The Institute for Aerial Lift Safety, Philadelphia, Pa., becomes the first non-profit organization in North America that is focused on aerial lift safety training. The Institute aims to improve workers' hazard awareness, thus increasing overall workplace safety and decreasing the potential for aerial-lift-related incidents resulting in property damage, injury, or death. A major benefit of their classification as a non-profit 501 (c)(3) organization is that the institute is able to seek grants from private and governmental sources to increase their educational offerings and provide scholarships to individuals who are unable to afford the comprehensive training programs available.
The institute selects programs available from American Work Platform Training (AWPT), the North American training arm of the International Powered Access Federation (IPAF). The training programs offered by AWPT are based on the ISO-certified programs developed by IPAF and comply with all ANSI, CSA, and OSHA requirements.
Courses offered by the institute include theoretical and practical hands-on training on scissor lifts, boom lifts, and truck-mounted aerials.
Following the successful completion of an AWPT program, the student is awarded a Powered Access Licensed-Registration (PAL) card which identifies the student and notes the type(s) of aerial work platforms on which they have been trained. The PAL card is recognized in many countries throughout the world as proof that the platform operator has been trained in the safe and proper use of a specific type of aerial device. More than 85,000 PAL cards are issued annually through a worldwide network of more than 450 IPAF-approved training centers.
The Institute’s classroom can accommodate up to 12 students at a time. An indoor scissor lift demo area and outdoor boom lift and truck-mount demo area allow trainees to operate the equipment and receive hands-on training. Institute staff are also able to travel to a client’s site to administer the AWPT course with advanced notice. In the past few months The Institute has trained more than 35 people from Henkels & McCoy, PPL Electric Utilities, and Public Service Electric and Gas Co. (PSE&G) in the safe use of truck-mounted aerials.
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