IPAF Certifies United Rentals MEWP Training Courses
The International Powered Access Federation has announced a ground-breaking agreement with member firm United Rentals, owner of the largest powered access rental fleet in the world. Following extensive evaluation, United Rentals is now able to deliver IPAF Certified mobile elevated work platform (MEWP), also known as AWP, operator training delivered through its United Academy blended learning platform.
IPAF’s scrutiny of the United Academy MEWP content covered eLearning coursework and practical testing at United Rentals locations. Senior training managers from United Academy worked with IPAF to closely align the company’s training content with the globally recognized IPAF MEWP operator course.
As part of the accreditation process, IPAF audited several of United Rentals’ more than 500 North American locations where hands-on trainee testing takes place. The assessments were conducted using the same process that IPAF applies when auditing test centers around the globe. United Rentals has been approved to display the IPAF Certified Training logo on its MEWP training descriptions and collateral.
Candidates successfully completing IPAF Certified training through the United Academy will be issued a special United Rentals Card, which will certify them as having passed a course that is very closely aligned with IPAF’s globally-recognized MEWP operator training.
“IPAF and United Rentals are very pleased to announce this pioneering agreement, under which IPAF Certified MEWP operator training will be delivered through the United Academy across North America,” said Tim Whiteman, IPAF CEO and managing director. “United Rentals has a long history of taking the lead with safety and supporting IPAF in our efforts. It is extremely encouraging that the largest powered access rental company in the world has underpinned the quality of its MEWP training by partnering with IPAF in this way. We hope other IPAF member companies will explore similar partnerships to further emphasize the importance of quality training and IPAF’s global mission to promote the safe and effective use of powered access to conduct temporary work at height.”
Ebbe Christensen, president of ReachMaster, Inc and chair of IPAF’s North American Regional Council, added: “With the arrival of IPAF Certified Training in North America, this visionary agreement will mark the beginning of a new era for IPAF in North America and no doubt spearhead an expansion of IPAF activities here. It will bring significant awareness of the IPAF mission to a market that employs 40 percent of the world’s MEWPs, underlining the need for approved training programs, and this agreement is a great step forward.”
For more information about IPAF’s globally recognized MEWP and MCWP operator and supervisor training, and a range of other industry-specific training, please visit www.ipaf.org/training, or for more details about your nearest IPAF office or representative see www.ipaf.org/contact.
About the Author
Michael Roth
Editor
Michael Roth has covered the equipment rental industry full time for RER since 1989 and has served as the magazine’s editor in chief since 1994. He has nearly 30 years experience as a professional journalist. Roth has visited hundreds of rental centers and industry manufacturers, written hundreds of feature stories for RER and thousands of news stories for the magazine and its electronic newsletter RER Reports. Roth has interviewed leading executives for most of the industry’s largest rental companies and manufacturers as well as hundreds of smaller independent companies. He has visited with and reported on rental companies and manufacturers in Europe, Central America and Asia as well as Mexico, Canada and the United States. Roth was co-founder of RER Reports, the industry’s first weekly newsletter, which began as a fax newsletter in 1996, and later became an online newsletter. Roth has spoken at conventions sponsored by the American Rental Association, Associated Equipment Distributors, California Rental Association and other industry events and has spoken before industry groups in several countries. He lives and works in Los Angeles when he’s not traveling to cover industry events.