Optional NAWT Vacuum Truck Workshop
NAWT Vacuum Truck Technician Training Course
Wednesday, October 28, 2026 from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Separate registration is required. NAWT members get discounted registration. ($175 members/$225 non-members). A light continental breakfast is included, lunch is on your own.
The course is designed specifically for those who own or operate vacuum trucks within the industry. The Vac Truck Training Course is a great resource for current owners of OWTS pumping services, as a way to provide training and information to their employees who may just be getting started in the industry. The course provides participants with a solid base of information regarding working with and operating a vacuum truck, along with performing their daily tasks. This one-day training course can also provide a good refresher and overview for even the most experienced operators.
The topics that are included in this course are:
- Materials to pump and to avoid
- Government regulations
- Truck equipment and components
- Drive and control mechanisms
- Basic and advanced pump out skills and procedures
- Loading and unloading
- Safety and emergency response plans
- Customer interaction and education
- Reasons to manage the materials
- Basic science of vacuum and pressurization
- Pumps
- Basic pump truck operations
- Manifests and reporting
- Introduction – goals and objectives
- Definitions – talking the same OWTS language
- Materials – what you are hauling and how to handle problem materials
- Field Safety – how to prepare for and handle safety situations
- Understanding vacuum and pressure and staying safe with pump truck
This course was developed with a grant from the USEPA and Penn State and Pennsylvania Septage Management Association (PSMA). PSMA, a long-time member and ally of NAWT, gifted this training course to the NAWT Training Program to allow for a national expansion of the course and certification program.