The Sixth Annual Industry Forum on Personnel Qualifications, held in conjunction with NCCCO’s fall meetings last month and presented by the NCCCO Foundation, was a major success as judged by those who attended. In a post-event poll, fully 95% stated that the Forum “met or exceeded” their expectations. And 90% would “definitely” attend another.
The four-hour hybrid conference, held both in person in Arlington, VA and via Zoom, attracted record registrations of almost 500 safety professionals from 45 states, setting yet another record for the event. There was no charge to attend the Forum thanks to the generosity of event sponsor, Industrial Training International (ITI).
This year’s Forum built on the success of previous events with sessions focused on the latest developments in regulations and best industry practices as they pertain to the qualifications of personnel working in, with, and around cranes and other types of lifting equipment. Back as keynote speaker for the third consecutive year was Scott Ketcham, Director of OSHA’s Directorate of Construction whose presentation provided some revealing statistics on what compliance officers are looking for when they inspect crane operations (see related article).
In all, eleven (11) presentations were made by various industry experts on topics ranging from the responsibilities of site personnel to challenges posed by workforce development, and addressing such issues as why accreditation is so important for certification bodies, what new certification initiatives are being readied for release, and what safety professionals should expect from new or revised B30 standards in the next year or two. How the NCCCO Foundation’s online accreditation and crane type Directories can assist employers in compliance and best practices with regard to crane operator qualification requirements, was also the subject of Forum sessions.
“It’s inspiring to see the thirst for crane safety information right across the country and in a wide range of industries,” said NCCCO Foundation CEO, Graham Brent. “And by using the latest conferencing technology, the NCCCO Foundation has been able to reach into every corner of this country as well as many parts of the world with the latest news and information on best practices as they relate to lifting equipment.”
Video transcripts of each session presented at the Forum as well as the PowerPoint slides (in pdf format) that accompanied them are available for free download from the NCCCO Foundation website here.