CCO Certification - Practical Exam Process

ELIGIBILITY

Candidates must pass a Written Exam and a Practical Exam in the category they wish to be certified in. Candidates have 12 months after they pass their first exam (Written or Practical) in which to take the corresponding Written or Practical Exam in the same category. Candidates may take their Written and Practical Exams in any order. For example, a candidate passing the Written Exams (Core + Specialty) in the Large Telescopic Crane (more than 17.5 tons) category has 12 months to pass the Large Telescopic Crane Practical Exam.

Candidates must be able to provide at the time of application a copy of a score report or pass/fail report if they have taken the written examination.

SKILLS TESTED

The CCO practical examinations are available on three crane types:

• Lattice Boom Cranes
• Large Telescopic Boom Cranes (greater than 17.5 Tons, swing cab)
• Small Telescopic Boom Cranes (less than 17.5 Tons, fixed cab)

Candidates may take the practical examination on one, two, or all three of the crane types provided they have already passed the written examination in the corresponding category.

The practical examination is comprised of four main tasks that increase progressively in the skill level tested. Skills tested are: hoisting, booming, swinging, following hand signals, and combination (multifunction) operations. Crane operation with load and without load is required.

CCO adapts the test site layout for each model of crane used for the practical examination to ensure the examination remains standardized for all candidates wherever and whenever they may test.

A candidate may take the practical examination only in those categories that he/she has passed on the written examination. For example:

• To test on a Lattice Boom Crane, a candidate must have passed either the Lattice Boom Truck or Lattice Boom Crawler Crane written examination.
• To test on a Small Telescopic Crane (less than 17.5 Tons), a candidate must have passed the Small Telescopic Crane written examination.
• To test on a Large Telescopic Crane (greater than 17.5 Tons), a candidate must have passed the Large Telescopic Crane written examination.

A candidate for the practical examination should contact the Test Site Coordinator who organized the written examination to determine the date of the next scheduled practical exam. Alternatively, the candidate may contact CCO or International Assessment Institute for this information.

You must bring your completed Practical Exam Candidate Application Form with you to your scheduled examination, along with any required supporting materials.

TEST DAY

Candidates must report to the test site at the scheduled time. Candidates are required to bring personal protective equipment to wear during the test, including as a minimum: hard hat, work boots, and suitable work clothing.

PRACTICAL SCORING

Candidate performance on the Practical Examination is recorded by Practical Examiners accredited by CCO. Examiner requirements include meeting CCO requirements for certification, passing the written and practical exams and successfully completing an accreditation workshop.

The testing procedure has been developed to provide the highest degree of standardization and reliability. The Examiner's task is primarily to record the performance of the candidate.

A candidate may lose points either through operational errors or exceeding established time limits. The scoring of candidates' performance is done off-site at the facilities of International Assessment Institute.

PRACTICAL SCORE REPORTING

All candidates receive a score report of their performance. Examination results are mailed to candidates approximately twelve (12) business days after the receipt of practical examination score sheets by International Assessment Institute.

Please note that while Practical Examiners are encouraged to expedite score sheets after each test administration, they may "batch" score sheets from several test administrations over a number of days. This may mean candidates receive their score reports from IA! more than three weeks after their test administration.

Both the practical examination and the scoring system have been validated by CCO's pilot testing program and verified by International Assessment Institute. The score of 75 represents the "minimum passing" score for the practical examinations.

PRACTICAL CANDIDATE FEES

The examination fee for testing on one crane type is $60. For each additional crane type applied for and taken at the same time, the fee is $10. The appropriate fees must be submitted with your application through your test site coordinator. The same fees apply for retest candidates.

Practical Candidate Fees
l Crane Type $60
2 Crane Types $ 70
3 Crane Types $ 80

PRACTICAL HAND SCORE REQUESTS

Candidates not passing the Practical Examination(s) may request from IAI a detailed score report of their results. This provides an overview of performance in each category based upon the crane type.
The request must be made within three (3) months of the test date and be accompanied by a check / money order payable to IAI (or with VISA / MasterCard number) for $25 for each test requested.

Go to Practical Exam Outline