The importance of training and education

-from the desk of Jack Champaigne, president of Electronics, Inc.

I notice that I spend more time on training and education than any other activity at Electronics Inc. But, perhaps this is what is most important. This supports my premise about organizational goals; "Perpetuation of the Organization." This implies that the single, most important goal or activity of an organization or entity is to do whatever is necessary or required to perpetuate the organization. This applies to all walks of life whether you are a large corporation like General Motors, a small grocery store, a family, a congressman that needs to get re-elected, and so on. The important goal is to perpetuate the organization. The analogy in a biologic sense is perpetuation of our characteristics by passing our genes onto the next generation. After our children inherit our traits we go further to teach them values and skills. For our employees we teach them the skills needed so they too can contribute to the perpetuation of the company. This is where education plays a very important role. We want to improve our resources so we can efficiently continue to perpetuate the organization.

On-the-job training is often used to satisfy the requirements of skill building. This can often be superior to "listening to stories of tribal lore" or by constantly hearing "That’s the way we’ve always done it". This is where external training can play a significant role in skill building. This gives you access to outside resources that are specially adapted to a particular situation. Introduction, explanation, example, examination and other educational techniques can be employed to assure that employees fully understand the training material and how it relates to the surrounding environment.

We have helped companies uncover incorrect practices at a number of our on-site training classes. In one case the "tribal lore" taught employees to place the wrong side of the Almen strip upon the gage. Although this still gives an indicator reading of approximately the right magnitude it is not the practice described in such industry standards as SAE J442 or AMS-S-13165. I had stumbled across this incorrect practice when I noticed a large supply of replacement gage indicator tips. Since the peened side of the strip had been in contact with the indicator tip the tips would wear down and have to be replaced. When the strip is placed upon the gage properly the non-peened side of the strip is in contact with the indicator tip and does not experience much wear.

Another experience was also educational. We inquire in advance about the specifications and procedures that are in place so we can tailor our training to the customer’s exact requirements. We also inquire about the type of equipment, the brand of machine and also methods of shot maintenance. When we learned the customer didn’t have the proper tapping and shaking machine for media sieve analysis we suggested they purchase it before we arrived. They contacted another division of their company to get the brand and model number and had it in place before we started class. However, the machine they got only provided a shaking action, not the required tapping action. We were getting unusually high readings of retained media percentages on the screens. Out of curiosity we tapped the stack of screens and noticed an immediate surge of media through each level of the screens and into the bottom pan. I gained an instant appreciation for the necessity of the tapping action applied by the proper machine. And, as you recall I mentioned earlier, another division of the company had provided the brand and model number. They, too, were using the wrong machine.

So, how does training help eliminate problems like this? Simple. Exposure to outside resources can reveal incorrect practices that have been instilled into company culture over a long period. This is why we include numerous commercial vendors at our workshops. Many vendors bring equipment that can be operated to demonstrate correct procedures. These same vendors also participate in the workshop presentations using Power Point slides and additional literature to illustrate concepts and applications of their products.
There are other methods of gaining knowledge and improvements to skills. We offer a library of abstracts of over 3,500 articles on shot peening, fatigue, fracture and stress at our web site. We also have a large collection of patents, now available in pdf format for FREE download. If you still have questions you can post a message at our forum called "Letters On-Line". We have several categories or topic areas that pertain to all aspects of blast cleaning and shot peening. You can learn a lot just by reading earlier postings. And then, if you still don’t find your answer you can broadcast an e-mail to all of the members of the Ricochet Club. This is a special program that lets you send a single message that is then automatically forwarded to several hundred people actively involved in cleaning and peening. And finally, if you still haven’t gotten the answer you need you just contact me. No, I probably don’t have the answer, but I have a lot of friends and I can probably find an answer for you. This is where I get my external resource for my post-graduate education, from readers like you and the professional speakers at our workshops.

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