this industry have hashed over: what is the reality for operator training today? It's a loaded question with numerous subsidiaries. What is effective training? Do all rental companies offer training? Should they? Can trained operators comply with standards today and perform prestart inspections, workplace inspections, recognition of hazards and proficiently operate the aerial work platform?

Access, Lift & Handlers posed these questions to people across the board and we're happy to report the industry takes training more serious than ever.

At the recent International Powered Access Federation's annual Summit in Rome, Italy, NES Rentals' chief executive officer Andy Studdert argued that the aerial platform industry needs to adopt a safety culture similar to that of aviation. (Studdert previously was chief operating officer of United airlines.)

"Having well-understood operation procedures that are repeatable will make you a more efficient, safe company," Studdert said.

NES Rentals, one of the largest rental companies in North America, performs training at each of its 70 branches and bases its classroom attendance allowance on a 1:20 ratio (one instructor per 20 trainees) and its hands-on evaluation on a 1:6 ratio. Depending on the number of trainees and how many types of equipment are involved, classes generally last between two to four hours.

"We also offer the International Powered Access Federation's aerial work platform training," says Teresa Kee, director of environmental, health and safety at NES. "The ratios are similar but the amount of time for the class is typically eight hours."

Time and numbers (of trainees, trainers and length of training), according to most sources interviewed for this article, is the largest variable when it comes to training. "Training should not be shorter than 4 to 6 hours," says Jeff Stachowiak, director of safety training with Sunbelt Rentals. "Whatever training we are doing today is going to get longer and longer in the future because more types of equipment are coming into the market."

Stachowiak, speaking during an online SAF-T webinar produced by Maximum Capacity Media, says the Occupational Safety and Health Administration doesn't address what "good" training is for aerial work platforms.

"If you look under 'training' on the scaffold standard, there are three 'triggers;' none of which have a date," Stachowiak says. "One is 'change in equipment,' one is 'change in environment' and one is if you 'recognize something is being done wrong on the scaffolding or aerial work platform.'"

None of the standards say how long the training is good for or how long it should consist. In 2010, a 'best practice' guide on training and familiarization for aerial work platforms in the US was launched following collaboration between trade associations, manufacturers and rental companies.

The 'Statement of Best Practices of General Training and Familiarization for Aerial Work Platform Equipment', launched during the Rental Show in Orlando, FL, is a joint effort between the American Rental Association (ARA), the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM), the Associated Equipment Distributors (AED), the International Powered Access Federation (IPAF) and the Scaffold and Access Industry Association (SAIA).

"In the industry document 'Best Practices,' we put in our standard that training is good for around five years," Stachowiak says. "Most of the companies, including Sunbelt, say it's worth five years."

Trainees who obtain a Powered Access License (PAL) Card through IPAF and AWPT training will see the license expiring after a five-year window passes. This is not an OSHA or ANSI standard, however, and neither is how long someone must be trained, demonstrate proficiency or be familiarized.

"There is no 'sufficient period of time' prescribed by ANSI or OSHA," says Tony Jones, corporate safety trainer of ProLift Industrial Equipment, in regard to how long trainees must operate an aerial work platform to demonstrate proficiency. "It is subjective to the 'qualified person' (the trainer) to design a course or task that allows an individual to demonstrate proficiency. Proficiency in operation will be different given the environment a trainee operates in and the types of equipment he/she operates."

Most companies interviewed for this story, however, agree that familiarization of a dropped-off unit typically lasts between 15 and 30 minutes depending on the type of equipment. "If someone hasn't been on a boom in quite a long time, [familiarization might take longer]," says Brad Swanson with Minneapolis-based Beaupre Aerial Equipment. Swanson also notes that if an operator is used to one brand of machine versus another, a thorough explanation of the unit's functions must be given.

In regard to classroom and hands-on numbers, Ron Overton, president of Overton Safety Training, Inc., an approved training provider for Star Rentals and Sales, Pape Material Handling, Coast Crane Company and Peterson Cat Rental Stores, says on average his company trains five to six operators per class with at least one trainee per class.

"Sometimes in the spring and summer they increase a bit to eight to 10 with multiple trainers attending," he says. "We have trained as many as 25 in a single workshop before. The time constraint is not the classroom or the written exams, but rather the practical instruction and evaluations."

Keeping the industry aware of the importance surrounding training and familiarization is one of the biggest challenges, everyone agrees.

"The reasons an operator does not complete pre-shift inspections after training is two-fold," says Jones. "[They] don't 'buy in' that a pre-shift inspection is important. The operator does not want to take the time. Even when employers require paper checklists dated and turned in, many operators 'pencil whip' the inspection sheet and turn it in. [Also] in my experience, aerial lift operators almost never consider themselves professional equipment operators. If you asked an operator what he/she does for a living, the answer is a painter, drywall installer, steel worker, pipe fitter or maintenance worker. He/She looks at the AWP as a tool within his/her work environment to get the job done. How often does a painter pre-shift inspect his paint brush or a maintenance worker pre-shift inspect her wrench? Getting operators to understand and be aware of the risks taken without pre-shift inspections is always a challenge."

Employers must also recognize they are responsible for training their employees.

"If I tell a guy in a class that he has to wear a harness and lanyard in a boom lift and he walks out, the supervisor doesn't give him one or doesn't enforce the use of it, he gets in the boom without the lanyard or the harness and then he gets cited by OSHA for not wearing a harness," Stachowiak says, "it's the employer's issue."