05.11.2020

Two million PAL Cards

IPAF has issued its two millionth PAL (Powered Access Licence) card .The cards have a five year life, but 800,000 of the cards are currently valid and in use on job sites around the world.

IPAF first began certifying trained operators of aerial work platforms in 1993, while the PAL card was officially introduced at the end of 1998 by which time around 11,000 operators had been certified by IPAF. The figure doubled over the following 12 months and the federation awarded its millionth card in 2014 and 1.5 million by November 2017.

Over the years the design and functionality of the PAL card has been improved upon, to ensure the card remains secure against fraudulent use, with all cards issued after January 2015 being smart-capable. The use of smart technology allows the cards to interact with security, telematics and tracking systems on machines to ensure only authorised, qualified and correctly familiarised personnel are able to operate compatible machines.

All valid PAL cards are now smart PAL cards, which can maintain a digital log of operators’ machine usage which is also a way to simplify the renewal process, and to demonstrate to employers the level of familiarisation they have accrued on different types of equipment.

PAL cards can now also carry the name and logo of the issuing training centre, and sophisticated holograms such as the CSCS logo. They can also be quickly and easily checked online at www.ipaf.org/checkpal
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IPAF chief executive Peter Douglas said: “IPAF’s global training programme never stands still, in the past year alone we have worked to make the PAL card renewal system more flexible, to comply with national requirements to refresh qualifications more regularly than every five years where required.”

“We are expanding the range of courses and categories IPAF training centres can deliver, upgrading existing training into new languages and new applications such as eLearning and instructor led remote learning, and working to extend the network of IPAF certified training providers. Everyone at IPAF is pleased and proud to have certified more than two million people to work safely using powered access machines, we look forward to certifying many more in the years to come.”