One of the nice things about coming to ATS Heavy Equipment Operator Training School is knowing the whole hassle of housing has already been solved. We offer housing assistance at the ATS dormitory, a nice place only four miles away, and the cost of your stay can be included in your financial package.

This means you have a comfortable room where you can kick back and go over that day’s classes, with a small refrigerator in the room for drinks and snacks. There are laundry facilities and a game room, too. It’s a good way to get to know your classmates. You aren’t far from stores and restaurants in nearby Madison, and the entire setup has proven to be one of our students appreciate.

Housing assistance is included in your training because it gives you the chance to get away from your regular life and focus on what you are there to do: become a professional heavy equipment operator who is competent and knowledgeable. You can’t do that with half your attention on the things that fill your day now. You also can’t do that if the place you are staying is far away or uncomfortable.

Dormitory

The dormitory will be contacted when you sign up for classes, and a room will automatically be reserved for you. You don’t have to figure out the best place to stay because we already did. All you need to do is learn how to do the job you want to apply for when you graduate.

The question often comes up about types of equipment you’ll be on at ATS Heavy Equipment Operator Training School. The answer is: lots. We make sure you get familiar with all the machines on this list:

• Backhoes
• Scrapers
• Bulldozers
• Graders
• Skid Steer Loaders
• Wheel Loaders
• Excavators
• Off-Road Haul Trucks
• Front End Loaders
• All-Terrain Forklifts

The reason why we’ve found it’s important to give students lots of exposure to different kinds of machinery is that the same question can be asked about your job once you graduate. Heavy equipment is a big investment so most employers have a wide range of machines in their business.

Your employer might have a skid steer loader or a wheel loader. Maybe even both, from different decades. You might be using a brand new front end loader or a backhoe about to be retired. There’s no real way to know, so the best preparation is learning how to figure out what to do with whatever you are asked to operate.

If you are familiar with the way a lot of different equipment works and have a grasp of essential safety skills, you are in good shape. It helps to know how to identify soils, read grade and site layout, and use a laser level. The bigger your perspective is when you start a job, the easier it is to see why you are important on the work site.

Classes start every three weeks and there’s no waiting list. We set it up like that to fit the real world and real people’s schedules. Take a look at what ATS can help you learn, and you’ll be on the equipment you know how to run.

Sometimes, you get into a career field and find out it takes abilities you struggle with. One great way to see what’s involved with a type of job is O*NET OnLine. This is a tool for career exploration and job analysis, and it’s a good place to see what a job will actually be like before you start training.

For instance, a search for heavy equipment operator results in a big list of possible matches, with the top item being Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators. The summary report has different sections in short bullet lists:

• Tasks like “coordinate machine actions with other activities, positioning or moving loads in response to hand or audio signals from crew members.”
• Tools & Technology like probable machinery and software used.
• Knowledge like building, construction, and mechanical information.
• Skills like controlling, monitoring, and troubleshooting equipment.
• Abilities like multilimb coordination, manual dexterity, problem sensitivity, and reaction time.
• Work Activities like operating equipment, getting information, communication, and problem solving.
• Work Context like being outdoors, wearing safety gear, whole body vibrations, and noise.
• and more

It’s a good way to see a little bit more about the details of different kinds of jobs, and most job descriptions don’t really get into skills and abilities in quite the same way. There are many kinds of jobs listed on the site, with similar information. Once you have explored a bit, you’ll notice that many of the heavy equipment operating jobs mention training. This is because most employers want a certain level of knowledge backed up with certification for insurance reasons.

One of the best places to get the training you’ll need is ATS Heavy Equipment Operator Training School. You’ll get the foundational preparation you need for any job involving heavy equipment, and you’ll get help finding a job, too.

Becoming a heavy equipment operator is a childhood dream come true for some, and a new discovery for others. Learning how to safely and skillfully guide large machinery to accomplish seemingly impossible tasks is pretty amazing when you think about it. But many people who have the dream of operating heavy equipment don’t see that dream come true because they fail to recognize the help available. Here are the three basic parts of finding that heavy equipment career:

Training & Certification

Associated Training Services’ Heavy Equipment Operator Training School provides the best training around, with all the necessary certifications you need to be instantly employable. You get on-the-seat experience, preparation for the needed tests, and walk out as a graduate fully prepared to be an entry-level employee who only needs time to improve your skills.

