Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/674548
I DA U N I V E R S A L M ay -J u n e 2 0 1 6 23 NUTS AND BOLTS NEWS Western Canada's largest heavy equipment operator training school has opened a new location in Mission. Interior Heavy Equipment's (IHE) newest training site, which opened earlier this month, is located at 11750 Dewdney Truck Rd. is is IHE's third training site – the other two are located in Winfi eld, B.C. and Innisfail, Alta. "It gives me great pleasure to confi rm to everyone that IHE will be expanding operations to the Lower Mainland. Response has been very positive and well- received to date by the public, as well as our stakeholders and industry partners," said IHE President Mike Hansen. IHE off ers hands-on equip- ment training for excavation and construction equipment opera- tors looking for employment in the forestry, mining, civil, road building, and oil and gas sectors. e new site was created because of a growing need for more training opportunities. "Over the years, we have had a lot of people traveling to the Interior from the Lower Mainland to take the training," said IHE's business development manager Christine Bay. She said there was a "lot of lobbying to open a site closer to the province's larger popula- tion base." "We chose Mission as the site. A few sites were considered and looked at. We wanted to be in an area that was central enough that people could access it easily, in and out," said Bay. e training site will teach from 20 to 60 students at a time, Interior Heavy Equipment has opened a new training facility in Mission. e new site, located on Dewdney Trunk Road, is the company's third training center.— Kevin Mills Photo Heavy Equipment Training School Opens in Mission and courses range from three weeks to 10 weeks, depending on whether students want to train on one machine or all six. "We are a little diff erent than other colleges. We are open for weekly intakes so every Monday any student can start any course that we have a seat available. And by seat I don't mean class- room seat I mean a machine seat. We don't train on simulators," said Bay. Students range in age from 25-30 up to 55-60. "A lot of them are on their third or fourth careers." No previous heavy machinery experience is needed. For infor- mation, visit iheschool.com or call toll free at 1-866-399-3853. ● www.missioncityrecord.com, 3/16 Nuts & Bolts continued on page 24