Basic training - operation of a hand-held chainsaw (other activity)

A chainsaw outside the forest, that is pruning trees in a municipality, maintaining greenery, on a building site or clearing storm damage on a road, is work that requires a licence card. This course is meant precisely for activity other than timber harvesting.

We go through the construction of the saw and its safety features, the chain brake and the chain catcher, tensioning and sharpening the chain, starting and holding the saw, kickback and how to avoid it, cutting techniques in stressed timber, cross cutting and shortening, work on a ladder and near electrical lines, personal protective equipment including cut protection, first aid for a saw injury and securing the work site.

The course ends with a written test and a practical examination. After that we issue a licence card for operating a chainsaw in activity other than timber harvesting under Section 16(1)(a) of Act No. 124/2006 Coll.

The course is open to a person from 18 years of age who has completed compulsory basic schooling and holds a medical report on fitness for work that is not older than six months.

The licence card has to be kept valid. The familiarisation is repeated at least once every three years under Section 7(5) of Act No. 124/2006 Coll., and updating professional training every five years under Section 16(8). You can take both with us; the refresher training and the updating professional training serve for that.

Anyone who also works in the forest needs a licence card for timber harvesting. Both activities at once are covered by the combined course.

We train under Slovak regulations, which derive from Directive 2009/104/EC on the use of work equipment, valid throughout the European Union. In our experience the licence card is commonly recognised in the other member states.