Crane Operator Training, Certification and Evaluation (Awareness)

Three things before operating

The crane rule puts the duty on the employer. Before an operator runs any equipment covered by the cranes and derricks rule, the employer must make sure that operator is:

If you are a supervisor, this is your checklist before you hand someone the controls. If you are an operator, it is what you should be able to show.

Reference: 29 CFR 1926.1427(a)

Narrow exceptions

Operators of three kinds of equipment are not required to comply with this operator section: derricks, sideboom cranes, and equipment with a maximum manufacturer-rated hoisting/lifting capacity of 2,000 pounds or less. The training requirements in those other sections still apply.

There is also a separate path for U.S. military employees. An operator who is an employee of the U.S. military meets the requirements if he or she has a current operator qualification issued by the U.S. military for that equipment. That qualification is not portable: it counts only where the operator is employed by, and operating for, the employer that issued it.

Reference: 29 CFR 1926.1427(a)(2) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(a)(3) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(a)(3)(i) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(a)(3)(ii)(A)

Learning on the job, under supervision

An employee who has not yet been certified/licensed and evaluated for the assigned equipment may operate it only as an operator-in-training, under supervision.

• The employer must give the operator-in-training enough training, through a combination of formal and practical instruction, to develop the skills, knowledge and ability to recognize and avert risk.
• The operator-in-training must be continuously monitored on site by a trainer while operating equipment.
• The employer may only assign tasks within the operator-in-training's ability.

Reference: 29 CFR 1926.1427(a)(1) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(b) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(b)(2) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(b)(3)

Jobs an operator-in-training may not run

Unless certified, an operator-in-training shall not operate the equipment in these circumstances:

• Any part of the equipment, load line, or load (including rigging and lifting accessories), if operated up to its maximum working radius in the work zone, could get within 20 feet of a power line up to 350 kV, or within 50 feet of a power line over 350 kV
• The equipment is used to hoist personnel
• Multiple-equipment lifts
• The equipment is used over a shaft, cofferdam, or in a tank farm
• Multiple-lift rigging operations, except where the operator's trainer determines the operator-in-training's skills are sufficient for this high-skill work

Reference: 29 CFR 1926.1427(b)(3) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(b)(3)(i)

What the trainer must do

The trainer is not just someone standing nearby. The trainer must:

• Be an employee or agent of the operator-in-training's employer
• Have the knowledge, training and experience to direct the operator-in-training on the equipment in use
• Perform no tasks that detract from watching the operator-in-training
• For equipment other than tower cranes, stay in direct line of sight, and communicate verbally or by hand signals

Reference: 29 CFR 1926.1427(b)(4) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(b)(4)(iii) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(b)(4)(iv) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(b)(4)(iv)(C)

Three ways to qualify for certification or a license

The employer must make sure each operator is certified or licensed. There are three routes:

If the operator is not required to be licensed, the operator must be certified by route 2 or route 3. When certification or licensure is required, the employer provides it at no cost to employees.

Reference: 29 CFR 1926.1427(c)(1) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(c)(2) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(c)(3)

Accredited testing organization

A certification from an accredited testing organization has these features:

• The organization is accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency and gives written and practical tests
• Certification is based on equipment type, or type and capacity. If no accredited testing agency offers an exam for a particular type of equipment, the operator may be certified for the most similar type for which an exam is available, and the certificate must state the type of equipment for which the operator is certified
• It is portable among employers who are required to have operators certified under this option
• It is valid for 5 years

Remember that an operator must be trained, certified/licensed and evaluated. The employer's own evaluation, covered in Section 4, is a separate requirement.

Reference: 29 CFR 1926.1427(d) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(d)(1)(ii)

Audited employer program

An employer can certify its own employees through an audited employer program. The written and practical tests are either developed by an accredited crane operator testing organization or approved by an auditor who is certified to evaluate such tests by an accredited crane operator testing organization and who is not an employee of the employer.

