Heavy equipment is one field where accredited training has become important. In the past, almost anyone could set themselves up as, say, a bulldozer trainer; charge you a small fortune for training which may or may not have been adequate, and left you with a worthless piece of paper.

You can always tell the cowboys. They don’t have an office or training rooms and all of their training is delivered on the machine. There is little in the way of official safety training or heavy equipment safety checking. Training organizations that deliver training to an accepted level will apply for accreditation. This ensures your training is up to a minimum set of standards. Training organizations will always advertise and promote that accreditation – why? Because they are proud of their accreditation.

ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools are a good example of this. They are proud of their accreditation and proudly display the NCCER logo that shows they are accredited to deliver heavy equipment training.

Training organizations that have been accredited will be around for the long haul. They wont advertise, take your money and then disappear – it’s only the training cowboys who do that.

As the name suggests, all terrain fork vehicles can operate across a range of terrains and can often be found around mines and on some large construction sites. Their role in the heavy equipment world is to load and unload trucks and to move heavy equipment around the mine or construction site.

All terrain fork tend to be larger than a standard fork lift truck and are included in the heavy equipment category. They operate using a set of two or more ‘forks’ at the front of the truck. The forks are placed under the material to be moved, then raised until the material is well clear of the ground.

All terrain fork vehicles can be quite nimble and can move around a site fairly quickly, even with a heavy load. Operating a fork requires a sense of balance along with good eyesight and the ability to navigate a vehicle that often has a load that is much wider than the vehicle itself.

ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools can deliver training across a wide range of heavy equipment including Backhoes, Wheel Loaders, All Terrain Fork Vehicles, Rollers/ Compactors, Off-Road Dump Trucks, Scrapers, Bulldozers, Excavators, Motor Graders. To get your career off to a flying start give us a call.

ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools have gone out of their way to provide individuals considering a career in the heavy equipment industry with all the information required to make a decision – and it is all at your fingertips.

To begin with, their is full featured video on heavy equipment as a career. This is a full motion presentation that is available online at the click of a button. The video will provide much of the information you require to make a career changing decision.

If you want the information in your hand, or you have problems viewing the online video, then you can request a brochure and a copy of the dvd. You can review these in the comfort of your own home at your own leisure.

Once you have decided that a career as a heavy equipment operator is right for you, you can fill in our online application form.

If your impatient to get started, then you can working through our free online training program. This will provide you with some of the basic knowledge required to get started as a heavy equipment operator.

As you can see, it all there at your fingertips – well at the click of a mouse button anyway.

There are a lot of individuals who are wanting to undertake heavy equipment training but get confused by the number of training schools around. To help determine which training provider is right for you, there are several questions you can put to them.

There are of course the obvious questions. How much will it cost me? How long does the training take? Those questions are fairly straightforward and you can make easy comparisons. However, simply comparing price can be a big mistake if don’t also include the following assessment of their services:

Is the training accredited and if so, through whom? – be sure the accreditation is through a recognized body and that the training provided is recognized nation wide.

Is there any job placement service available? – there are many providers that will train heavy equipment operators like a production line – in one door, trained, out the other door, goodbye. If they offer a job placement service then the training is going to be targeted towards employment, not getting you out the door.

Is there financial assistance available? – training providers that can offer financial assistance are generally on a sound financial footing themselves. They are not living day to day using your money to pay for last months training – a road to ruin, with your money.

Do they have successful students willing to vouch for the training? – happy customers are always one of the best indications of quality service. If there are heavy equipment operators who are willing to speak well of their training, then you can relax in the knowledge of receiving quality training.

At ATS Heavy Equipment Training School we encourage any questions like those above. Quality training to help you into the workplace is our aim. Our record speaks for itself with previous students happy to speak about their accredited training and subsequent employment within the industry.

Every workplace seems to have a piece of heavy equipment that has been designed to do a job for that industry. Because of that, they are not in widespread use. For many of those units, format training isn’t available, however, to learn to operate the equipment you will need to know how to operate some heavy equipment machines.

A good example would be the container cranes at the docks. It’s a little hard to incorporate one of them in the back yard of the training facility, unless it was a port. However, in order to learn to operate one of these machines you may need general crane operator training and experience.

Another good example is the asphalt distributor. These come in a wide range of sizes and capabilities. There general use is to carefully lay down a bed of hot asphalt. This is achieved using a number of devices on the one machine including a heater to keep the asphalt hot, sprays to spray the asphalt and often the ability to set forward speed. Once again, training at a training facility is not practical. However, to undertake on-the-job training, many employers prefer to take on those who do at least have training such as grader operation.

