New York union uses CM Labs simulators to train crane operators

The program requires a minimum of 24 hours on the simulator.


CM Labs Simulations, Montreal, Quebec, developer of Vortex training simulators, announced that New York-based International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 14, the organization responsible for all crane operations in New York City, has selected a Vortex simulator, along with crawler crane and rough terrain crane training modules, for its training center.

"It's definitely safer," says Tom Gordon, the Local's codirector of journey person and apprenticeship training. "We've noticed that when trainees get in the real equipment, it's making a big difference. They're more confident because they know what to expect, they know how to catch a load and they know what's going to happen. The reactions of the load, and the rigging and the load line were so realistic in the Vortex simulator, it's incredible."

Local 14’s training center already has National Commission for the Certification of Crane Operators (NCCCO)-certified training and testing for lattice booms, telescopic booms, boom trucks, articulated boom trucks, tower cranes and pile drivers, and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)-approved classes in forklift training, signalman training, rigging and tower crane rigging.

As part of a structured training program that requires a minimum of 24 hours on the simulator, once trainees have completed 40 hours of classroom training, the training center is using the Vortex simulator, including Vortex crawler crane and rough terrain crane training modules.

“IUOE Local 14 has made an excellent choice with the Vortex simulator,” says Arnold Free, CM Labs’ chief commercial officer. “As the next generation of effective and safe training solutions for the heavy equipment industry, it complements the Training Center’s considerable reputation for innovation and excellence.”

The full lineup of Vortex simulator training solutions will be on display at CONEXPO from March 7 to 11 in Las Vegas.