With industrial working environments becoming more dangerous, specifically where lifting is involved, J. C. Renfroe, manufacturer of industrial lifting products, has opened a new training center onsite at its Jacksonville plant to help educate customer operators and employees on the safe use of the company’s products.

The newly converted facility offers two sets of classrooms, one for textbook and video instruction and another for hands-on instruction with tool stations and in-room lifting apparatus. The center is stocked with the various lines of Renfroe products and even has a kitchen to serve meals during the instructional courses.

Renfroe provides a curriculum that prepares personnel to return to their plant to help instruct other employees. The course is called “Train the Trainer.” Courses include instruction on clamp use, lift scenarios, interactive applications, clamp definitions, maintenance, inspections and industry safety standards.

Upon completion of the two-day course, each person receives a detailed reference manual to use for training other employees.

“At Renfroe, it is more than just selling a lifting product, it is about training people to safely use our product,” explained Clint Sage, Renfroe’s Training Manager. “Our training is part of the added value of purchasing Renfroe products. That is why we felt it was important to create our new training center.”