August 2019—Following the success of previous events, NCCCO will hold its 4th Industry Forum on Personnel Qualifications on October 24, 2019. The venue for the event, which will be held in conjunction with the 47th Biannual Meeting of the NCCCO Commission and will be presented by the NCCCO Foundation, will be the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Training and Education Center in Crosby (Houston), Texas.
As in past events, the Forum will bring together crane industry experts to discuss the latest topics and trends related to crane and rigging personnel qualifications. The event will be open to all members of the industry and will take place during NCCCO’s fall Commissioner week, which includes meetings of several NCCCO Exam Management Committees as well as its 30-member Commission to discuss the state of the certification industry as it relates to cranes and lifting equipment, as well as NCCCO’s upcoming initiatives.
More than 70 representatives of crane rental firms, contractors, equipment distributors, training firms, labor unions, industry associations, and others attended the last Forum to learn from—and participate in—fast-paced sessions covering issues such as OSHA interpretations, ethics matters, discipline of operators and examiners, exam audits, the aging workforce, and workforce development initiatives.
Delegates professed themselves well-pleased with the last event. “On a scale of ‘very disappointing’ to ‘exceeded my expectations,’ the 3rd Forum garnered a 97 percent approval rating,” said NCCCO Foundation CEO Graham Brent. “We could not be more happy with the turnout and the feedback, all of which has been of immense value in scheduling this Forum.”
Of particular interest this time will be presentations outlining the results of an NCCCO study on how (and how well) employers are coping with OSHA’s requirement for the evaluation of crane operators, as well as the results of NCCCO research into the potential of virtual reality technology in the testing process. Also featured will be news of the activities of the recently formed NCCCO Foundation.