IPAF MEWP operator training arrives in Lithuania

World-leading quality training developed by the International Powered Access Federation (IPAF) is now available in Lithuania for the first time, to meet the ongoing boom in demand for trained MEWP operators across the Nordic & Baltic regions.  

IPAF training is currently offered in the country by newly accredited training company Verslo Aljansas. The high demand across the Nordic and Baltic regions for IPAF-trained operators is connected to major international contractors stipulating that all operators on site must have IPAF Powered Access Licence (PAL) Cards or be IPAF PAL+ certified. Many clients are constructing data centres in the region, often using multinational contractors that demand the highest standards of certification and proficiency for operators on site.   

As the workforce comes from all over Europe, IPAF can offer MEWP training in several different languages to suit operators in the region, and recently added both Russian and Swedish to its training suite. Any IPAF Training Centre can issue IPAF eLearning for the operator theory module in any available language, though the practical assessment must only be conducted by an IPAF instructor fluent in that language. 

Genadijus Laškovas, General Manager of Verslo Aljansas, adds: “For many years, Verslo Aljansas has been offering safety training for professionals in different fields, including heating/air-conditioning, electrical and the oil and gas sectors. We are very happy to expand this offering to Mobile Elevating Work Platforms, as we are now accredited to offer IPAF’s ISO-certified training for MEWP operators. We offer the training in both English and Russian, as these languages are widespread in Lithuania.” 

Kent Boström, IPAF’s Representative for the Nordic & Baltic Region, comments: “Since I joined IPAF in 2016, we have seen steadily increasing demand for training across the region, so it’s great to be able to welcome Verslo Aljansas as the first approved IPAF Training Centre in Lithuania. I expect more training providers to undertake the IPAF accreditation process over the next few months as demand for trained operators of powered access continues to increase across the Baltic states in particular.  

“One reason multinational contractors ask for IPAF Training is that the PAL Card training is certified to the ISO18878 standard, and audited to be consistent wherever in the world it is delivered. IPAF and its members helped develop the ISO standard, and is active in the implementation and ongoing reviews of the standard. This demonstrates IPAF’s competency in delivering quality MEWP training; it has certainly appealed to major contractors and training companies in Lithuania and the wider region. And with more than 2 million IPAF PAL Cards delivered worldwide, and 800,000 valid cards in circulation, it is clearly a widely recognised and valued MEWP training programme.” 

● IPAF Operators passing or renewing certified operator training in countries including the Nordic and Baltic regions can now benefit from downloading a digital PAL Card into the IPAF ePAL mobile app, which allows them to receive important safety updates, share training certification with managers and to log equipment time digitally. To verify an IPAF PAL Card online, to find out more about IPAF training or find an IPAF Training Centre near you.