The shortlist for the 2019 IAPAs has been announced, following a meeting of judges in Amsterdam. Those wishing to attend the IAPAs dinner and awards ceremony on 6 March in Dubai, UAE, are reminded the early-bird discount expires on 31 January.

Major construction projects are driving accelerated uptake of MEWP operator training in countries such as Denmark, where international contractors are insisting that all powered access users hold certification from an accredited IPAF training centre.

Powered Access operator training accredited by IPAF and delivered by IPAF members in French has seen surging demand in Quebec following the introduction of new design, safe-use and training standards in Canada that became effective in May.

The speakers for this year’s IPAF Summit in Dubai, UAE, on 6 March have been announced, with Matt Fearon, Genie President, and Peter Schrader, MD of Zeppelin Rental, among the names confirmed. Those wishing to attend the IAPAs dinner and presentation ceremony are reminded the early-bird discount expires on 31 January.

IPAF is pleased to be able to announce Peter Douglas as its new CEO & Managing Director, following a thorough recruitment process that attracted almost 50 applicants from around the world. The new CEO & MD will take up post on 1 December 2019 and will be based in the UK.

Senior representatives of IPAF have given more feedback to the UK All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) of MPs looking into falls from height in the workplace at a recent meeting in Westminster, including a review of IPAF’s accident reporting project.

The first training candidates have successfully passed IPAF’s PAL+ advanced MEWP operator course in a virtual reality (VR) environment using MEWP simulators, with the first certifications taking place at AFI-Uplift’s IPAF Training Centre near Leeds, Yorks.

IPAF held an open meeting for members and interested members of the powered access industry September 11 in San Diego. IPAF interim CEO Andy Studdert welcomed attendees on this historic day, as someone with a unique personal experience of being United Airlines COO on 9/11.

IPAF is advising members that there has been a revision to the effective date for the ANSI A92 suite of standards, which has now been extended to March 1 2020.

The judges have been announced for the 2020 International Awards for Powered Access (IAPAs), which will take place in London, UK, at the Millennium Gloucester Hotel Kensington, on 23 April, in the evening of the IPAF Summit 2020.

More than 50 delegates attended the first ever IPAF workshop on training and safety standards to be held in Oman, answering demand in the country to establish robust standards to improve operator safety and technical inspections of MEWP machines.

Leading manufacturers have signed a pledge to ensure that all operators of boom-type MEWPs are provided with a full-body harness and correct lanyard at a special event hosted by IPAF during the BICES event in Beijing, China.

All rental/hire members of the International Powered Access Federation (IPAF) in the UK have “levelled up” to the IPAF Rental+ minimum standard, which assures people seeking to hire mobile elevating work platforms (MEWPs) that an IPAF member company will conform to the highest industry standards of safety and professionalism.

Tony Groat, North America Regional Manager for IPAF, has been honored as Person of the Year at the ALH Awards 2019 in San Diego, California, for his work to promote MEWP safety and training and in developing new US and Canadian standards.

Dan Moss has been appointed by IPAF as Global Technical Standards Development Expert to help develop new MEWP safety standards and update existing ones.