Page 36 - North American Clean Energy July/August 2020 Issue

wind power
A Fresh
Approach to
Wind Training
by Jakob Lau Holst
Training centers in the wind turbine industry began reopening in May. A survey commissioned by Global Wind Organisation (GWO) anticipates that course volumes will be at 90 percent in July across the United States, with Canada at 100 percent.
In spite of the crisis, hiring in the wind industry is continuing. In fact, large manufacturers and owner operators from GWO’s membership in North America have taken on hundreds of new technicians since the turn of the year.
Given that all of these new hires, along with the existing workforce supporting North America’s 115+GW of installed capacity, require regular safety training and refresher courses, the availability of training has never been more crucial.
To meet this challenge, training center leaders are focusing efforts on new ways to minimize risk of infection to their instructors and trainees, before they enter facilities as well as in the classrooms and throughout the hands- on safety training, which is so vital for wind turbine technicians.
GWO standard training includes basic safety, basic technical, enhanced first aid, advanced rescue, blade repair, and rigger signal person courses – all critical for technicians working in various roles across the industry.
Some keys for minimizing the possibility of infections include:
• Monitoring the student’s past two weeks travel activity, and symptoms
prior to attending a course
• mpressing upon certain instructors that they are role models
• Maintaining an inventory of personal protective equipment (PPE)
• Sanitizing equipment before and after classes
• Keeping an overall healthy environment in facilities
Reopening requires a mindset that infection could occur throughout the training,
so steps are taken to avoid that possibility by maintaining the safest possible environment. This includes monitoring trainees for 15 days before courses start to ensure they do not show symptoms of Covid-19; some centers are using a form that participants sign to confirm travel and contact history, along with a statement on what to expect upon arrival.
Trainees that need to travel to their assigned training center must follow specific instructions that can include pre-screening before departing, using airports with lowest levels of risk, or driving to the facility.
The facilities are sanitized daily, with common areas cleaned multiple times during the day. Also, sanitizing stations are present in all classrooms for trainees and instructors.
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JULY•AUGUST 2020 ///
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