JLG Graduates 6,000th Qualified Instructor

JLG Industries Inc. graduated the 6,000th qualified instructor from the company’s Train-the-Trainer course held in Las Vegas. James Mason Jr., who is an outside machine shop apprentice instructor, was recognized with the honor. He received gift certificates for JLG merchandise and complimentary accommodations from the Orleans Hotel & Casino.

The JLG Train-the-Trainer course gives instructors the most effective methods to teach aerial work platform (AWP) and telehandler operators how to work the equipment properly, stressing the importance of operator training as it relates to increased workplace safety.

“As the use of aerial work platforms and telehandlers increases and the variety of applications grows, the need for programs – such as JLG’s Train-the-Trainer – has become more important than ever,” says Chris Mellott, JLG Industries vice president of sales and development of the Americas. “We estimate that for every graduate of the program, five to 25 or more people receive qualified operator training every year in the safe use of JLG equipment. We are proud of these individuals, as workplace safety is of the utmost importance.”

The Train-the-Trainer instructor qualification is valid for a five-year period; afterward, a refresher course is required to ensure instructors remain current with the new developments and changes within the industry. Attendance for JLG’s Train-the-Trainer program, since its inception in 1995, has grown an average of 10 percent or more each year. In North America, courses are available in Atlanta, Ga., Houston, Tx., Las Vegas, Nv., McConnellsburg, Pa., and Riverside, Ca. Additional courses are also held in Europe and South America on a regular basis, and new courses are being developed for China and India.

Tom Hickey, manager of the JLG instructor development and operator training programs, leads the JLG Train-the-Trainer program. Hickey is one of three JLG Master Safety Training Instructors in North America, along with Jim Smith and Jose Orozco, a bilingual Spanish/English instructor. Other JLG Train-the-Trainer instructors, located in Europe and South America, teach the program in countries outside North America.