Our focus and concentration are on training future truck drivers and heavy equipment operators in five key areas of professional vocational training.

Associated Training Services (ATS) has been instrumental in training heavy equipment operators and truck drivers all across America since 1996. Before that, we were affiliated with the Diesel Truck Driver Training School, which got its start in 1963.

1. Heavy equipment operations – From bulldozers and scrapers to cranes and other heavy construction equipment, ATS will train you in all areas of safe operations so that you can enter your career with huge momentum.
2. Crane operations – Crane operators are a special breed. ATS will train you and certify you to operate all kinds of cranes. When you graduate, you’ll be nationally certified to operate a crane on any work site.
3. Truck driving – Truck drivers are some of the highest paid equipment operators in the country. Once you get your CDL license, you can work local or long haul and know with confidence that you have been trained to handle any conditions.
4. Safety – Safety is one of the most important considerations for any construction crew. ATS is OSHA-compliant in all its training programs. We will teach you to operate every piece of equipment on the construction site safely and efficiently.
5. Construction trades – No matter what construction trade you wish to enter – from mining to oil rigging – ATS will train you to operate the equipment that is essential for your field choice.

Start your training today and enter your heavy equipment operation career with the right frame of mind.

Bulldozers are awesome machines. Equipped with a huge bucket on one end, they’re useful when you have huge loads of dirt or other material that you need to push out of the way. On construction sites, you’ll often see large piles of debris – usually material removed from a structure during tear down or scraps during the building phase of a project. These can sometimes be in the way. You have to learn how to move them.

That’s when a bulldozer comes in handy. However, the operator needs to take special precautions because operating a bulldozer can be dangerous.

For safety reasons, only qualified operators should be allowed to work the machine controls. In fact, if you haven’t been trained to use a bulldozer, you shouldn’t even get behind the wheel. If you do get into the operator’s seat, be sure to wear your seatbelt. They have them for a reason.

When you have an operator in the seat of a bulldozer, you should have a ground guide in the vicinity. This serves as another set of eyes and ears to watch for obstacles, pedestrians, moving vehicles, and other distractions.

One big mistake new operators often make is attempting to push materials that are overhead, or working on a structure that is taller than the bulldozer. This is a big no-no. You can move overhead material enough to cause it to fall right on top of you. Then you or someone else could be fatally injured. It’s a huge safety hazard to use a bulldozer on anything over your head.

When you’re ready to learn how to operate a bulldozer safely, give Heavy Equipment School a call.

Do you know what a lattice crane is? Chances are, you’ve seen one. You’ve probably seen one and didn’t know at the time that it was called a lattice crane.

A lattice boom is that long arm on the crane with a pedestal mounted on the end of it. It is latticed on the end of the boom, which is the long arm extension that runs from the body of the crane to the end tip. The booms can be varying lengths, giving the operator a little more challenge with every foot of length to maneuver.

An articulated boom crane, or knuckleboom, is a crane where the boom (that long arm) knuckles, allowing the boom to swing like an arm with an elbow, based on the driver’s controls.

A good crane training school will give you instructors who are experts at maneuvering all types of crane. The lattice boom crane is one of the more basic types of cranes. It’s a good one for beginners. It’s also the most common type of crane, so you’ll learn all about how to control it and most likely be using it the first day on your first job.

When you are trained and certified on driving cranes, the lattice boom crane is one that you’ll be trained on.

What is NCCCO? is an acronym that stands for National Commission for the Certification of Crane Operators. The organization was formed in 1995 to administer the nationwide program for certifying crane operators.

The key here is nationwide. Once you’ve been certified by NCCCO, then you can go to any state and work as a crane operator.

All program guidelines and training initiatives meet OSHA guidelines for safety. That’s very important because the last thing any employer wants is a crane operator who is operating unsafely. The liability is too great. That’s why training and certification are so important.

NCCCO has spent a lot of resources to serve crane operators and employers nationwide by ensuring safety standards in training and on the workforce. These include:

• Reducing the risk of losses to employers on the work site
• Ensuring there are fewer accidents
• Maintaining a consistent training environment for crane operators
• Increasing job opportunities for crane operators

The organization enjoys support from a wide variety of industries and employers within the various industries, including training schools like ATS. Construction companies, crane rental companies, utility companies, energy companies, steel erection organizations, petrochemicals manufacturers, pulp and paper manufacturers, and government agencies at all levels support NCCCO.

NCCCO is a non-profit organization that operates within the private sector to ensure crane operators are trained safely and certified to operate cranes on any type of worksite in any state. They administer both written and practical tests to ensure proficiency in crane operations.

If you are ready to be trained and certified as a crane operator in the U.S., then look no further. ATS has the perfect training class for you.

As Baby Boomers begin to retire, more and more truck driving jobs will become available. When they do, that opens the door for more people to step into these jobs. In order to obtain a truck driving job, however, you have to be trained and qualified. You have to earn a Class A CDL license.

It’s not hard to get one either.

On the whole, heavy equipment operators who have a Class A license enjoy a higher income than other operators. Class A drivers are some of the highest paid workers on the job site because they know how to operate more vehicles.

Even if you don’t plan on a career in heavy construction, you can still earn top dollar as a long haul truck driver. And if you own your rig, then you can charge more still.

Some truck drivers have been known to earn six-figure incomes just by hiring themselves out as long haul truck drivers. And if you carry the right freight (i.e. hazardous materials), then you make even more. All it takes is the right training, the right mindset, and the right financial and career strategies to put you in the position of being a top earner.

