In response to new safety requirements due to the coronavirus, and following guidance given to all IPAF Training Centers, IPAF member firm Nationwide Platforms has successfully completed an online instructor-led MEWPs for Managers course for major contractor Skanska.
The course, which would normally be taught in a classroom, was held online using a video conferencing platform. The instructor-led training allows those who supervise or plan work at height to remotely receive the training from the comfort and safety of their home or office.
The instructor-led option is in addition to the individual eLearning MEWPs for Managers course that IPAF training centers can also offer and represents a new mode of remote delivery of IPAF instruction as the UK economy emerges from lockdown.
The course has the same safety advantages of the eLearning, but allows the instructor to replicate all elements of the face-to-face course that would normally be carried out in the classroom for multiple candidates at the same time.
The instructor is able to interact with the delegates and answer any questions or queries they might have, as well as provide feedback specific to their learning. This new method of training delivery also facilitates group discussions, and can even accommodate smaller breakout sessions if required.
Peter Douglas, CEO and managing director of IPAF, said: “We welcome any initiative that promotes MEWP safety while also safeguarding training candidates. Many of our members delivering training are eager to return to offering courses on the scale they were doing before the pandemic, but equally they are keen to ensure this is done as safely as possible and in line with the best guidance available to minimize risk of candidates or training center staff coming into contact with or spreading the virus.
“We think this new flexibility will be of benefit to our training providers as they look to reconfigure the way they work going forwards, and to bolster confidence that their staff and training candidates have the best range of options to allow them to undertake IPAF training with maximum confidence.”
For more information about IPAF training, including the range of courses and modules available via eLearning, visit www.ipaf.org/training.
