Our 2023 Technical Webinar Series continues with another exciting topic:

Going to the PEI show at NACS this October? Make sure to stop by our booth and say hi to Ben Thomas, President of UST Training.

• Need a better UST training solution?
• Want to learn how we’ve trained over a million Class C UST operators online?
• Want to train an entire state?
• Need a company wide solution?

Ryan Harrigen, Oil Equipment Company, Left, Ben Thomas, Center, Mark Barolo EPA Right

PEI Show at NACS
October 3-6, 2023
Atlanta, GA
Stop by our booth B5147 – Fuel Equipment & Services and say Hi!

Want to schedule a meeting with Ben? Call 360-321-4776 or email [email protected]

UST Training has just renewed our contract with Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) to provide another year of high-quality online UST operator training at no cost to Arizona Class A/B and C UST operators. No cost, meaning the Arizona operator pays nothing.

It’s super simple. We here at UST Training provide free online operator training for all qualifying Class A/B and Class C UST operators. Operators complete the work from work or home and become certified. UST Training gets reimbursed for every verified certificate of completion.

From October 2020 to March 2023, we trained 1,133 Class A/B UST operators and 2,460 Class C operators. We are pretty sure that by this October, we will have trained personnel for virtually every single site in the entire state of Arizona.

We have been providing the service to Arizona for nearly 3 years, and we have seen considerable success. Overall statewide compliance is up in all areas of technical compliance. And we can do it cheaper than one FTE in your agency.

Want to be like Arizona?

We’d be happy to discuss with you how we can tackle a statewide solution that is cost-effective and easy to implement. Contact Ben Thomas at [email protected] or 866-301-8265.

Ben Thomas, President of UST Training, recently had an article published in Fuel Marketing News with the assistance of 15 UST service provider professionals. Check it out.

Check out the full magazine here.  From their web page: Fuels Market News, the magazine for retail operators, commercial fuel buyers and fuel marketers, is published by NACS, the association advancing the convenience and fuel retailing industry. Fuels Market News is the downstream petroleum industry’s trusted source for fuels-related news and information, covering the fuels of today and tomorrow.

With the help of seasoned field professionals, we hope to help Class A/B UST operators be ready for the next compliance inspection.

Here at UST Training we always strive to keep our information down to earth and practical.  Look for more helpful information from us through Fuel Marketing News in the future.

Our Tank Savvy Minute videos were recently referenced in an article by Verify.com, called

Getting gas when a tanker truck is at the station carries a low risk of sediment contamination

According to their web page, “VERIFY is dedicated to helping the public distinguish between true and false information. The VERIFY team, with help from questions submitted by the audience, tracks the spread of stories or claims that need clarification or correction. We provide trustworthy, transparent information to prove or disprove them. VERIFY’s sources are always provided, allowing the audience to see exactly how the team determines the veracity of any claims.”

Our trained class A/B UST operators know that fuel quality is an important but subtle aspect of UST compliance. Thanks verify!

On August 9, UST Training’s President Ben Thomas hosted a six-person webinar panel to discuss industry tips on how to keep your UST inspector happy. In other words, how to have a successful UST compliance inspection. The speakers included:

• Ed Kubinsky of OWL/Crompco, Plymouth Meeting, PA
• Nicole Okino of US EPA Region 3, Philadelphia, PA
• Don Reeves of Mascott Equipment, Portland, OR
• Javed Surani of Your Environmental Specialist, Beaumont, TX
• Jon Tuttle, Stinker Stores, Boise, ID, and
• Brett Smith, MT DEQ, Helena, MT

Attendees heard from UST inspectors, service technicians, and operators about the do’s and dont’s of getting ready for and conducting yourself during a UST government compliance inspection. Plus they learned how to avoid penalties, enforcement actions, and red tag shut down.

UST Training has been providing online Class A/B and C UST operator training for the last decade and has been offering live Class A/B training since 2003. And we could not have done it without the help of our partners through various UST associations. UST Training is a proud member or affiliate of the following organizations. Want a strategic partnership for reselling our courses and getting member discounts? Contact us at [email protected]

Petroleum Equipment Institute (PEI)

UST Training has been going to the annual PEI trade show since 2003 and has been an active member shortly thereafter. PEI helps support us mightily by providing industry standards that we share with our customers. Plus Ben Thomas has been a 2020-2022 Board member and a committee member on PEI RP 900.

Oregon was the first state in the nation to require Class A/B UST operator training (first class taught by Ben Thomas, president of UST Training) and Oregon continues to provide great technical outreach services to their operators.

Check out this handy guide as an example of how to do things right.

https://www.oregon.gov/deq/tanks/Documents/tanksTankline0623.pdf

What we like about it:

• It’s very friendly and easy to read.
• It’s available in multiple languages.
• Great pictures.
• Great use of the QR code.
• Leathers Oil Company, referenced in the guide, is a good friend of ours: we met them many years ago when we first started training in Oregon in the mid-2000s.
• We created and continue to maintain the Oregon Fuels Association Compliance Binder shown in the handout (page 4)

A major emphasis of our Oregon (and other states) Class A/B UST operator training courses also focuses on ensuring your next compliance inspection runs smoothly. Have any ideas for what makes a smooth inspection or need some help about the important topic? Contact us anytime. [email protected]

Online UST training is convenient, self-paced, and becoming the standard to accommodate our busy lives. With us issuing over a million certificates since 2007, we understand that online training makes the most sense for most UST’s operators.

But…it’s not live.

The most common advantages we hear about live training include: the value of social interaction and community building; being able to ask questions and learn about site-specific conditions; getting out of the office and away from the computer; and, if possible, going out and doing a real life field trip to a UST site.

Over the last two decades we’ve provided UST operator –as well as inspector –training in many states throughout the country, literally from Guam to the US Virgin Islands and many places in between.

So would you:

• Rather have a live class from a UST professional?
• Want an instructor-lead field trip to a real live UST site?
• Want to get your team together to all hear and see the same thing?
• Have a decent sized group?
• Have a training budget?

If your group or organization would prefer live training, let us know! Would be happy to give you a quote. Email us at [email protected] or call 866-301-8265