Career Services

From the day you walk in the door, ATS Career Services starts working with you to develop the skills you need to get the job, such as interviewing, resume writing, and networking. They do a personal interview with each student and provide a customized packet of career possibilities when you graduate, based on the things you are interested in.

After graduation, Career Services stays available for you whenever you need assistance. Our database is constantly being updated with employment information so the leads you get are current.

Networking

Every graduate of ATS has access to the Total Resources Network, a job site that matches employers with qualified personnel. You can post your resume and qualifications, look for openings that meet your skill set, network with others, and much, much more. It really is a total resource network and a valuable asset for your career advancement.

Each one of these basic tips for finding a job in heavy equipment operation depends on you. Sure, you can find a job without one of them, but it’s going to be more difficult. And these are tools, the way you use them makes a difference in the outcome. Using each tip well is a sure way to find a good career.

One of the questions that pops up from time to time is: “What makes a good heavy equipment operator?” And then it gets a little more specific and turns into “What makes a good mobile crane operator?”

There’s some overlap, but there are a few differences.

Things Heavy Equipment Operators Need

All big machinery, no matter what it is, needs an operator who knows what is happening around them and isn’t afraid to stop when things get dangerous. Good heavy equipment operators have these qualities:

• hand/eye coordination
• certifications from trusted schools
• respect for the safety rules
• a feel for their machine’s location and operation
• an eye on their surroundings
• knowledge of their machine’s operation
• rehearsed emergency procedures for instant response

Heavy equipment is hard to stop once it gets going, and everybody is safer when the operator is a professional. But the mobile crane operator has some added factors:

Things Mobile Crane Operators Need To Add

All of the above applies to a mobile crane operator, but the fact that there are additional NCCCO Certified Crane Operator Programs tells you that things get racheted up with the whole overhead-lifting thing. Loads to be hoisted have to be rigged correctly or they’ll fall, and it won’t be pretty. The momentum of a big machine is multiplied when that big machine is swinging a big load around.

Crane operators function as part of a team, and communication is really important. They need the strength to ignore pressure to hoist unsafe loads, even if the boss is giving them a hard time. They need to know what is safe and what is not safe, and it’s a good idea to know why so you can explain your refusal clearly.

Mobile crane operators are heavy equipment operators who have gone into a specialized field and done the training to earn specialized certifications in that field. They have great responsibility and are up to the task.

On the job, the most versatile person is apt to be the one who stays on the payroll, right? It doesn’t matter what kind of job you are talking about either, because the principle applies to every industry, white or blue collar. In the heavy equipment field, that versatility looks like an operator who is familiar with many kinds of machines and able to figure out what to do with them to get the job done.

ATS Heavy Equipment Operator Training School has the goal of equipping graduates to be versatile operators able to do what has to be done and do it professionally. That means our students get hands-on training on different types of machinery and become familiar with the big picture of heavy equipment. It also means they learn how to learn, because there will be new stuff thrown at us on the job.

The chance to get a CDL license is offered, too, so you can drive trucks — that is something most heavy equipment operators find they need when they enter the workforce. A lot of heavy equipment gets loaded and moved on a flatbed, so if the operator can be the truck driver, too, that operator is the person who gets hired.

If an employer is trying to decide who to hire, or who to keep on the payroll, the person with the safety certifications, CDL, ability to learn, and versatility is going to be the more valuable employee every time. That’s the goal of ATS Heavy Equipment Operator Training, and that’s why our graduates get hired.

You’ve put in a lot of hard work, received the best training from some of the best instructors in the heavy equipment industry, and now you’re ready to look for your first job. What do you do?

First, don’t panic. It’s a scary thing for a young person to be looking for his or her first job. If you are making a career change from one career to another and are beginning your job search in the heavy equipment field, relax. Job hunting takes time. It’s not going to fall together in one day.

Nevertheless, you don’t have to let the fear of looking for work pin you down. There are jobs available and you can land one.

Use ATS’s Free Employment Assistance

Graduates of the ATS Heavy Equipment School receive free job assistance after graduation. In fact, we start working on finding your first job long before graduation.

