Plant&Equipment

special report
Training: The key to
competence in quarrying
(cont...)
Where licenses are particularly useful is in
proving competence across a selection of plant
categories and on new pieces of equipment. The
main disadvantage of the licensing schemes for
quarrying is that one of the UK’s most popular
plant license schemes, although nationally
recognised and accredited, is designed for the
construction industry and not the extractive
industry, so the operational context for the
scheme is inappropriate. The other existing
licensing scheme that is appropriate to the
industry’s operational context, is not awarded by
a nationally accredited approved awarding body
or SSC.
One of the problems with both of these methods
of demonstrating competence is that they are
stationary, as opposed to continual and ongoing,
i.e. they both prove competence on a particular
date. The S/NVQ may also prove competence
over a period of time, but both methods will
require updating at regular intervals by means
of continuing professional development (CPD)
and detailed training records. Some licensing
schemes however, have a structured approach
to progression, whereby an interim or provisional
licence is acquired which allows the trainee to
gain experience (by putting in operational hours)
before undertaking the S/NVQ and graduating to
the full licence.
Training – the Future
One of the biggest impacts on how training is
delivered is the development of technology and
our aptitude at using it. Whether a ‘technophile’ or
a ‘technophobe’, technology is an issue that will
not go away. Digital presentations breathe life into
learning and a new dimension to tackling theories,
methods and underpinning principles. Advice and
sources of additional information can be made
available online as can the conduct of assessment
for S/NVQs. Evidence of competence for S/NVQs
can be captured and recorded using digital pictures
and sound recordings; electronic portfolios can be
used to facilitate the assessment of candidates in
remote locations and where distance learning may
be required.
It is not necessary to be an IT specialist to benefit
from improvements to the delivery of learning &
training. The OPERC online Safetynet (health and
safety) test is an example of this. A brief tutorial and
a simple, easy to use interface mean that individuals
can effectively provide evidence of their knowledge
as it relates to their job, referenced to the S/NVQ
standards. The test can also be used to highlight
potential training needs and can give detailed
information on the areas where existing knowledge
is insufficient.
The quarrying industry has invested much time and
money in proving the competence of the existing
workforce and benchmarking this competence using
nationally recognised standards. But the profile of
the industry’s employees is changing both with the
retirement of many established, long-serving staff
and the recruitment of new people, from within
the UK and the EU. Now is a great opportunity
to examine how grass-roots operator training is
conducted and standardised and how it can be
improved to meet future industry needs and deliver
effective benefits.
Gavin Brain
BA(Hons), MIQ, MIVA
Gavin is an occupational competence specialist
with a background in assessment, internal
verification and external verification for a number
of S/NVQ subjects and awarding bodies. He has
been actively involved in promoting competence
within the UK quarrying industry for 9 years and
has also been involved in setting up, monitoring
and advising S/NVQ assessment centres for a
number of quarry operators.
28
February 2008