Need a better understanding of the mining safety training requirements imposed in the US by MSHA’s Part 46 and Part 48 training regulations? If so, the MSHA Training Requirements guide that you can download from the bottom of this article is the right thing for you.

Or maybe you’re looking for information about how you can use different online training tools to provide some of the training that MSHA Part 46 and Part 48 requires in an online format. Again, if that’s the case, the guide at the bottom of this article is for you.

Or maybe you want help managing and administering all that training, including stuff related to all training (assignments, delivery, tracking)  but also stuff that’s specific to MSHA Part 46 and Part 48 (such as the creation of a training plan and multiple training programs, the specific training deadlines and expirations, other documentation needs such as specifying a competent person and a person responsible for safety and health at the mine, etc.). Again, you guessed it–our free guide to MSHA Training at the bottom of this article is for you.

And of course, if you’re (1) curious about MSHA Part 46 & 48 training requirements, (2) looking for online training courses for MSHA mining safety training, and (3) also looking for help with MSHA training documentation, recordkeeping, and more, then you’re the perfect reader for the guide at the bottom of this article.

So let’s continue to learn more about MSHA training requirements and using online training for MSHA Parts 46 and 48. And don’t forget about the free guide to MSHA training at the bottom of this article.

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To help people become better aware of their responsibilities under the MSHA Part 46 safety training requirements for surface mines in the US, we’ve been writing some articles on some of the key ideas and requirements.

Recently, for example, we wrote an explanation of MSHA Part 46 training programs. And this article is an explanation of MSHA Part 46 training plans.

As you’ll see, it makes good sense to talk about MSHA Part 46 training programs and training plans in quick succession, because you create a training plan for Part 46 by pulling together your different training programs and adding some additional details. Once you’ve got the training program together, you’re well-more than half-way to creating your MSHA Part 46 training plan.

We’ll explain the training plan below. But also know that we’ve got a free guide to MSHA training requirements and online tools for meeting those that you can download from the bottom of this article.

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If you’re just becoming aware of the MSHA Part 46 training requirements for surface mines (and people who work at surface mines) in the US, there are a number of new terms to become familiar with. One of those is training program or, more specifically, the MSHA Part 46 training program.

In this article, we’ll tell you what a training program is, explain the different training programs that MSHA’s Part 46 requires, and tell you how they fit together into a MSHA Part 46 training plan.

So now, let’s begin learning what a training plan is.

And don’t forget to download the free guide to MSHA training requirements for Parts 46 and 48 and online training tools from the bottom of this article before you go. 

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Hazard identification is important at any work site with hazards. And so that’s true in the world of mining as well, obviously.

But are people born with an expert-ability to identify hazards? They are not. And so it makes sense to provide training to help people learn to spot hazards on the job.

Which brings us to the next obvious question: how do you teach people to identify hazards? It may seem simple and easy at first, but give it a little thought and you’ll probably agree it’s not such an obvious question.

We’re going to look at that issue in a little more detail in a future article, but for now we want to focus on one part of the training you can give to teach people to recognize hazards: let them practice identifying hazards in a realistic simulated environment.

In this interview, Brianna Eiter of NIOSH Mining explains their new EXAMiner hazard identification computer-based training tool to provide practice identifying hazards. And while it’s designed to help with hazard identification in a mining environment, one cool feature of EXAMiner is that you can easily customize it to match your own workplace and the hazards there–so it can be used in an industry and for any work area.

So let’s start learning from Brianna about this cool new training tool for hazard identification. We’ve got the video of the conversation immediately below. If you’d prefer to read, we also typed up the transcript, so just click the MORE button and start reading if you like it that way.

Also, know that we’e got a free guide to MSHA Training Requirements for you at the bottom of this article.

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At the most recent MSHA TRAM (Training Resources Applied to Mining) conference, I caught a good presentation by Jonisha Pollard covering ergonomic risk factors in mining that lead to musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). I learned much, and figured it would be great information to share here and also realized there would be no one better to share the information (and her expertise) than Ms. Pollard.

I’m happy to say that we were lucky enough to get Ms. Pollard to come talk to us about mining, ergonomics, and MSDs as well as quite a bit about NIOSH Mining in general and some other NIOSH Mining projects. In the interview, which we’ve included below in both written and video formats, Ms. Pollard also tells us where to find a bunch of helpful information, mobile phone apps, and even interactive web-based tools that NIOSH Mining has created to help create safer work conditions for miners in mines throughout the US. If you’re in mining, we think you’ll enjoy and learn from this interview as well as all the resources NIOSH Mining has to offer.

Before we begin, we’d like to thank Jonisha Pollard in particular for her time, knowledge, and expertise, and NIOSH Mining in general for all the good work, including their research on mining safety issues and all the great mining safety information and tools they’re providing.

You can watch & listen to the recorded discussion below. We’ve also typed it all up for you if you’d prefer to read–just click the MORE button if that’s the case.

Finally, know that we’ve included a free Guide to MSHA Training Requirements for you at the bottom of this article.

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In MSHA’s Part 46, the regulation specifies a number of specific roles. One of those roles is the “Person Responsible for Safety and Health Training.”

It’s not always obvious what that means, even in a simple case when a mine operator is providing mining safety training for Part 46 compliance to employees who are full-time employees at the mine.

And that can get even more confusing if a person is completing training online, or if the person taking the training doesn’t work as a normal employee of the mine but instead is working there as a contractor.

So, we’ll give you the low-down on what (and who) the “Person Responsible for Safety and Health Training” is in all these various circumstances.

And don’t forget to download our free Guide to MSHA Training at the bottom of this article.

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Consider this hypothetical situation:

You’re a construction worker, you’re preparing to work as a contractor at a surface mine covered by the MSHA Part 46 training regulations, and you’ll be building a structure (not at all what comes to your mind when you think of surface mining). 

Got that? If you’re still reading, we think that’s because this isn’t such a hypothetical situation to you at all, and maybe it directly relates to something you’ll be doing soon.

So the question is this: Do you have to take all 24 hours of the mandatory MSHA Part 46 New Miner training?

We answer that question in this article. So read on.

And don’t forget to download our free Guide to MSHA Training at the bottom of this article.

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The typical surface mine (quarry) has lots of specialized equipment, and each piece has a name that new miners may not be familiar with.

To help you get up to speed fast, we’ve provided a list of common surface mining equipment, along with images and explanations of the equipment’s function and operation.

Not only did we write all the terms down for you below, but we’re also presenting the same information in an interactive, multimedia glossary that you can download for free.

And we through in some tips if you need some MSHA Part 46 Surface Mining training. What’s not to like about all of that?

All of the terms, definitions, and images in this article come from our online MSHA Part 46 “Typical Equipment in a Surface Mine” training course. We’ve included a short sample of that online mining safety course below.

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