Guy Lawrence / ENR

The industry this year has shown through a series of disturbing accidents that crane work is not as safe as it needs to be. On average, cranes are the most expensive equipment on a jobsite and the most profitable. But they also have the most potential to undo a project by causing severe damage and death. Standardized tests to assess the skill of crane operators will help contractors get to the prize of an injury-free workplace as more exam companies enter the market. But employers should not forget the value of highly experienced operators as well.

ENR’s examination of the crane-operator-certification process was not to show that the system does not work because a journalist could pass the test. A test should be open to anyone who is up for the challenge. We believe a firsthand account of the training and testing will help the industry understand the current state of crane safety. At the most basic level, a one-week intensive program just gives workers the fundamental tools needed to operate a crane.

But training should not end there. The certification process has its flaws because experience prerequisites have gone away. An audited and validated test by nature measures skill and knowledge; experience is irrelevant. Beyond the test, government, unions and employers can and should impose their own additional requirements. It would be worthwhile for the industry to consider further tests for more advanced operators, such as the multilevel rigging course that the National Commission for the Certification of Crane Operators is developing.

Another problem is that some operator candidates can train and test on small cranes but be certified for much larger ones. The crane sizes and types should be in closer alignment. Exams also do not cover electronic aids but probably should because such devices have become so integral to modern cranes. Because certificates take weeks to arrive by mail, workers needing a paycheck understandably grow frustrated. The new competition among testing agencies will help balance these industry needs.

Testing is better than no testing. After that, experience is the next step for crane operators to take to become excellent, rather than just certified. Assessing experience is subjective. Measuring experience might be as simple as a conversation between an employer and a new hire, or it might be periodic intensive training so workers can learn from the mistakes of others. Experience can be continuous improvement acquired gradually through years on the job. But it also can be good or bad, relevant or irrelevant, general or specific, and thus should not be used as a sole indication of proficiency.

In the end, experience is an open discussion between management and labor, and it continues long after students put away their pencils after winning their licenses to learn.