Monthly Archives

March 2021

Mar 30
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Board Chair Retirement

By News

Mr Zdenek Sehnal (pictured below) has informed the IWCF Board of his retirement from his role as IWCF Board Chairman. 

Mr Sehnal has held the position of IWCF Board Chairman since 2016, while also representing the Norwegian Branch as Branch Chair. He has led the organisation through a period of substantial change, most recently navigating the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic and the introduction of virtual training and assessments.  

Mr Jamie Wilson, Vice Chair of the IWCF Board of Trustees will adopt the role of Acting Board Chair, effective immediately.  

IWCF’s Board and administration would like to thank Mr Sehnal for his hard work and dedication as we’ve worked towards furthering our mission and vision.  

Mr Wilson commented. “Zdenek assumed the Chairman’s role at a pivotal time of the IWCF’s direction. With his calm manner and diplomacy, coupled with very considerable personal effort, he enabled the Board to enjoy a period of effective and harmonised activity. Furthermore, he has been instrumental in leading the development of IWCF’s strategy to deliver well control training to a standard expected by the global industry.  

The Board has requested Mr Sehnal to assume a consulting role with the IWCF Administration to continue assisting with the implementation of the strategy and support the CEO with various technical and training matters.

 

Mar 29
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Translations: Why a glossary is a valuable translation tool

By Blog

The IWCF translation team is responsible for coordinating and overseeing the translation of IWCF exam content into 16 languages. The team are working to embed a new translation process which aims to improve quality. This includes the development of an expanded translation team, the use of new technology to improve workflows and developing linguistic resources to assist translators and reviewers. One of our areas of responsibility is to help build and maintain glossaries for the most commonly used languages in IWCF centres. While not the only factor in maintaining quality, these glossaries are very important for preserving consistency across a complex field, which make them valuable resources for IWCF and our stakeholders.

The field is vast, but the glossaries are a select choice of terms which act as a point of reference, and they are focused on the terms that appear most often in assessments. These help the translators and reviewers make sure that the correct technical terms are used, especially when there is more than one possible option. If translators did not have access to them, it would be like a reconnaissance team trying to complete a mission in thick fog with no GPS or map – some would go north, others would go south, and every so often someone might get stuck in a bog or fall off a cliff – in the worst-case scenario of course!

We don’t expect IWCF translators to over-rely on a glossary in place of their own knowledge and experience. However, the terms have been specifically selected for inclusion to help maintain consistency and quality, therefore our job is to ensure adherence.

To date we have piloted the use of glossaries in 5 languages (French, German, Italian, Norwegian and Russian) and are working with the branches to continuously improve their content. However, there are a few other languages where it has made sense to draft glossaries based on the work taking place. For example, as part of the process to translate the drilling question bank into Azeri we have recorded how technical terms are used and these inform the translators as they work through the project.

The IWCF translation team wants to make sure that the glossary and its equivalent translated versions contain the most up-to-date and accurate terminology for each language. This can be a challenge, but by working with our branches we can harness the expert technical knowledge of our members to aid us in the task. We aim to extend this process to cover all languages we offer.

You are welcome to discuss the importance of glossaries at Branch level and can contact the Translation Team at Translation@iwcf.org for more information.

Mar 19
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Virtual Training and Assessments Update

By News

IWCF introduced virtual training and assessments in 2020 due to the impact that COVID-19 had upon face-to-face training. Piloting this alternative method of training enabled well control personnel to maintain competency despite travel restrictions and social distancing measures that have been in place.

To help us maintain and assure the high standards of quality and integrity expected at IWCF, we have been conducting extensive analysis of data throughout this period. This evaluation has demonstrated the efficacy of IWCF virtual classroom training and remote assessments.

This evidence-based approach has also been utilised to measure performance, monitor success and identify opportunities for improvement. One of the key findings from the analysis, supported by statistical evidence, show that there is no functional difference in candidate assessment results between those who completed an IWCF virtual classroom course versus IWCF face-to-face classroom training.

Accrediting and supporting our members to deliver virtual classroom training and assessment has allowed us to work towards our mission, while enabling our members to provide an accessible and cost-effective solution during the pandemic.

The results of the analysis performed allow us to continue to offer virtual training and assessments as an option for all IWCF accredited training providers, subject to compliance with IWCF guidelines and requirements.

Due to the successful implementation of this initiative, we will close the process for eCert extensions for both renewing and resit candidates from 31st March 2021.

Please contact us if you have any questions.