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Session 1421

Transportation Technician Qualification Program E. Scott Huff Portland Community College

Introduction

Transportation agencies throughout the United States face several challenges related to developing and maintaining a qualified pool of technicians involved in quality control/quality assurance (QC/QA) testing of highway materials.

• New federal regulations requiring that all personnel involved in the acceptance of federally funded highway work be ‘ qualified’by 29 June 2000 • Increased outsourcing of work, including materials testing functions, to constructors, design professionals, and testing firms • Loss of experienced testing technicians to retirement and the private sector

To meet these challenges, transportation agencies in the Northwest joined together to develop a common training program for transportation technicians.

The Northwest Alliance for Quality Transportation Construction (NAQTC) is comprised of the Departments of Transportation in Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington, along with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the Western Federal Lands Highway Division of FHWA. NAQTC’ mission is to provide continuously improving quality in transportation s construction. NAQTC’ first major undertaking was the development of training documents for s quality control (QC) personnel under its Transportation Technician Qualification Program (TTQP).

Scope of Program

Under the TTQP, technicians are qualified to provide QC testing on up to 35 field operating procedures (FOPs) relating to transportation materials. (See Appendix A for a complete listing.) The FOPs are based on standard laboratory test methods developed by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) or NAQTC. The materials are separated into four modules.

• Aggregate • Concrete • Asphalt • Embankment and Base/In-Place Density

A major advance realized by this interstate cooperative effort is that state-by-state qualification is no longer required. Technicians trained, tested, and qualified in one state can provide services in other northwest states without requalification. The ability to cross state borders without the need

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Huff, S. (1998, June), Transportation Technician Qualification Program Paper presented at 1998 Annual Conference, Seattle, Washington. 10.18260/1-2--7479