We want all our graduates to be gainfully employed. That’s why we provide soft skills training, resume preparation, personal career counseling, an employment search website, and free job leads. Employers will be looking for you before you have your certificate in your hand. We do all the legwork up front so you don’t have to do it after graduation.

It’s great that your well-trained and ready for work, but until you land your first job, you aren’t a heavy equipment operator. Take advantage of our career services and land your first heavy equipment job today.

Many times, an employer would love to provide specialized training but lacks the financial ability to do it. When your crew lack training, there’s more chance for safety violations and accidents. More violations and accidents cost more than money. They cost time and valuable employees, too. It’s like a downward spiral that has to stop.

There’s a program in every state of the country called the Incumbent Worker Training Program. It’s funded by the Workforce Investment Act and provides grants to eligible employers so they can give full-time permanent employees upgraded skills training. The amount varies from state to state because the state determines how the grant funding is allocated, but it can run to $200,000 per employer and an annual range of $4-5 million statewide.

Associated Training Services is qualified to provide training for the Incumbent Worker Training Program, and there could be funding available for your crew to get the specialized training they need to keep your business safe, productive, and profitable.

General Eligibility Guidelines For Funding

In general, to be eligible for incumbent worker training funds:

• The employer must be a private sector. Public and government entities are not eligible.
• Partner with a training provider, which may be public, private non-profit, or private-for-profit educational entities, faith-based or community-based organizations.
• Be actively involved in the planning and design of the customized training project for your crew.
• Sign an agreement outlining each entity’s roles and responsibilities in the training project, including reporting requirements related to trainee participation.
• Provide equal opportunity employment documentation as well as information on the occupations for training, employment benefits, wages and social security numbers for trainees.
• Ensure trainee information can be reported one year after project completion.

Construction Crew Training

Since ATS is a training provider, we can help you determine if your workforce crew would qualify for financial help. If you do, your workforce can get the training they need and you can focus on running your business effectively and safely.

Most of us ask ourselves the same questions when we start looking at the details of attending school: “How am I going to pay for this?” It’s a legitimate question, because you really don’t want to be in debt for years after you graduate. So how does the money end work? How do you figure out how you are going to pay for ATS Heavy Equipment Operator Training School?

You Don’t Have To Figure Out Financing By Yourself

ATS has an excellent Financial Assistance department that knows exactly how to figure out your financing. There are a lot of variables and possible sources of both loans and grants depending on your circumstances, and the first step is filling out an application. Within 48 hours, they’ll get back to you and the process of figuring out your financing will happen with expert help.

Because the folks in Financial Assistance work with this stuff all the time, they know the right questions to ask and where to find money for school. They can help you figure out the whole thing; tuition, housing, etc. and give you a solid idea of what you will be in for. There’s no way you can know all the possible sources of financial aid, but they do.

Don’t let the fear of financing keep you from getting your training at ATS. We can help you find the money, get the skills and the certifications, and provide the career help to get you in the driver’s seat as a heavy equipment operator who can pay the bills with a good job.

Moving earth and heavy debris around doesn’t seem like technology comes into play much, does it? After all, you are pushing dirt around far away from a computer on a desk. But today’s high-tech heavy equipment often has very sophisticated technological advantages the machinery of the past was not capable of accessing.

Global Positioning Systems (GPS) have been around for years. Most smartphones have them, and lots of people use their GPS to find the nearest restaurant or get directions to an unfamiliar address. Heavy equipment operators use a GPS to match the contours of the site to the designed plans. The system can be fairly simple, or incredibly intricate depending on what has been put into place.

GPS and related technology can track where machinery is located, tell a central monitor how fast it is going, monitor maintenance issues, and a host of other things. Many companies use high-tech stuff in their heavy equipment, and a good operator isn’t intimidated by it because it helps you do your job.

If your training school isn’t accredited by the National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER) you probably will not be getting recognition for your efforts, even if you learn the latest technological advances in heavy equipment operation. This is because employers recognize NCCER and respect its standards.

ATS Heavy Equipment Operator Training School holds National Credentials with NCCER and this gives our graduates that respect.

Whether it is the latest GPS technology or the latest thing being invented, ATS keeps up with what is happening in the industry and works that develop into our training. At the same time, we know that a lot of job sites will be using older equipment, so you get experience with the classics, too.