CETOP
CETOP is the European umbrella organisation for hydraulics and pneumatics, founded in 1962. CETOP has defined a common European framework for competence in hydraulics at three levels:
- Level 1: basic familiarity with components and what they do
- Level 2: function, operating principles and maintenance
- Level 3: application, troubleshooting and system understanding
CETOP certificates are issued by approved training centres after practical and theoretical assessment. Your national CETOP member association can provide an overview of approved providers and courses. In Norway, that is NFEA.
If you want a CETOP certificate, that is where to go.
Hydrali
Hydrali is not a CETOP course and does not issue CETOP certificates.
Hydrali documents theoretical and applied hydraulics competence through digital training, scenario-based tasks built on real, anonymised incidents from the field, and an oral defence evaluated by a named subject-matter expert. The curriculum is anchored in open standards and technical literature: ISO 1219, ISO 4413, ISO 4406, NORSOK R-003/R-005 (Norwegian offshore standards) and chapter 10 of the Norwegian Regulations concerning the Performance of Work.
The result is a competence credential, issued to the individual, that the employer can verify. It documents knowledge and system understanding. It does not document physical skills on the workshop floor, and it is not a statutory occupational licence.
Can both be relevant?
Yes. A CETOP certificate and a Hydrali competence credential document different things. Many employers need both practical certification on specific equipment and documented theoretical understanding across the whole maintenance team. Hydrali is built for the latter.