Rental houses should by now be aware that current ANSI standards say they’re obligated to provide equipment familiarization to customers. Specifically, the rental house (dealer), upon delivering a piece of equipment, must be prepared to show the customer the control functions and safety devices for that particular piece of equipment. In addition, if a customer requests training, the rental house is obligated to offer it themselves or refer customers to a reasonable alternative source for the training.
ANSI for Rental Houses – How Do You Comply?
“The classic challenge with existing training and familiarization standards is the statement that rental companies must offer training and provide familiarization, often upon delivery on the jobsite,” says Tony Groat, IPAF North America manager. “But in reality, sometimes deliveries are made after hours when no one is there to receive the equipment, or the person receiving the equipment is not the operator.”
He continues, “The new standards say rental houses are now obligated to offer both training and familiarization. It’s up to the customer to determine if they need either and request it. However, it’s important to be aware not all customers renting equipment even know to ask for familiarization or training, so it’s vital that rental houses make a point of offering it. It’s their responsibility to make their customers aware of the need.”
According to the updated standards, once an operator completes training, the user can determine if they’re qualified to perform the work and then authorize them to operate the MEWP. The operator must periodically demonstrate continued proficiency with the equipment. This can be determined by a designated qualified supervisor who is responsible for monitoring, supervising, evaluating and documenting operators on a regular basis. This person should use reasonable judgment and determine proficiency based on performance. Operators showing diminished performance should be retrained as needed.
The standards define a supervisor as one who is assigned by the user to monitor operator performance and supervise their work, and who is required to complete specific training requirements defined in A92.24 7.5 Supervisor Training, such as IPAF’s MEWPs for Manager’s course.
