ESTA forum on training and qualification

ESTA is the European association of abnormal road transport and mobile cranes

European crane and transport association ESTA held a forum for key industry players to discuss the urgent issue of how to enhance and standardise operator competency and qualification.

Safety is the primary mission of ESTA, the European association for abnormal road transport and mobile cranes. The forum was hosted by the organiser of the Italian crane and transport show GIS, held from 5 to 7 October, in Piacenza. It was held in collaboration with the Italian national association for crane and exceptional transport rental ANNA.

Ton Klijn, ESTA director

On the importance of operator training, Ton Klijn, ESTA director, commented, “Not only in Europe but all over the world, 95 per cent of accidents with cranes originate from the operator and not from the machine. That’s why we believe operator training needs to be more robust.”

Fabio Belli, ESTA president and CEO at Fagioli

Advantages of training and certification

Klijn and Fabio Belli, ESTA president, began by explaining the association’s ECOL European Crane Operators Licence project, which establishes a standard framework for the training and examination of crane operators under the European Standard EN 13000 for mobile cranes.

Daniela Dal Col, ANNA president, contributed to the discussion, underlining advantages of ECOL. It specifies the examination and sets educational standards, records the experience of licensed operators, and allows site managers to verify the qualifications and experience of crane operators they have on site.

ECOL is officially recognised in Belgium, Denmark, Netherlands, Switzerland, and the Canadian province of British Columbia. Qualified operators can work without the need for additional training or testing. Discussions are underway for recognition in Germany, Spain, and the Republic of Ireland.

For more on ECOL see: www.ecol-esta.eu and see more on ESTA here: estaeurope.eu