There are a great many other examples in the work place. Most of them rely on you having as a basic set of chore skills, heavy equipment training such as motor grader, bulldozer or mobile crane.
ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools can provide that training and perhaps get you started on an interesting career in heavy equipment.

One question that is often asked about heavy equipment is, “why does some machinery use tracks whilst others use standard wheels?”.

The answer is not as straightforward as some may think. Tracks first off, are the propelling devices similar to those used by army tanks. If you think about the size of some of the heavy equipment, in particular the weight; and then compare that to the surface they are working on; you may get some understanding.

Tracks distribute the weight along the base of the machine. Wheeled units distribute the weight across axles. Wheels can easily get stuck in mud, sand or clay surfaces; tracks can move over these surfaces with ease.

Wheeled heavy equipment can be easily overturned when carrying a load and hitting a large bump in the surface – either that or snap an axle. Tracks glide over these rough surfaces without any real problems.

Where wheeled heavy equipment does have an advantage is that it can often be driven on main roads. Tracked vehicles would cause too much damage on these surfaces. Ironically, when preparing a building site, a tracked vehicle can cause less damage to the soft surface than a wheeled vehicle.

Heavy equipment comes a number of different configurations. Ideally you should learn to operate both the tracked and wheeled units. Steering is completely different in a tracked unit. Wheeled units are steered much like a standard motor vehicle. Tracked units often use foot pedals to steer and change direction by changing the speed and direction (forward, stop, reverse) of the tracks independently.

ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools can take you through the different types of heavy equipment, both tracked and wheeled. Send an inquiry and see what courses suit your needs.

When considering heavy equipment certificates and certifications, there are many aspects to consider. Firstly, any registered training organization can issue certificates. It is whether or not they are accredited and exactly what type of certificate you receive.

Some certificates are not certificates at all, they are simply statements of completion. They may say you have completed a training course in heavy equipment. Notice it doesn’t say you have passed or that you are competent to handle any equipment.

If you receive training from certified training organizations, they should generally state what course you undertook and what assessment criteria was used when assessing you. It should also state whether or not you were passed as competent against that assessment criteria.

Employers are not looking for pieces paper, no matter what they say. They are looking for skilled individuals who can immediately climb into the operators seat and start operating their heavy equipment. If your training organization has a reputation for providing people with these skills, then the certificate issued by them will open doors – your skills will get you the job, not the certificate.

ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools are are accredited by The National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER). Your certificate is not issued lightly – you still have to earn it.

Commencing a career as a heavy equipment operator is not that difficult. Whether you want to work as a motor grader operator, bulldozer operator or simply drive trucks, there are plenty of jobs available for those with the right training. At ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools we make that transition as easy as possible.

One: Select the right training course for your needs.

Two: Use our online application process to enroll in your selected course.

Three: Arrange finance or funding for your course.

Four: Attend training and complete all the requirements to pass.

Five: Sign up to our Job Placement service so we can match you with suitable employers.

It’s as easy as that. Sign up and before you know it your working at the wheel of a heavy equipment machine, earning good money and wondering why you didn’t visit ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools earlier.

Hazmat training – short for HAZardous MATerials – can be interesting for a heavy equipment operator. Whilst much of it is theory and theoretical principles, some training is required in the field.

The theory is just that. What signage is required on vehicles and what that signage means. How hazardous materials should be handled. There is plenty of theory.

It becomes interesting when you get out into the field. Using a back hoe can be a lot of fun – try operating it when you are fully kited with a hazardous materials suit complete with breathing gear! Not only will you be required to operate the heavy equipment fully protected, you will be required to operate with extremely precise control.

Controlling heavy equipment to handle hazardous material takes a lot of skill, training and experience. Being able to lift a container full of hazardous material onto a truck or into a pit without piercing the container or spilling any of the contents is stressful enough, knowing that one wrong move could have serious consequences just adds to the stress.

Fortunately you will not be asked to do this type of work until you have the experience and the licenses required to deal with hazardous material. If the idea of working in this field appeals then your first step should be to acquire the necessary training to operate heavy equipment similar to the training we offer at ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools.

The career of a heavy equipment operator is generally an interesting one. No two days are the same even though you may be working on the same job. There is always something happening, always something changing.

The job itself is not one of brute force as many people think. Most jobs take some considerable thought and planning. The real work is in the finishing touches which often have to be precise.

ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools offer free online training for those considering a career in the heavy equipment areas. If you are not ready for the free online training then perhaps viewing some of our videos may help.

We also offer a free brochure and DVD on heavy equipment careers and the training required. Just visit the site and either view the videos or request your free brochure and DVD.

Heavy equipment operation is one of those trades that will never disappear. No matter how tight the economy, roads are still constructed, factories still built, and food and other necessities are still freighted around the country.