A new career in powered access

In August 2022 we held careers open day in Sheffield to give HGV Class 1 and 2 drivers the opportunity to find out if MEWP (mobile elevating work platform) Operating might be the career for them.  Our visitors were able to chat to us about the job and take a trip in the MEWP cage with one of our experienced operators.

The day was a huge success, resulting in the recruitment of four new Elev8 team members.  All four new starters are still working for Elev8, and we caught up with each of them to find out what they have been up to over the last few months.

Connor, HGV Driver / Access Platform Operator

Connor used to drive 11 car transporters up and down the country delivering cars and has held his HGV Class 1 licence for 9 years.  After years of driving car transporters Connor was looking for a job that had more to it than just driving.  He was interested in becoming a MEWP Operator because there was more to it, and interested in joining Elev8 because when working away he didn’t have to sleep in the truck if he didn’t want to.

On his second week at Elev8 Connor did his IPAF (International Powered Access Federation) training and then familiarised with our CTE ZED 20.3A+H access platforms.  Already familiar with complex hydraulics from driving car transporters, Connor very quickly progressed to the Ruthmann T330 access platform.  He spent a week training with an experienced MEWP Operator on the Bronto S70XR (which goes up to 70m high) providing safe work at height for a telecom’s installation on a water tower in Cambridge.  Since then, he has operated a variety of our truck mounted MEWPS, including the Palfinger P900 which has up to 90 metres of working height.

 

“Sometimes being up in one of the big MEWP’s feels very high when you look down but when you are working you are concentrating on where you need to be and how you are going to get there, and you don’t think about how high you are. The open day is important to see if you like working at height”.

Careers in powered access - MEWP Operator

Marcin, HGV Mechanic / Access Platform Operator

Marcin came along to our open day because he was interested in joining our maintenance team.  Already an experienced HGV Mechanic, Marcin was looking for a job closer to home.  At the open day Marcin got to meet Lee who heads up our maintenance department and went up in the MEWP basket of one of our Bronto S35EM access platforms.

Marcin joined our maintenance team to look after the trucks that our MEWPS are mounted onto.  His job takes place mainly on the ground, but we put him through his IPAF so that in future he can multi-skill and learn to maintain the booms or even operate access platforms.  Next month Marcin is booked on an IPAF Demonstrator course, which qualifies him to handover MEWPS to our self-drive cherry picker customers.

 

“Working at Elev8 has been a good experience so far. I enjoy working in the maintenance team, there is a good atmosphere and we support each other.”

Careers in powered access - HGV Mechanic

Alex, HGV Driver / Access Platform Operator

Alex drove aggregates on tipper wagons with a class 2 licence, but was starting to get bored of just driving from A to B.  He found out about our open day and came along to see how he felt about going up in a MEWP.

In his first week at Elev8 Alex went through his IPAF training, and then started by operating our smaller truck mounted cherry pickers, the CTE ZED 20.3 A+H and CTEZED 23.3JH.  Once he was comfortable operating at twenty metres he moved on to the Palfinger P300KS and the Ruthmann T330 MEWPS, which go up to 33 metres high.  Alex naturally gravitated to working with our tracked access platforms, which are transported to clients sites on a beavertail truck then driven on self-propelled tracks to the set up location.  He enjoys visiting the varied locations that tracked access platforms are used in, as well as the more complicated set ups.  The photo right is of Alex at work in our Leo36T tracked access platform which can reach up to 35.5 metres high.

“I enjoy working at Elev8 where MEWP Operators are trusted and given the time to do each job safely. I like all the different locations that I get to work in and have an office with wonderful views from the MEWP basket. My job isn’t just driving, I get to be logical, figure out setups and speak to clients. The other operators are sound and help you out, and you can ask questions without being judged.”

Leo36T tracked access platform providing off road work at height to a telecoms mast

Jason, HGV Driver / Access Platform Operator

Jason already had experience of operating non-truck mounted MEWPS when he came along to our open day, but he still found it informative.  He had his HGV Class 2 licence and previous experience of delivery driving and driving bin lorries before joining Elev8.

He started his journey with Elev8 being trained to use van mounted MEWPS and the smaller truck mounted cherry pickers.  With his past IPAF training and experience it didn’t take very long at all before Jason was comfortable with operating our smaller MEWPS and he quickly moved on to larger truck mounted access platforms.  When we spoke to him he was taking a break from operating the Palfinger P750 access platform which can reach up to 75 metres, on a construction project in Scotland.

“It's been good working at Elev8 and I get on well with the other operators. The company is growing at a pace, with several new truck mounts arriving since I started. There can be lots of travelling, and stop outs if you choose to work them. You do need to be comfortable working at heights, so I would recommend coming along to an open day and see how you feel going up in a MEWP.”

HGV MEWP Operator job vacancies- Jason

Last years careers open day was such a success that we are holding another on Saturday the 22nd April.  If you are a HGV driver looking for a job with more to it than just driving, please come a long to our open day to find out if a career in the powered access industry might be for you.  You can book your place by giving us a call on 0114-3210644 or sending an email to recruitment@elev8hire.com