The International Powered Access Federation’s first-ever convention in the United States drew about 100 attendees to focus on current safety and training issues in the aerial lift and mast-climbing work platform industry.
Themed “Powered Access: Recognition and Avoidance of Hazards,” the convention was held Nov. 1-2 in Chicago. It presented a number of topics ranging from pre-start inspections, adequate ground support, and proper risk assessment, to employer responsibilities, who is a qualified instructor, and the state of the rental market.
Open both to IPAF members and non-members, the convention attracted attendees from all facets of the industry: equipment manufacturers, distributors, rental companies, contractors, trainers, unions, industry associations, government, and the media. They saw 15 presentations and one panel discussion delivered by topic experts.
The sessions included open discussions about what constitutes good training and how to keep aerial work platform operators safe.
Skyjack President Brad Boehler spoke about industry statistics identifying leading hazards that need to be considered when assessing risks and writing safety plans for aerial platform use.
John Newquist, assistant regional administrator for OSHA’s Office of Cooperative and State Programs, talked about accidents with lifts, OSHA updates for 2012, and OSHA’s expectations for aerial-lift training and safety. “OSHA holds the employer responsible for the safety of workers,” Newquist said. “What are you doing to prevent accidents?” He also noted that people in their 40s make up the largest group involved in AWP accidents.
Some of the other speakers included Paul Penzkover, safety director for Mortenson Construction’s Chicago office; Kevin Groman, senior vice president and general counsel of RSC Equipment Rental; Kevin O’Shea, director of safety and training for Mastclimbers LLC; Gary Riley, owner of APT-Training; Teresa Kee, director of environmental, health, and safety for NES Rentals; and Tony Groat, executive vice president of American Work Platform Training, IPAF’s North American subsidiary.
Penzkover addressed employer responsibilities, the difference between training and familiarization, and the need for good inspections. He said that to develop a safe workplace, employers should bolster training, develop and maintain written policies and procedures, document equipment inspections, have focused inspections and monitoring, and have a plan to deal with reality. That plan includes not leaving it up to the workers to figure things out, selecting equipment suited for the working conditions, establishing and enforcing guidelines, and providing OEM-approved AWP accessories.
Groman’s presentation about strategic approaches to sustainability gave examples how RSC has saved millions of dollars by adopting a sustainability focus and practices. He showed that a well-executed sustainability plan can improve a company’s bottom line by reducing waste.
O’Shea, who is chairman of IPAF’s North American Council, talked about the value of proper training, and noted that “the best piece of safety equipment is between a person’s ears.”
Riley demonstrated that a proper pre-start safety inspection of a lift need take only a few minutes. But he noted that the only way a lift user will be able to do a proper inspection is being trained how to do it.“If you just hand someone a checklist, you will get back a checked list,” he said, pointing out that a checked list is worthless unless the inspector has been trained what to look for and performs a proper inspection, rather than just checking boxes. Riley said that proper training takes interaction between trainer and student, and that every student must have the chance to actually do an inspection him or herself with the teacher’s guidance.
Kee talked about the aerial-work-platform industry best practices documents developed over the past two years by a committee representing manufacturers and users of the equipment.
Other speakers talked about developing risk-assessment plans, the state of the Latin American market, some findings from IPAF’s recent report on the state of the worldwide AWP rental industry, and the need for better training in North America.
The convention concluded with a panel discussion of any topic the audience wanted to bring up. The panel of experts included: Kevin Groman, senior vice president of RSC Equipment Rental; Rick Dahl, president of Metrolift, Inc.; Brian Gawlik, safety manager of M. A. Mortenson Co.; Jeffry Carter, deputy commissioner of labor for Indiana OSHA; Mike Drew, assistant coordinator and safety administrator for Operating Engineers Local 150; and Kevin O’Shea of Mastclimbers LLC. IPAF CEO Tim Whiteman moderated the discussion.
“IPAF’s first major event in the United States generated lots of interest from a wide range of people in the industry, and we hope to hold this annually,” said Tim Whiteman, IPAF CEO.
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