Five Regional Events Set for the West and Southeast
The MCM & CIC Crane Operator Rodeo continues its cross-country competition to round up the best crane operators in the West and Southeast. From October until March 2014, five additional Regional Qualifying crane operator skills competitions will take place to introduce young people to crane operation as a profession, and to educate local governments and businesses about the role training, experience, and certification plays in safe crane operation. Safety and risk managers working for contractors and crane rental companies are also encouraged to attend to learn more about OSHA requirements for crane operator certification and the options available in the marketplace. The regional and championship events are a partnership between Maximum Capacity Media (MCM), the publisher of Crane & Rigging Hot Line magazine, and Crane Institute Certification (CIC), an independent certifying organization providing OSHA recognized, NCCA accredited certifications for mobile crane operators and riggers.
Previous Regional Qualifying events took place in New England, the Northeast and Midwest United States, and Canada from June to August, 2013. The top two operators from each Regional Qualifying Crane Operator Rodeo will advance to the Championship, which will be held March 6-7, 2014 at ConExpo-Con/Agg, in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Held every three years, ConExpo-Con/Agg is the perfect venue to underscore the need for safe crane operation, which can only be achieved through training and experience. Debbie Dickinson, Executive Director of CIC and Construction Citizen author, said: “CIC's certification programs test operators and riggers by skill level, which provides employers with flexible, affordable certification solutions. We are pleased to be invited back to ConExpo-Con/Agg for the second show in a row. The tradeshow draws more than 100,000 visitors from the construction industry, and this skills competition is an added value to people working in the crane and rigging industry.”
The operator test course and contest standards were designed by CIC to assess an operator's ability to control the load. Tasks include placing the crane's headache ball into barrels, maneuvering 55-gallon drums full of water through an obstacle course, and raising a pipe to a vertical position then placing it between a set of cones. Each test is timed and monitored by the judges for load control, depth perception, and accuracy. Operators will use a swing-cab style mobile crane with the boom extended approximately 70 feet. Setup and judging of the Regional Qualifying events is overseen by Jim Headley of Crane Institute of America.
The fall Regional Qualifying events will be held in:
- Woodland, WA on October 5, 2013,
- Houston, TX on October 18, 2013,
- Sanford, FL on November 9, 2013,
- Corpus Christi, TX on November 22, 2013, and
- Las Vegas, NV on March 4-5, 2014 as part of the first two days of the ConExpo-Con/Agg show.
A portion of the competitors' registration fees for each Regional Qualifying event will be donated to a local charity in each region.
The MCM & CIC Crane Operator Rodeo is supported by The Crosby Group, Houston International Insurance Group, InfoChip, Liebherr Cranes, and, Slingmax Rigging Solutions. Register for an upcoming Regional Qualifying Rodeo at www.craneoperatorrodeo.com.
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