FISTA – Forest Industry Safety and Training Alliance Inc. is a nationally recognized, non-profit safety training and education organization provides practical, effective training for chainsaw users with zero experience to extremely advanced users.
FISTA is very well know for their Chain Saw Safety Training Program. FISTA provides four different levels of chainsaw safety training based on your skills and experience.
The levels are Basic, two levels of Intermediate and Advanced programs.
Level 1: Basic
As you can understand, this level is design for users with little or no experience.
Basic level offers training in the following areas:
- Personal protective equipment
- Chainsaw safety features
- Reactive forces of the chainsaw
- Identification and function of each part of the chain
- Safe use of the chain saw
- Introduction to daily maintenance demonstration
- The bore cut
- Hinge establishment and importance
- Open face notch
- Evaluation before felling
- Spring poles and (time permitting) limbing and bucking field demonstration
Level 2: Intermediate
This course is basically for those students who have completed the Level 1 Chain Saw Safety course or equivalent.
This session offers additional training in the following:
- Refresher of PPE, Chainsaw safety features and reactive forces
- Hands-on chain saw maintenance and sharpening
- Proficient hinge and open face notch establishment
- Introduction to wedges
- Felling plan and evaluation
- Spring pole, limbing and bucking field practice
Level 3 – Intermediate
This session offers additional training in the following:
- Evaluation and inspection of student’s PPE and chainsaws
- Hands-on chain saw maintenance and sharpening
- Proficient hinge and open face notch establishment
- Wedge placement
- Felling plan and evaluation of challenging trees
- Felling, de-energizing spring poles, limbing and bucking field practice
Level 4 – Advance
This is designed for extremely advanced level users who has around one year cutting experience with proper training. And mainly focus on
- Tree height determination
- Precision felling
- Hands-on application of felling trees of various sizes and hazards
- Hazard tree and hazardous situation evaluation
- Varied release cut methods
- Tree processing and bucking techniques
- Pressurized limbing and bucking
- Dealing with hung trees and other hazards
- Instructor evaluation
FISTA also provides online training, training materials like DVD etc.
For more details and enrollment please visit : fistausa.org
