Have any of you ever had or been to a heavy equipment training class/school besides what the operating engineers apprenticeship have where you can still get a certificate or something of the like. Over the years you would'nt believe how many times i have had people ask what do you have to do to be able to operate heavy construction machinery they say things like: dont you have to have a license to operate that or thats what i always wanted to do or would like to do how can i get a job? nobody wants to hire a beginner back here the union only accepts those that have ties if you know what i mean maybe 20 new ones per year i use to pay for a permit monthly but they would never give me a chance but when we started our company and had large pieces of iron poping up here and there they came pounding on my door to get me into the union so i could hire all help from there side funny how they never helped me i was always turned down. Im union and have been for almost 18 years now. Just wanted to know if there are any private schools for getting trained or experience in HEAVY CONSTRUCTION.
Here in CNY a couple of options. If you are in High School, you can take it through BOCES, they had an adult one also (don't know if they still do). In Syracuse there was a training course but I haven't seen it in the paper in a while. One of the local colleges had a single class, but it was a joke of a class.
Hey fiat, Give this website a look see. National Association of Heavy Equipment Training Schools www.nahets.com I pulled this site from the upcoming "mikeroweWORKS Trades Resource Center"....the dude from Dirty Jobs. www.mikeroweWORKS.com Later, Jeremy
Private training schools Hi, 41B. Dunno about up your way but there are a few training schools for operators scattered around DownUnder. How-wevver, they usually don't have much respect from the various industries where operators are involved. They are also rather pricey for the product they turn out. Personally, I can see a glaring need for it 'cos a lot of the older guys are retiring and even some of the more experienced younger ones can't - or won't - do with their machines what the older guys can do with 'em. There are a lot of good younger operators coming through but they still seem to be in the minority. One of the problems that I see is that the dedication has changed from doing a good job to picking up a fat paycheck for as little effort as possible. There are 4 of the 8 operators in the company where I 'put in an appearance' who are almost as much use as an udder on a hen in the workshop when it's too wet to work out on a job and they are happy to be that way. The boss and his son have to get them out of trouble far more than they do me. It is also a daunting task now to set up a training school because of all the paperwork, certification and bureaucratic red tape involved. And I'm absolutely certain that NONE of that helps to turn out better trained operators. What turns out GOOD operators is common sense, seat time, being shown how by people who KNOW both how to do it and how to show others how to do it, a good safety attitude and good work ethics. The first one and the last two are getter harder to find by the day 'cos our schools are destroying them. You are far more likely to find those 3 things in farm people and in those who have grown up around machinery than you are in 'city slickers'. For mine, to do it properly, you would need several hundred acres for the machines to play in, a workshop with at least the basic servicing equipment and a classroom set up with good video and audio training equipment AND some good operators who were prepared to impart their knowledge. I can understand why you might have given the union a cool reception after you started getting some equipment around the place. Just my 0.02.