Crane Simulators are Good Business
Onsite crane simulator training is one of the best investments a company can make for its employees. Given that 83% of construction firms are concerned about inexperienced skilled labor or workforce shortages, skills verification and training should be a must in 2022. At one time, hands-on job experience was the only way to identify a crane operator’s vulnerabilities or verify their skills. That old way of doing things has many drawbacks. For one, on-the-job crane operator skills training is dangerous. Hands-on training can be hard on expensive machinery. Additionally, pulling your company’s equipment from a job-in-progress costs your company money.
Good news: NJ Crane Expert’s professional crane simulators deliver hands-on training to your jobsite via a climate-controlled mobile trailer to minimize interruptions, making crane operator education and instruction more accessible to all levels of expertise.
Industry professionals recognize health and safety on the job site are synonymous with good business. Having well-trained employees results in significant long-term cost savings, boosted morale, and increased client satisfaction. Crane simulator software offers real-world training in a safe setting for construction and tree service business owners, utility crews, safety and training professionals, and others in related industries.
This article outlines how professional simulator training is used to establish crane operators have the operational skills and worksite awareness necessary to work in real-world settings.
What are Crane Simulators and Why Should You be Using Them?
Using an actual job-site crane for training isn’t just tricky, it’s dangerous and impractical. Crane simulators use computer-generated scenarios to provide operator trainees the guidance and practice they need to learn from and react to real-life test conditions.
NJ Crane Experts’ crane simulators recreate the physical environment experienced by a crane operator using hand and foot controls identical to those on a typical crane, as well as seat movement and motion. The simulation software accurately captures the behavior of rigging and housing cables, from the load to the drum, using actual engineering properties. Those behaviors include loads swinging, snagging and colliding just as they would on the jobsite, providing a realistic, but safe, training environment.
Simulator training is a game-changer for the crane industry as they allow students the time necessary for optimal operator training using various scenarios that include different environments, difficulty levels, tasks, and settings. Regardless of skill level, individuals can utilize crane simulators to safely hone their skills to ensure they are prepared to use the heavy equipment entrusted to them.
Besides the obvious training benefits, companies can use this software to verify their employees are well-suited to operate in a real job site. In the past, companies have had to learn the hard way when new employees caused significant damage to expensive heavy equipment—or risked injury to themselves and others. Using a crane simulator, your firm can set a baseline for new hires.
What to Look for in a Crane Simulator for Training and Safety
Realism is central to practical training. What should you look for when selecting a crane simulator for training? Simulators offered by NJ Crane Expert, a professional crane training company, feature:
Large, clear graphic interface that doesn’t flicker or pulse
Real-world operator functionality: industrial joysticks, hand levers, control panels, and responsive foot controls
Seat simulation providing a real-life crane cab motion experience
A range of different programs, skill levels, and crane types
Programs based on engineering principles
Plus, we bring the simulators to you in a climate-controlled trailer, reducing slow-downs and expense.
NJ Crane Expert’s Crane Simulators: Training Plus Convenience
When you rent NJ Crane Expert’s simulators you get all the benefits of professional crane simulators brought to you in a climate-controlled trailer. Available for a day,a week, or even a month, the trailer houses two crane simulators so you can have multiple team members training from the privacy of the trailer. And, you have a choice between running the simulators on your own or having one of our expert trainers onsite to assist your crew.
Our simulators run software packages that include:
Basic Controls
Loading & Unloading materials from a trailer
NCCCO Practical Exam preparation
Task based assessments
Generalized practice in “Sandbox” environment
Building steel buildings
Operating in a tight spaces
These exercises are great for maintaining annual qualifications and training, too! As an employer, you should provide on-going qualification training to all of your operators. Upon completing a session in the simulator your trainees will have the proper documentation showing you are continuing to support their training efforts.
Available cranes for training include:
Boom Truck (with or without digger derrick)
Articulating Boom Truck
Tower Crane (at various heights)
Luffing Tower Crane
Crawler Crane
Rough Terrain Crane
Forestry Forwarder
Forestry Harvester
Heavy Equipment Simulators Are the Future of Construction Industry Training
Unlike flight simulators in the aerospace and airline industries, crane simulators have not been universally adopted by the construction industry, yet. Still, the trend seems to be going in that direction. Private companies that have adopted this type of technology are already reaping the benefits.
The use of crane simulators for training helps create an environment of safer operators, reduces wear and tear on equipment, and saves time and money in the long run. And bringing simulators to the jobsite saves even more time and money.
Operators who train with our simulators develop the real-world skills required to safely operate cranes. Our simulators can scale to your training and budget needs while providing the most transferable skills on the market today, outside of the actual equipment.
Ready to learn more about renting NJ Crane Experts’ professional crane simulators? Click through to reserve your spot today.