The old adage “better safe than sorry” is timeless, especially in today’s litigious society. Just one accident, one mistake on a job site can cost a contractor thousands to millions of dollars and possibly put him or her out of business. That’s why safe operator training has become a hallmark for every contractor out in the field.
The Modern Group has been in the training business since 1963 and has grown tremendously since then. According to Gary Adcock, heavy equipment instructor of Modern Handling, based in Bristol, PA, the number of operators seeking training has skyrocketed to more than 5,000 people a year—a number due in large part to the company’s extensive list of training seminars and new federal regulations. Whatever a contractor needs in instruction, Modern will provide it.
“If a customer calls us and he wants something that we don’t advertise, we’ll put the program together, providing that it falls within the scope of our activities,” said Adcock, who teaches seminars on backhoes, loaders, skid steers, excavators and industrial trucks.
Modern has seven instructors at its Bristol, PA, headquarters and one out of its Edison, NJ, branch, who are available to do both in-house and on-site training.
In addition to Adcock, the other instructors, who have a combined 150 years of industry teaching experience, are:
• Mert Gardner, Modern Group’s director of training, deals with high-end electric issues, wire guidance issues and any specialty courses.
• John Tennant, who provides technical instruction for transmissions, hydraulics, large lift trucks and pit training.
• Bob Iles, a retired technical school instructor, is an expert on electronic issues for ignitions, such as MSTS-TBI (the new ignition system on the market today), basic ignition, conventional ignition and computer control fuel-delivery systems and fuel injection.
• Glen DeCray, whose forte is AWPs, rough terrain trucks, diesel and LP fuel technical instruction.
• Bill Patton, who is responsible for AWP and rough terrain lift trucks, electric issues, such as SCR controls for electric lift trucks and traction motors.
• Ron Cusumano, who was an instructor in the military, works out of the Edison, NJ, office, specializes in diesel issues and LP and electric powered lift trucks.
• Modern Group training also provides courses on “train the trainer” for forklift trucks, aerial work platforms, rough terrain and construction equipment.
And each of these instructors is busy. “Generally, there’s somebody out doing training every day. There are times when there’s no instructor in the office; we’re all doing training on site. We take training to the customer if needed,” said Adcock. “And Paul Stout, our administrative assistant, is always there to take your call.”
But how far will Modern’s instructors travel to share their expertise? “We primarily travel to four states—Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland—but we’ve been to Boston, Washington D.C., and Chicago. Basically, we’re willing to go coast to coast, border to border,” said Adcock.
Contractors have even been willing to travel great distances to get safety training from Modern. “We’ve had people come in from as far as Alaska—Nabors Well Drilling, the largest well-drilling outfit in the world—because nobody in their area could give them the training they were looking for,” said Adcock.
For a specialty class, such as the one the Alaska contractor needed, the time it takes for Adcock and his colleagues to create a seminar is relatively brief: depending on the complexity of the course, it can take a week to a month.
The benefits of operator training are far-reaching, according to Adcock. “Our operator training is OSHA compliant…not only is a trained operator protecting himself by being in compliance with the federal government, but also the employer is protecting itself by being OSHA compliant.”
Keeping up with the myriad OSHA regulations can be a full-time job in itself, but Modern has created a network of sources to stay informed of all that the federal government requires.
“We are constantly, constantly, reviewing the Internet for any updates,” said Adcock. “We check the interpretations. We hear things from out on the road, and we’ll get back to the office and follow through with research. We get publications that outline OSHA changes, and we’ll get on the phone with OSHA. We have a good rapport with the OSHA people and they help us out a lot with things that are questionable, things that can have different interpretations.”
But Modern’s seminars aren’t all about safety; they’re about technology, too, which is always advancing, always changing. So much so that operating any new piece of heavy machinery is like having to learn an upgrade to software or an operating system. “As far as the technical systems go, the systems change, they’re upgraded and if you don’t stay with the times, you’re going to be left in the dust,” warned Adcock.
However, the greatest benefit of all may arguably be protecting oneself from liability. “That’s the reality of it,” said Adcock. “And you’ve got to protect yourself, protect your co-workers and the training is one way to do it. Training is an investment, not a cost.”
For more information, call 215/949-9266.
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