Construction Management Students Learn about Equipment at Construction Expo
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April 26, 2017 - Earlier this month, I went back to college. Although I wasn’t attending a class, taking notes in a lecture hall, or sitting in a bean bag chair in a dorm room, it was still a learning experience I won’t forget.
On April 5, Pittsburg State University in Pittsburg, Kan., held its annual Construction Expo. More than 50 vendors braved the wind and rain to educate 800 area students enrolled in the College of Technology’s School of Construction, local community colleges, and high schools, about the industry. At the event, students operated various earthmoving equipment, watched a crane lift a tilt-up concrete wall, and helped pour concrete.
The School of Construction’s main focus is Construction Management, and Seth O’Brien, assistant professor, said that many of the students have never operated equipment before. “It’s a networking opportunity for the students to get to know the vendors, as well as a way to introduce them to the equipment,” he said. Because the school does not train operators, students have limited options to sit in the machines. They often realize operation is more difficult than they expected. “It helps them have a respect for what the trades are doing in the field and network with the people who they may be buying equipment from in the near future,” he added.
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| Enlarge Image A National Crane boom truck was used for timed hand-signal competition. |
Former Crane Hot Line Top Trainer, Nelson Plumb of Crossland Construction, invited me to the event. He teaches the tilt-up construction lab at the school. He said recruiting the next generation of construction professionals is the driver for companies like Crossland to attend events like the Construction Expo. The general contractor provided two cranes for demonstrations. A Grove truck crane was used to show students a basic understanding of lifting tilt-up precast concrete slabs, and a National Crane boom truck was used for a timed hand-signal competition in which a student ran the crane from the stand-up controls while another guided the operator through a course.
Jamie Cummings, the Oklahoma City district sales manager for United Rentals, was also at the event. She said the company’s participation provides an opportunity to partner with the college and help students understand the industry and equipment. As we talked a number of students were being familiarized on boom lifts and operating scissor lifts in the parking lot. The recruiting event also leads to discussion with some student about internship programs and entry-level opportunities.
Other companies on-site included general contractors J.E. Dunn and Kiewit, which rolled in its 53-ft. semi-trailer loaded with crane simulators. Simulators onboard included a Liebherr crawler crane and a Potain tower crane, which also had a signalperson/rigger simulator that could communicate with the operator. A first-year construction management program student I spoke with in the busy trailer said that he was interested in tower crane operation as a profession and thought the simulator was a good introduction to the learn more about the machine.
For the School of Construction, enrollment is at a record high. “The numbers are up, but we can still use a lot more students,” O’Brien said. “We have 350 or so Construction Management students, and I think every one of them has true job opportunities.”
Does your region have a construction job fair or expo? Share the details with me at katie.parrish@cranehotline.com.