If you are ready to start your truck driving career, start it today with training that will lead to your obtaining a Class A drivers license.

Being qualified to perform a certain job and being certified to perform the tasks of that job are two different things. Specifically, we can talk about heavy equipment operations vs. crane operators.

National certification not only qualifies you to be a heavy equipment operator, but it ensures that you can go anywhere in the country and get a job. You can prove that you can handle the tasks of operating heavy equipment on the work site. Because you can prove your qualifications, your national certification contains a value that simple qualification does not.

What do I mean?

To be qualified as a heavy equipment operator, all you need to do is prove you know how to operate the equipment. You don’t need certification for that. Just jump into the driver’s seat and start operating. Certification, however, protects you and your employer from operator error or mishaps beyond your control.

We live in a highly litigant society. Any slight miscalculation can lead to an unfortunate event. If you don’t have the credentials that prove your qualification, then it could be a liability issue – for you and your employer.

That’s why ATS takes heavy equipment certification seriously. We want what is best for employers and employees. When we train you to operate heavy equipment, we certify you and make sure you are ready to start your career on the right foot. What more could you ask for?

Associated Training Services has some of the best students in the world. They are not only committed to the training they signed up for, but they are committed to being great heavy equipment operators. We have thousands of students all across the country who have graduated from one of our training classes and moved on to great careers in the industry of their choice.

Check out some of our testimonials and you will see how awesome our students really are.

See what Daniel from Ohio has to say:

I spent about 15 years at a scrap yard. I moved into management but didn’t like it. I wanted to get into heavy equipment and excavation and knew I needed more training thats when i found ATS in Ohio. I graduated in Aigust 2004 and got a job as an operator right away and the Training was a huge help. The classroom work was what i really needed because i had some equipment experience. The school was great and was just what I needed to start a great new career.

Dan –

Or how about this report from a former student who spent time in Iraq:

I was hired on as a crane operator for KBR. This photo was taken in Balad, Iraq. I was operating a 65 ton LinkBelt. I was picking up military vehicles, generators, Howitzers guns, containers and a lot of walls. I like the adventure except for the 140-degree heat.

Alex –

Here’s one from a former student named Nate:

Nate graduated from ATS December of 2009. Went to work for Iron Mountain Trap Rock Company later that spring. He Ran a 210M rigid frame haul truck and a Caterpillar 992 loader and works in an open pit mine.

Nate –

Not only are our students happy graduates, but they’re also successful heavy equipment operators. You can be too.

When digging a hole with my mouth, my wife asks, “Would you like a bigger backhoe?”

It’s an apt question. Thankfully, it doesn’t happen too often. But the backhoe does make a great metaphor. It’s equally as impressive in real life. There’s so much you can do with it.

Most people think of digging holes when they think of backhoes. That’s good because you can dig a lot of holes. But you can also carry things with the backhoe. Because they’re small and versatile, you can carry other equipment. I’ve seen people carry all sorts of items in the bucket of a backhoe.

Backhoes are also useful for digging and breaking up asphalt. On construction sites, you might see the operator bang the bucket on the asphalt to break it up.

Speaking of construction, road crews often use backhoes for paving roads. The bucket is perfect for carrying asphalt, concrete, or macadam and pouring it where it needs to be poured so that drivers have avenues and thoroughfares leading them from Point A to Point B.

How many times have you tried to remove a tree stump by digging with your hands? Why not use a backhoe? You can dig in under the roots and pull it right up.

Since backhoes are so versatile and useful, the heavy equipment industry could use a few more backhoe operators. You’re in luck. Heavy Equipment School teaches students how to operate a backhoe.

Associated Training Services and ATS Specialized recognized early on those employers who hire truck drivers and heavy equipment operators have specialized needs. Not all construction companies and heavy equipment employers are the same. Some have very specific needs that cannot be addressed by the open market.

That’s why we introduced our employer-specific training courses.

With our employer-specific training, we’ll come to your work site (or you can come to our facilities – but it’s often more efficient for us to come to you) and train your employees on the equipment you need them to know how to operate. This is a great training option when you have several employees who need the same type of training.

The alternative is, you pay for transportation for all of your employees to come to Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, pay for their lodging while they are here, and then pay for the training. It’s much less expensive to let us come to you.

You can get the training you need for all of your employees much cheaper.

We provide training for a group of employees on essentially any heavy equipment you may use on your work sites. We’ll provide training for qualification and for certification on crane operations, rigging, signalperson, truck driving, and all the standard heavy equipment. Our training classes are OSHA-compliant and we guarantee your satisfaction. Employees will receive certification from a nationally accredited training school.

Learn more about our employee-specific on-site training options today.

More and more states are requiring that heavy equipment operators be certified before they can work on site. For that reason, it behooves the aspiring operator to seek the necessary training and receive the certification to get a job and stay employed.

Even if certification isn’t required in your state, they might be necessary, it’s a good idea to seek certification anyway.

You never know when your state will follow suit and require certification. You also never know when you might need to travel or move to seek employment. When you get to your new destination, the last thing you’ll want to do is take a break from your career to get certified. If you already have your certification, then all you’ll need to do is step into your new position.

Certification benefits you in other ways too. It shows potential employers that you are serious about your career. It also shows that you know the responsibilities of your occupation.

When you show potential employers your national certification and that you know how to handle heavy equipment operations, you’ll be more confident of yourself, and you’ll have a leg up on the competition. Your career will enjoy a lot more employment prospects if you have the credentials to prove your knowledge and expertise.