Certification?

[pauldg]

Hi all.

 

First post here so please forgive me if I'm in the wrong section...

 

I've been trying to find out what the regs are for certification regarding using power equipment but not had much success so far - I know about the saw tickets but what about things like chippers, strimmers/brushcutters etc.? I've found various places that offer courses but nothing so far that actually says whether I need to have done these before operating the machines.

 

I'm working by myself (self employed, not employing or subbing anyone else) pretty much exclusively on private land (no contract work). Previously as an employee I've used a variety of equipment with no 'formal' training - apparently showing 'the management' how to fix and service stuff seems to prove competence.....

 

Anyone help with this?

[Paul Jenks]

You don't 'need' to have certification to operate machinery. It is however useful and often prudent to have some form of training.

Like most things in life, training and certification, aside from the advantages of actually knowing how to use something safely, usually comes into play when something goes wrong.

Re. insurance. If you're not recognised as competent by the insurance company, they will wriggle out of paying, whoever holds the insurance policy.

I don't believe there are currently any Regs, (legal obligations), to use this type of equipment on private land for yourself.

[doobin]

Do yourself and everyone else a favour and make a stand against the ever increasing tide of red tape and regulation. If you take the brushcutter course, (CS56b) then the next logical step would be your abrasive wheels course (CS29C). From there on the only place you can really go is the 'trousers on the right way round' qualification (R3TRD), and the wiping your ass NVQ.

 

If you know what you're doing, then that should shine through in the quality of your work. You're presumably not chasing the council work, etc, where such tickets are an all consuming obsession.

[markieg31]

The trouble is that, with out my cs39, my insurance company wont insure ne for climbing.

It is hard for me to get your foot in the door unless you have, at least, your nvq level 3 or even better a masters in wiping ya ass.

I had been climbing, brushcutting, tractor driving and using loo roll proficiently before I took my nptc tests. Speculate to accumulate.

[markieg31]

O and I think they are a substitute for common sense. If you know what your doinv then you will not gain much from the ticket. For an employer an idiot with a ticket is fine as he has proof of adequate training

[magwick]

I am just returning to the trade after two years as a house cat in retail.

One of the reasons i stopped doing arb was lack of tickets.

After ten years of running my own firm, winning contracts for the olympic park and the EA i was not quilified. my old city and guilds from back in the day was not good enough. So i said sod it .

Now i have just signed up to a five day course to get nptc 30/31.

Five days holiday gone plus £750 to learn stuff i have done since the ninetys.

But if i want work its the way to go. Sadly the arse wiping course was over subscribed.

[Yorkshireman]

the regulations for use of equipment and responsibilites are covered in many other threads ,

 

the search option will help .

 

however a good bed time read is the Health & safety act 1974 and the provisions for use of work equipment regulation 1998, article 9

 

basically if you do anything in the work setting you are responsible for your actions & your ommitions to act [ not doing those things that are reasonably practicable ].

 

Puwer means the equipment is to be of sufficient build quality to be fit for the task CE compliant & is maintained in safe and proper manner to remain so.

It is to be operated by persons who is competent to do so.

so by default , if you haven't got your tickets its hard to prove competence , if something goes wrong , then the insurers will walk away .

 

Also the HSE have recently brought in HSE Officer intervention charges @ £124 per hour per officer .

chargeable where they are intervening in the actions of persons or companies in the work setting which breach regulations & obligations that's £124 per hour per officer hour on site off site & during investigation.

 

SO yep you need tickets , especially in this day and age of litigation, where there's blame there's often a claim

 

I don't think it is reasonably practical for you to obtain ALL tickets prior to use, where you can evidence safe prior operational experience or you are being mentored by a work mate. however you may need to evidence that you are actively working toward these with a skills development plan.

 

Ie I've done this , and I am doing that assessment next month , & in the coming weeks & months I am doing ..... blah blah and heres the booking to evidence it

 

perhaps a call to the Hse might give clarity for you

[theflyingscotsman]

IF you've the knowledge, It's not really about certs and the pissing contest that follows, it's about what your insurance company will cover you for...your cs30/31 is enough to insurance wise let you fell any size tree. As you have proven to them that you can maintain and use a saw safely. (When I first heard this I thought the chap was mad so I had him email me it in writing.)

 

But it is true. (Climbing your always going to need extra tickets)

 

Mostly your tickets are you bosses way of showing every one you've had the right training so if you have an accident he/she can sleep at night and he won't get sued evil ogar..

 

If your self employed (your own boss) and you have the same accident..it's tricky to sue yourself and nobody else would care..it's all about putting your big boy pants on..

 

What's more when building the business you'll likely spend cash on getting employees ticket'ed up rather than yourself as you'll have been strimming and chipping away for years by that time..

 

If you want to save a bit of money on tickets initially.. Get a insured climber in to do the climbing.

 

[MattyF]

Problem is if your the boss and you hurt some one else and not your self with out tickets it could be the problem..

[codlasher]

Most councils are so incompetent in their daily management of staff (what few they do have) the quest for super certification is their only way of ensuring the work is done to an accepted standard!

Their 'flexi-time' of being in the office/at work makes a complete mockery of a traditional working mans day/working hours. Average Joe with his saw will be at work by 08.00hrs and continue doing the job either until it's finished of until 16.30hrs or later still.

Try getting hold of any CC employee before 10.30hrs on the telephone and the usual answer is, and I hate this one; Mr/Ms 'Is away from their desk'. Meaning 'They haven't turned into work yet.....Grrrr!

 

By all means acquire the most important tickets relating to your work and you will learn a good deal with a good instructor but tickets for tickets sake seem, to me, as a cash cow. A good and well established insurance company with a canny director will see a lot more than you think and I believe that a long term relationship with your company is a beneficial one. There are a lot of fly insurance companies out there too, willing to take your hard earned money for very little return. Hence the wriggling

codlasher