 RTITB and Sumo Glove have launched the Lift Truck Operator of the Year Competition at IMHX in Birmingham. |
Up to 152,000 forklift drivers could participate in the RTITB (formerly The Road Transport Industry Training Board) and Sumo Glove Lift Truck Operator of the Year Competition that was launched at IMHX in Birmingham last week.
The 2011 event is open to any counterbalance forklift operator currently registered on the RTITB National Operator Registration Scheme.
Health and Safety Executive's Jane Willis says the competition shows that operators can take pride in their level of skill and demonstrate the safe way to do the job. "Their skills are a testament to the great quality of training that is available in the UK."
James Clark, secretary general of the British Industrial Truck Association, says it wholly supports the competition that raises awareness of the need for regular accredited training and highlights its importance in raising safety standards.
Kenneth Saward, a past winner, says winning the competition changed his life. "It's a great way to highlight the importance of being safe and for getting the recognition of operating safely and properly."
Entrants will first have to undertake an online hazard perception and theory test, which will be available from 1 January to 11 February 2011 at
www.rtitb.co.uk/fltcompetition.
The national finals will then take place in Northern England, Southern England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland, after which each region's top scorers will receive prizes and be invited to the grand final.
The grand final will be held at RTITB headquarters in Telford. The champion will win a brand new car while the second prize is a luxury holiday worth GBP2,500 (USD3,982) and the third prize is GBP1,000 (USD1,593) of shopping vouchers.
A gala dinner and awards event will be held on the evening of the grand final at Q Hotels, Telford Golf and Spa. The dates for the finals and awards events will be announced later.
RTITB and Sumo Glove are looking for standards- and safety-conscious organisations to sponsor the event. Organisations which would like a sponsorship pack can visit
www.rtitb.co.uk/fltcompetition for more information.
Separately, RTITB has announced the accreditation of the Calor LPG safe refuelling course. Calor has demonstrated their training course is compliant with relevant legislation and codes of practice and RTITB says it will refer potential customers to Calor.
RTITB's core business is the accreditation of materials handling equipment training. Today, it accredits training provided at over 600 locations in the UK and Ireland, and has a contact database of over 300,000 forklift drivers, LGV drivers and instructors.
Sumo Glove is a UK-based producer of a fork tip impact protection system. The glove, introduced in 2008, is made of industrial grade polyurethane. It is bonded to the forks and replaces the hard steel with a material that has a cushioning effect, designed to reduce product, pallet and racking damage.