In March, the training centre at Liebherr-Werk Ehingen GmbH was awarded a certificate, which officially enables it to train crane operators for the new European Crane Operators Licence (ECOL). The certification company, Lloyd´s Register, had first checked that Liebherr could provide the required training and whether the training centre met the high standards. The first three mobile crane operators have since taken and passed the examination with Liebherr.
ESTA, the European Association for Abnormal Road Transport and Mobile Cranes, took the initiative for a crane operators licence, which would be accepted throughout Europe, in 2013, supported by the European Materials Handling Federation (FEM) in Brussels. Working groups were formed, including crane operators, groups of specialists and manufacturers. They defined the contents of the operator’s licence and defined uniform standards not just in terms of content, but also for training methods and framework conditions.
The Liebherr Training Centre is now the first certified training Institute for the ECOL mobile crane operator in the whole of Germany. There are other sites in Denmark and the Netherlands.
Liebherr is offering two ECOL courses – a 3-week course for mobile crane operators with at least 4 years of experience and a 1-week course for mobile crane operators with at least 8 years of experience. In the latter case, we recommend that applicants first attend the two-week course for mobile crane operators organised by the German employers’ liability insurance association also organised by Liebherr.
The Liebherr Training Centre in Ehingen has already taken steps to meet the challenge posed by the coronavirus pandemic. Extensive action has been taken so that courses and training sessions (including the ECOL) can still be provided.