Heavy Equipment Certification - Bulldoze Your Way to a Better Career?

Answer 1

Heavy equipment technology is gaining new ground all the time. Sometimes, the technology is not necessarily with the heavy equipment, but with the tools used alongside heavy equipment. Take excavating as an example. Excavators have changed remarkably over the last 20 years and so have some of the tools. When I say tools, I am not referring to the attachments.

Excavators dig trenches. However, trenches can create problems, particularly if the sides start to back in to the trench. To stop this, and to provide a safe work place, shoring is used to hold the walls together. What does this have to do with the excavator? Plenty. First, as an operator you find that a trench can be dug in half the time compared to ten years ago. Secondly, excavator operators now need to learn how to work around any shoring that has been erected- the need to develop new skills.

What does this mean for the people working in and around the heavy equipment industry? It means that as in other industry, education and certification is becoming a pre-requisite for gaining employment, remaining employed, and even being promoted. Hiring managers are focusing more and more on heavy equipment certification as a means to separate through the candidates who are applying for open positions.

New heavy equipment technology means that all operators require a level of training that enables them to learn to work with that new technology. Quality heavy equipment certification schools should pride themselves on being up-to-date with the latest trends in heavy equipment. They should pass this information along to their students so they can, where appropriate, put them into use once they have completed their training.

Earning a heavy equipment certificate prepares individuals to use a variety of heavy machinery in construction and trucking positions. Students enrolled in a heavy equipment certificate program learn how to handle and operate bulldozers, backhoes, excavators, front end loaders and more.

A heavy equipment certification program teaches people how to maneuver and run heavy equipment and teaches them the guidelines and techniques necessary to do so safely and efficiently. Although heavy equipment diploma programs are available, they are less common than certificate programs. Some other certificate programs that are similar to heavy equipment certificate and diploma programs include those related to crane operating and trucking. Most certificate and diploma programs require students to hold a high school diploma or equivalent.

Training is not where it stops though. Job placement assistance is equally important to a successful career in the heavy equipment operator industry. Making sure schools have full time job placement assistance directors at each school that work with students one-on-one is essential in selecting a heavy equipment certification program. There should also an approved career resource center with computers, printers, and fax machines to assist in the job search.