Andy Studdert, chairman & CEO of U.S.-based NES Rentals, was elected as the new president of the International Powered Access Federation at the IPAF annual general meeting (AGM) on March 26, 2015 in Washington, D.C. He succeeds Steve Couling, managing director of the IAPS Group.

Nick Selley, group business development of AFI-Uplift, was elected deputy president, and Brad Boehler, president of Skyjack, was elected vice president of IPAF.   

The strength and stability of the Federation was highlighted in its annual results presented at the AGM by outgoing IPAF president Steve Couling and IPAF CEO Tim Whiteman.

IPAF achieved a 9.4 percent increase in revenue, reaching $7 million in 2014, up by $600,000 over 2013. This increased revenue produced a surplus of 3.2 percent. All surpluses are re-invested in safety, membership and training activities in line with the aims of the not-for-profit Federation.

The accounts and financial statement audited by CLB Coopers show IPAF closing 2014 slightly above budget set by members of the IPAF Council, the Federation’s governing body, as well as the gradual accumulation of reserves to meet the target set by Council.

Membership increased by 6.9 percent from 1,037 to 1,109 in 2014. A record number of 137,429 people were trained by IPAF-approved training centers in 2014. This is an increase of 7.9 percent over the 127,365 people trained in 2013. Further details are in IPAF’s annual report 2014, available at the Publications section of www.ipaf.org   

Incoming IPAF president Andy Studdert paid tribute to his predecessor: “I would like to thank Steve Couling for his commitment to and leadership of IPAF during the past two years,” he said. “Steve is a difficult act to follow. His leadership and vision have been remarkable and inspiring.”

“The ongoing push to eLearning will be a major theme of IPAF’s activities in the next several years,” continued Studdert. “This new technology will change the learning experience for operators and drive the safety message home in a very positive way. A second major area of focus will be embracing, handling and implementing change. We need to look at what we’ve done in the past and ask ourselves if that is still relevant. The way forward for the Federation must be simple, powerful and focussed.”

Andy Studdert is a firm champion of safety in the access industry. He has been the CEO of NES Rentals for the past 11 years, where he instilled a stringent safety culture based on repeatable processes, a culture of intervention and crisis preparation. Almost all the NES Rentals management and staff hold an IPAF PAL Card (Powered Access Licensed-Registration in North America, Powered Access License elsewhere) as proof of training, including the CEO.