01.07.2008

IPAF aims at youngsters

The International Powered Access Federation (IPAF) is launching a major campaign to attract young people to the access industry, kicking off at APEX in September.

A series of initiatives aim to draw young talent into the access industry and alleviate an acute shortage of expertise in the coming years. This includes a group led by Roger Bowden of Niftylift which is developing an IPAF engineering apprenticeship designed to lead to a “technician” level qualification.

“The powered access industry is itself young and represents a great career path for young people – all too often they are unaware of the job opportunities in this growth business,” said Tim Whiteman, IPAF managing director.

IPAF is also launching the Job Access challenge among colleges in Europe. The Federation is looking for manufacturers and rental companies to sponsor 18-year-olds from technical high schools who will be trained to operate access platforms safely and through that process, to obtain a PAL Card (Powered Access Licence) as proof of training. Job Access will culminate with a competition on the IPAF stand at Intermat next year, where teams of young people will have to complete various tasks using access platforms safely.

“Young people represent the future and the access industry can only benefit and continue to flourish if there is a ready pool of fresh talent in disciplines like engineering and maintenance,” says Isabelle Laplume of IPAF-France, who is organising Job Access. “We look forward to working with exhibitors and sponsors on this exciting project.”

IPAF will give a 30-minute presentation on Job Access at the APEX alongside a number of other meetings, including: IPAF Manufacturer’s Technical Committee Meeting
18 September, 9:00.
IPAF Mast Climbing Work Platform (International) Committee Meeting
18 September, 14:00, MECC, Berlin Room
IPAF European Rental Forum
18 September, 14:30