Blended Hand & Power Tool Safety - Online Theory + Burnaby Campus - CA$99.95

For workers who use hand tools, portable power tools, abrasive tools and shop machinery in British Columbia workplaces. The course covers thirteen tools across three equipment categories with different hazard profiles: portable tools move to the work, abrasive tools add a consumable that fails catastrophically rather than progressively, and fixed machinery reverses the relationship, because the work is fed to a stationary point of operation.

How it works

• Online theory, about 4 hours: the hand tool pre-course reading (it is on the written test), then 9 modules in order, at your own pace. Each module has an exercise; Modules 1–8 also end with a knowledge check. An optional practice test is at the end.
• Book your practical: when you finish the online part, call 1-866-661-9803.
• On campus in Burnaby, about 4½ hours: you sign the acknowledgement form, write the written test, then do the 4-hour practical in the shop.

Which tools you will operate

• Assessed (7): rotary hammer / SDS hammer drill, impact driver, random orbital sander, belt sander, hand-held circular saw, reciprocating saw, angle grinder. You operate these under supervision and are graded on them.
• Demonstrated (5): die grinder, bench grinder, table saw, chop saw, drill press. You watch a demonstration from behind an exclusion line and do not operate them. Employer training and authorization are required before use.
• Awareness (1): hydraulic press. Theory only.
• Hand tools: pre-course reading plus a short module, examined on the written test. No practical station.
• Your certificate lists all three tiers, so an employer reading it knows exactly what you were assessed on.

What you will cover

• Introduction, Standards and Responsibilities
• Hazard Recognition and Injury Mechanisms
• Personal Protective Equipment and Controls
• Hand Tools
• Portable Power Tools: Drilling, Driving and Sanding
• Portable Saws: Circular and Reciprocating
• Abrasive Tools and Wheels
• Stationary and Fixed Machinery
• Pre-Use Inspection, Removal from Service, FLHA and Written Test Instructions

How you are evaluated

• Online exercises, knowledge checks and the practice test are practice. They don't count.
• Written test on campus: 30 questions, 20 multiple choice and 10 true or false, closed book, 15 minutes, 80% to pass (24 of 30). Seven questions are safety-critical: miss one and you are re-taught and re-tested on it, whatever your overall score.
• One re-write is allowed the same day, after remediation. A second failure means the course is not completed and you are rebooked.
• Practical: 20 competencies, and every one must be Satisfactory. Stop-and-fail conditions are read out at shop orientation.
• Your certificate is valid for 3 years (Gama policy). It is not site authorization: your employer still confirms your ability on their own equipment.

What to bring

• Protective footwear. Without it you cannot enter the shop and cannot complete the course.
• Government photo ID.
• Gama supplies the safety glasses, face shield, hearing protection and the gloves each task needs.

What this course does not cover

• Powder actuated tools and chain saws.
• Any machinery outside the thirteen-tool list.
• Operator training on the demonstrated machines: each needs its own training.
• Site authorization, which is your employer's, on their own equipment.
• A respirator fit test or a silica exposure assessment.