Rockford · Goodwater · Kellyton

Coosa County Operators: Prepare for Crane Certification Online

Coosa County is one of the least populated counties in Alabama, and most of it is pine forest bordered by the Coosa River and its lakes. Rockford, the seat, is a small courthouse town. For years the big employers were textile mills; now timber is driving the newest investment. People who run cranes here tend to travel, working on jobs in Alexander City, Sylacauga, Clanton or Birmingham during the week. A national certification follows you from job to job, and our online course lets you prepare for the written exams around that schedule.

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From textile mills to a new sawmill

Avondale Mills opened a spinning plant in the county in 1966 and its Rockford plant ran until January 2008. Manufacturing remains the leading share of local jobs in Census estimates, but the work has shifted toward wood.

In April 2024 the governor announced that Two Rivers Lumber would build a $115 million sawmill in Coosa County to produce Southern Yellow Pine dimensional lumber, with 130 jobs, on 110 acres donated by the Lake Martin Area Industrial Development Authority. Building a modern sawmill involves months of crane work: steel framing, kilns, planer lines, log handling equipment and conveyors. Once running, the mill needs maintenance riggers who can pull and reset motors, saws and gearboxes.

Dams, lakes and shoreline work

Alabama Power’s Lay Dam, in service since 1914, and Mitchell Dam, generating since 1923, both sit on the Coosa River along the county’s border with Chilton. Lay Lake reaches into Coosa County, and Lake Mitchell covers about 5,850 acres. Dam maintenance, boat ramps, piers and lakefront homes all create lifts near water, often from tight lots with sloped access and soft shoreline soil.

The county’s rolling Piedmont hills, red clay and wet springs make ground preparation a constant topic. Summer storms and spring tornado season also mean watching the sky before a long pick.

Courses for Coosa County workers

The rules, briefly

Alabama has no crane operator licensing law, so there is no state card to get. Federal OSHA requires that construction crane operators hold accredited certification and pass an employer evaluation (29 CFR 1926.1427), and that riggers and signal persons be qualified (1926.1425, 1926.1428). In-plant overhead cranes fall under 1910.179. The University of Alabama’s UA SafeState program offers free, confidential safety consultations to small employers. Read our Alabama requirements guide for more.

Testing from Rockford

Written exams can be done through online proctoring, at a computer test center or at a test event. The practical exam takes place hands-on at a practical test site; online prep does not replace it. Alexander City is the nearest larger town, and Birmingham and Montgomery are the main metro options for testing, each roughly an hour or more away depending on where in the county you live.

Questions people ask

Is the Two Rivers sawmill hiring crane operators?

We do not have hiring information and do not place workers. Contractors building the mill and the mill itself are the right contacts.

Do lake dock builders need crane certification?

If a crane is used to set materials on a construction job, OSHA’s certification rule generally applies. Barge cranes and small articulating units can be covered too.

Can I prepare on a phone in an area with weak service?

The course works on any device with a browser. Studying on home internet and reviewing on a phone when you have signal works well for many rural students.

How long is a certification valid?

Five years. Renewal requires a written recert exam, and 1,000 hours of crane-related experience in that time can waive the practical.

Do I need to retake the practical every five years?

Not if you can document 1,000 hours of crane-related work during your certification period. In that case you only need to pass the written recertification exam.

Last reviewed · How we research these pages

Sources used on this page (6)
  1. governor.alabama.gov/newsroom/2024/04/governor-ivey-announces-two-rivers-lumber-
  2. encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/h-1313
  3. encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/rockford
  4. encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/mitchell-dam-and-lake
  5. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lay_Dam
  6. bhamwiki.com/w/Lake_Mitchell
Map of Alabama with Coosa County highlighted
Coosa County in Alabama. County boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau.

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Line up your crane exam prep for work in Alabama

Send us the card you need, whether that's operator, rigger, signal person or a recert, and the part of Alabama you work in. An enrollment advisor writes back with a matching course and the steps for booking your written and practical exams.

  • Self-paced lessons that open on any phone or laptop
  • Practice questions in the style of the NCCCO written tests
  • Advice on where Alabama candidates set up practical exams

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