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ABOUT THE COURSES

According to IPAF data, falls from the platform is one of the major causes of injury or fatality associated with using MEWPs. Awareness and understanding of how to correctly use a harness is critical to safe operation of boom-type MEWPs. IPAF offers three harness courses to meet the needs of different candidates;

Harness Awareness Course (HA)
Harness User Course (HU)
Harness Inspector Course (HI)

WHO SHOULD TAKE THESE COURSES?

Candidates who do not need to personally use or wear a harness should, take only  the HA Course (theory training & test) which can be completed remotely as eLearning, or in-person at an IPAF training centre. Candidates typically include managers, planners, safety professionals and supervisor.

Candidates who do need to use or wear a harness themselves should first take the HA Course and then attend an IPAF training centre to take their HU Course practical assessment (this can be incorporated into a candidate’s MEWP Operator Course). Candidates are generally MEWP operators.

Candidates who are responsible for inspecting their company’s personal fall protection equipment (PFPE) and maintaining inspection records (including those required by law), should first take the HA and HU courses, followed by the HI Course. Candidates are mostly company harness/safety inspectors.

HOW LONG IS EACH COURSE?

This depends on which course(s) are taken and which formats are chosen. For example, the HA Course alone could be taken as eLearning, remotely, in half a day or less.

Candidates taking both the HA and HU courses could do so consecutively, in-person at an IPAF training centre, led by an instructor, with a duration of half a day. Or they could have completed the HA Course by eLearning prior to attending an IPAF training centre.

Candidates taking the HI Course must have previously passed the HA and HU courses prior to taking the HI Course in-person, at an IPAF training centre, led by an instructor, with a duration of half a day. 

WHAT WILL YOU LEARN?

Harness Awareness Course (HA)

• Select harnesses and lanyards for use in MEWPs
• Manage and supervise use of harnesses and lanyards for use in MEWPs
• Create safe systems of work for harness and lanyard use in MEWPs

Harness User Course (HU)

The Harness User (HU) Course can be taken as part of the IPAF MEWP Operator Course as long as candidates have previously passed the Harness Awareness (HA) Course.

All of the above plus:

• Use harnesses and lanyards in MEWPs
• Conduct pre-use checks of harnesses and lanyards for use in MEWPs

Harness Inspection Course (HI)

All of the above plus:

Conduct statutory inspections of harnesses and lanyards for use in MEWPs

QUALIFICATION

Upon successful completion of the course/s, candidates who hold a valid Powered Access Licence (PAL Card) will have the relevant qualification/s added to their card digitally, accessed via the IPAF ePAL app. Candidates without a PAL Card will receive a digital certificate, also accessed via the IPAF ePAL app. All harbess qualifications are valid for five years.