Yaskawa Environmental, Health, and Safety Resources

Equipment Requiring Certification

Policy Key Points

Certain processes and types of equipment require certification. Where certification is required, the certification must be by Yaskawa America, Inc. or one of it's authorized certification providers. Certification from previous employment will not be accepted.

The general rule of thumb is, certification is required if the equipment or process: has a motor, exposes a person to hazardous energy, shoots something, or if it puts a person in a hazardous environment.

This policy includes the types of equipment and processes that required associates to be certified.

Policy

Introduction

Education vs. Training vs. Certification

Education
The process of acquiring knowledge often through classroom or eLearning classes.

Learning to drive usually begins with classroom training where you learn:

The rules of the road
The parts of a car
How the vehicle responds to actions you take

Would you allow your child to drive on their own after only taking the classroom portion of drivers education?

No. Now, we need to complete training.

Training
After we have acquired the knowledge, we need training to develop skill and competency.

You may have had a parent or a driving school take you out to drive for the first time. You probably didn’t drive 70 miles per hour on the freeway your first time out.

Instead, you put in many more hours with an instructor present constantly teaching you new things and introducing you to new situations.

Certification
Certification is documented evidence of competence.

To continue our driving example, the student goes to the DMV and takes a written test to demonstrate she or he has the knowledge.

Then, the student takes a drivers test to demonstrate competency.

If the tester determines the student is knowledgeable and competent, the student will receive her or his drivers license.

This is certification.

Awareness Training
Associates who are not certified, but who are exposed to the hazards of equipment or processes, still require education and training.

To carry our driving example to one last step, we teach our children to look both ways before crossing the street.

We educate them by explaining what could happen, what direction cars travel, and even how to look for something that could go wrong.

Then we teach them by crossing the street with them many times before we let them do it on their own.

Certification Rule of Thumb

Certification is probably required if:

The equipment has a motor, or
It exposes you to hazardous energy, or
It shoots something, or
It puts you into a hazardous environment.

Equipment that has a Motor

Certification is Required for the following types of equipment:

Powered Industrial Trucks
- Forklifts, order pickers, turret trucks, material handling powered carts, and powered pallet jacks
Scissors Lifts and Big Joe’s
Robots
Cranes/Hoists
Motor driven conveyor belts
Industrial Machinery
- Bandsaws, grinders, reciprocating saws, drill press, mills, dynamometer, CNC machines, etc.
- Exception: Hand drills and torque drivers do not require certification

Equipment or Process Exposes you to Hazardous Energy

Certification is Required for the following types of equipment and processes:

Work with energized exposed electrical conductors,
Gaussing/Degaussing Machines
Hydraulics and Pneumatics

You must be certified to lockout and/or tagout equipment.

Equipment that Shoots Something

Certification is Required for the following types of equipment and processes:

Nail guns
Powered Staple guns
Paint guns
Cleaning with Air Guns (must be regulated to less than 30 psi)
Lab environmental chamber rain test fixture and fire hose

Hazardous Environment

Certification is Required if the process places you into a hazardous environment:

Permit required confined space
Working unprotected at height greater than 4 ft to lower level or above dangerous equipment regardless of height
Working with toxic chemicals
Hazardous chemical disposal
Working in oxygen deficient areas
Welding, flame cutting, brazing
Any environment requiring use of a respirator

Certification Process

Certification has long been required for many Yaskawa processes, including:
- Working with exposed electrical conductors
- Lockout/Tagout Authorized
- Powered Industrial Trucks
Other processes are not currently permitted for any Yaskawa associates including:
- Working in permit required confined spaces
- Working in oxygen deficient environments
- (They are included in the certification list in case these processes are ever considered permissible)
And other processes have required training but not certification, such as:
- Operating industrial machines
- Operating cranes
For equipment and processes that did not require formal certification prior to FY17, YAI will:
- Develop certification procedure during FY17
- Require certification for all associates new to the equipment or process within 60-days of the procedures release
The certification procedure will include the method of certifying associates who were previously qualified to perform the process.
Contact the EHS Department at EHS@Yaskawa.com to learn about how to become certified on any process or piece of equipment.

Results of Breaches of Policy

Breaching this policy may result in an injury. Breaches of this policy may result in disciplinary action being initiated in accordance with Yaskawa America's discipline policy.

Training

All associates shall be provided with training related to this policy.

Revision History

Rev #	Description	Release Date	Approved by
0	Initial Release	5/14/2016	Thurwanger

Program Review

Review Date	Reviewed by	Changes Required (Yes/No)
2/15/2017	Thurwanger	No
1/12/2018	Thurwanger	No
1/18/2019	Thurwanger	No
1/14/2020	Thurwanger	No
1/26/2021	Thurwanger	No
1/18/2022	Thurwanger	No
1/13/2023	Thurwanger	No
1/16/2024	Thurwanger	No
1/21/2025	Thurwanger	No

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