How to Become a Derrick Truck Operator

The use of a derrick truck requires years of experience on your part. A derrick truck is a vehicle that has a typical full-sized pickup body with a hydraulic system that lifts a bucket up to trees, electrical poles and other high points. With the proper training, you can become a derrick truck operator for a variety of industries.

Things You'll Need

• Commercial driver's license

Instructions

1. Learn how to drive a derrick truck while achieving a commercial driver's license (CDL). You need to obtain a CDL before a utility company will hire you on in order to protect themselves from insurance liability. Find a friend or family member with access to a derrick truck if possible to get comfortable behind the wheel.

2. Labor as a mechanic or an auto shop assistant early in your career to learn the mechanical functioning of derrick trucks. There are auto shops that specialize in repairing commercial vehicles like semis, dump trucks and derrick trucks. This experience will help you operate a derrick truck effectively when you land your first permanent job.

3. Search for positions as a derrick truck operator with tree removal and landscaping companies. Landscapers utilize derrick trucks to reach tree branches for trimming along with high ivy or other plants that grow on building walls.

4. Apply to an electrical or cable company in your region to become a career derrick truck operator. These companies provide the majority of derrick operation positions and allow you to cover a wide range of clients within the average day. You can earn a good living and develop a solid pension with decades of work with these companies.

5. Request information on derrick truck positions with your city's police and fire department. Some departments hire operators if there are a lot of tall buildings within their areas of coverage.

6. Test out the functions of a derrick truck in an empty lot before your first day operating the vehicle. Derricks are unlike traditional lifts, because they allow you to move in 4 directions at a greater height.

7. Continue to renew your licenses and permits for derrick operation as you become more experienced. Most states require CDL holders to come back to the Department of Motor Vehicles on a regular basis for testing and visual assessments.

Tips & Warnings

• Work with your repair team on a daily basis to improve communications while operating a derrick truck. The derrick can turn from a useful tool to a dangerous liability to your coworkers if there is poor communication. Develop shorthand and signals to help you get work done safely from the top of the derrick.