How The HAZWOPER Hands-on Simulator® Changed the Training Industry
How The HAZWOPER Hands-on Simulator® Changed the Training Industry
Due to the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) acceptance of our HAZWOPER Hands-on Simulator®, employers have changed the manner in which they train their employees. (A copy of the OSHA letter can be found on their website or on our downloads section.) Instead of sending employees to a 24 or 40 hour HAZWOPER class in another location, they train online with the simulator. They are able to complete the course online and then conduct any site-specific hands-on training for personal protective equipment (PPE) or other equipment. The HAZWOPER certification of an employee has always been jointly held by the trainer and employer. Our simulator provides a detailed step-by-step illustration on the 3 main levels of PPE protection, Levels A, B and C. The simulator then takes an individual through a decontamination process for each level of protection.
If for some reason an employer believes that offsite classroom instruction is better suited for their employee, we recommend sending this person for HAZWOPER classroom training. However, there has been a huge shift towards online training since OSHA provided acceptance of our simulator in 2009. The reasons for this is very obvious - no travel, lodging, or per diem cost and you get the added compliance assurance using our simulator. Our courses are very easy to use and navigate. We design all courses to be regulatory compliant, highly interactive, engaging, aesthetically pleasing and extremely user friendly.
We conducted extensive and exhaustive research from various OSHA and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) documents as well as using our own experience and expertise in developing the simulator. The simulator is a graphic intensive application and various 3D software packages with special effects were used. Because of the high resolution graphics, the simulator was designed so that load times would be acceptable for online use.
Space Shuttle Columbia Disaster
When the Space Shuttle Columbia broke apart during re-entry in 2003, we were contacted by EPA and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) officials for HAZWOPER training. Because they needed to mobilize a large force of people for debris cleanup, our simulator proved instrumental in quickly deploying their personnel. Their employees and subcontractors were able to take the training online, become certified, and responded in a faster pace than would be allowed by typical classroom training. Each site where debris fell was considered a “mini HAZWOPER site”. The cleanup effort took place over many states and workers were able to painstakingly retrieve most of the debris.
2010 Gulf Oil Spill
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) contacted us during the 2010 Gulf Oil Spill. Similar to the Columbia disaster, they too had to mobilize a large contingent of personnel to respond to the oil spill. We were the exclusive training provider for the FWS during the oil spill. We are also grateful the FWS referred us to train officials from the U.S. Coast Guard. Once again, our simulator allowed people to become properly trained and certified in a timely fashion for a faster response time.
Companies and Organizations
If you are in need of HAZWOPER training, the best option for you is to train with our exclusive HAZWOPER Hands-on Simulator®. The OSHA letter provides you with assurance that you are taking the training in a proper fashion when using it with site-specific equipment. Please call toll free (1.888.877.7130) or visit National Environmental Trainers today to find out how we can help you with your training needs. If you find a classroom course, make sure the company or organization providing the training will actually hold the class. They market the area hoping to receive enough registrations to hold a class. Many times training companies will cancel a class due to poor attendance. Chances are you will not be aware of this until the day or two before the training date. So, please do your due diligence and make sure the training will be held.