• The program must be audited within 3 months of the beginning of the program and at least every 3 years thereafter
• The certification is not portable: it counts only where the operator is employed by, and operating for, the employer that issued it

Reference: 29 CFR 1926.1427(e) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(e)(1)(i) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(e)(1)(ii)(A)

What the tests must cover

Certifications must be based on a written test and a practical test.

Reference: 29 CFR 1926.1427(j) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(j)(1) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(j)(2) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(j)(2)(i)

A certificate is not enough

Certification or a license is not the end. Through an evaluation, the employer must ensure each operator is qualified by a demonstration of:

• The skills and knowledge, and the ability to recognize and avert risk, needed to operate the equipment safely, including those specific to the safety devices, operational aids, software, and the size and configuration of the equipment
• The ability to perform the hoisting activities required for assigned work, including, if applicable, blind lifts, personnel hoisting, and multi-crane lifts

One exception: for operators employed prior to December 10, 2018, the employer may rely on its previous assessments of the operator in lieu of conducting a new evaluation of that operator's existing knowledge and skills. The record must then reflect the date of the employer's determination and the make, model and configuration of equipment on which the operator previously demonstrated competency.

Reference: 29 CFR 1926.1427(f)(1) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(f)(3) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(f)(2) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(f)(6)

Who evaluates

• The evaluator must have the knowledge, training and experience needed to assess equipment operators
• The evaluator must be an employee or agent of the employer. An employer that assigns evaluations to an agent still has the duty to make sure the requirements are met
• After a successful evaluation, the employer may allow the operator to run other equipment that the employer can demonstrate does not require substantially different skills, knowledge, or ability to recognize and avert risk
• When the employer must provide retraining, it must re-evaluate the operator on the subject of the retraining

Reference: 29 CFR 1926.1427(f)(4) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(f)(5) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(f)(7)

The evaluation record

The employer must document the evaluation.

Operator's name

The record must give the name of the operator who was evaluated.

Evaluator's name and signature

The record must carry the evaluator's name and signature.

Date

The record must show the date of the evaluation.

Make, model and configuration

The record must list the make, model and configuration of the equipment used in the evaluation. The employer must keep the document available at the worksite while the operator is employed by the employer.

Sample record for training only. The people and equipment are fictional.

Reference: 29 CFR 1926.1427(f)(6)

What operators must be trained on

The employer must train each operator on the safe operation of the equipment the operator will be using. The rule also names two specific practices:

• On friction equipment, whenever moving a boom off a support, first raise the boom a short distance (enough to take the load of the boom) to find out if the boom hoist brake needs to be adjusted. On other equipment with a boom, the same practice applies, but there is typically no way to adjust the brake: if the brake does not hold, a repair is necessary.
• Where available, the manufacturer's emergency procedures for halting unintended equipment movement.

Reference: 29 CFR 1926.1430(c) · 29 CFR 1926.1430(c)(3)(i)

Others who must be trained

Training is not only for operators. The employer must also train:

• Each competent person and each qualified person on the requirements of the subpart that apply to their roles
• Each employee who works with the equipment to keep clear of holes and crush/pinch points, and the hazards addressed in the work area control rule (29 CFR 1926.1424)
• Each operator and each additional employee authorized to start/energize equipment or operate equipment controls, such as maintenance and repair employees, in the tag-out and start-up procedures

Reference: 29 CFR 1926.1430(d) · 29 CFR 1926.1430(e) · 29 CFR 1926.1430(f)

Confirming it stuck, and retraining

• The employer must evaluate each employee required to be trained to confirm the employee understands the training
• The employer must provide refresher training when, based on the employee's conduct or an evaluation of the employee's knowledge, there is an indication that retraining is necessary
• For operators, retraining is triggered the same way: based on the operator's performance or an evaluation of the operator's knowledge
• Training required under this subpart must be provided at no cost to the employee

Reference: 29 CFR 1926.1430(g) · 29 CFR 1926.1427(b)(5)