Those who intend to use any machine with characteristics of weight, height, width, length or complexity which differ significantly to the training they have received should ensure that they receive a familiarisation to cover the differences.
It is the employer's responsibility to ensure that all operators using equipment are adequately trained and familiarised to comply with current health and safety legislation.
Machine specific familiarisation should follow on from basic training and cover:
Manufacturer's instructions and warnings
Features of the specific model
Control functions
Safety devices
Emergency lowering procedures
All of the above are to be found in the information supplied with the machine.
Training is the instruction necessary to enable a trainee to become a qualified person in the task to be performed, including the recognition of potential hazards.
Familiarization is the information regarding the control functions and safety devices on a specific elevated work platform to be operated by a qualified person (trained operator).
An operator must be TRAINED and ensure that they have FAMILIARIZED themselves with the equipment before they can operate an Elevated Work Platform