 Online learning tools are quickly becoming a
standard for many shops looking to maintain a
high level of continuing education while keeping
expenses at a minimum.
In the business world, we all face a constant battle
to perform faster for less money. As companies look
to trim costs and save time, an item such as training,
with an often overlooked benefi t to the bottom line, has
a tendency to fall by the wayside. However, with the
impact software has had in streamlining production
and reducing waste in other areas, it can help turn the
tide in training as well and help return this key ingredient
to successful shops around the country.
Virtually every company offi cial would claim that his
or her corporation’s most valuable asset is its people,
but in recent years, the dedication to those employees
has not been as apparent in regards to training. With
the need to reduce costs across the board, companies
have found it necessary to eliminate or greatly reduce
the amount of time devoted to training, including the
associated losses in production time and the high cost
of travel that often go along with it.
According to Jack Schron, president of Tooling University
(Cleveland, Ohio), only recently has there been
an upswing in training as companies are beginning to
block out as much as 2 to 3 percent of their budgets.
Much of this increase in spending can be attributed
to the greater availability of online training and other
lean training methods designed to eliminate the need
for many of the expensive requirements of traditional
training. “The goal is to speed up the learning process
while adding productivity enhancements that increase
output, improve quality and lower scrap,” Mr. Schron
says.
Timing is an important element in training as well.
Often, new employees or new equipment make immediate
training necessary, and arranging these learning
opportunities is not always instantaneous. With online
training, "just in time" is the norm. As soon as the need
arises, the training is available. Students can simply log
on and learn, and with Internet access, courses can be
taken from any location at any time.
Online training also provides the means for students
to learn at their own pace. Some students need to move
more slowly than others, and being able to learn at
a comfortable level adds to retention of the material.
Even for those who do not retain information well,
most programs allow students to return at any time to
review courses that they have already completed.
Many online learning tools also offer a system for
administration and reporting, so management personnel
can view and keep track of what the employees are
doing and help them set constructive goals. It is these
administrative tools that allow companies to directly
measure the success of both individuals and the program
as a whole, applying these tools to such things as
job bidding and employee promotion.
Applying What We Know
 Tooling University, available through PRODUCTION MACHINING ONLINE (www.productionmachining.com), was created to address the shortage of skilled workers in an increasingly competitive global marketplace. The company views the root of these issues as a lack of employee knowledge and skills rather than a shortage of workers, and therefore, addresses some of the most critical skill and capability requirements of the manufacturing workforce.
Tooling U targets the specifi c needs of the manufacturing
industry and vocational educational institutions,
creating a continuous learning cycle for building key
manufacturing skills and capabilities. The system uses
pre-training diagnostic tools to assess a company’s
training needs. Job-related class content is then used
to train employees in a self-paced, interactive learning
environment. Administrative tools and reports provide
analysis of employees’ progress.
This program currently offers about 250 different
courses (many offered in Spanish) covering the
fundamentals of metalworking, including beginner,
intermediate and advanced courses in metalcutting,
workholding, CNC machining and controls, materials,
inspection and quality and several other metalworking
subjects. Specifi c courses include defi nitional-level
classes such as Basics of the CNC Swiss-Type Lathe,
The Mechanics of CNC, and Intro to Materials; intermediate
classes such as Mechanical Properties of Metal,
Cutting Variables, and Tool Geometry; and advanced
classes such as Canned Cycles, Optimizing Insert Life,
and Speed and Feed Selection. The entire course list is
available from the site’s home page, and visitors can
take a trial class at no cost.
The company is continually working with instructors
and industry experts to develop more courses to
raise the level of knowledge in the industry and boost
operational performance. These high-impact training
programs are designed to reduce costs and improve
profi tability. Measurable results can be seen in reduced scrap and rework, decreased tooling costs and shorter
setup times. According to Tom Barrett, vice president
of sales, some companies are reporting as much as a 7
percent increase in productivity since the implementation
of online training.
Getting Started
A company can purchase a Tooling U subscription
for a fl at annual fee for as many individuals as it would
like. Each subscriber, then, has unlimited access to all
courses for that year. Once students are registered, the
Tooling U assessment tests are a helpful fi rst step in
developing a training program that meets the exact
needs of the individual students or trainees. Online
assessments identify skills gaps of the students and
clarify the specifi c training that each student needs.
When a student completes a test, the administrator is
sent an e-mail with a link to a page that identifi es the
skills gap and lists the specifi c class recommendations
for the individual.
When building the curriculum, a company can
customize the course content, requiring that employees
complete mandatory classes or classes in a particular
order, take pretests or achieve required performance
levels before receiving credit for one class and continuing
to the next. Additional customization is also available
for companies that wish to incorporate existing
training materials into the online curriculum.
Testing methodology can be designed to meet the
needs of an individual or company. Individuals can
have access to online tests at any time, or for a more
supervised testing environment, tests can be printed
and administered by a supervisor. Once complete,
administrators can assess the knowledge levels of the
individuals and determine areas where capabilities are
in need of improvement.
Logging into the administration center allows a
company to track the performance of student accounts.
Numerous administrative tools are available, including
the ability to register new students, set and track goals,
set and change student permissions, add classes to
student schedules, send and receive messages and run
detailed performance reports.
For a student to log on to Tooling U, he or she must
have a subscription ID assigned by an administrator.
Permissions allow an administrator to control student or whether that function is
controlled by the administrator.
Administrators
set the minimum passing
test score or cut score and
determine whether students
can retake tests, whether they
see their answers to tests they
have completed, whether they
can take the fi nal exam before
completing the class and much
more. The administrator can also
re-register students for classes.
The administrator provides
students with either hard-copy or
e-mail instructions of their registration
process. When a student is
ready to begin training, the administrator
prints out a hard copy or e-mails the registration
instructions to the student.
Because some individuals may not have an e-mail
address and only have access to a computer while in
training, Tooling U provides an e-mail box for each
activity, including whether students register for classes subscriber and administration
account. Administrators
and students use the
My Messages tab to send
and receive messages.
The administration
center provides an
impressive amount of information.
Clicking on a student’s name provides a
detailed report of the student’s activities. Administrators
can monitor login activity and class status, including
time spent in each class and completion status.
Administrators can track student test scores and link
back to recaps of every test, including every question
a student has asked in a forum, and determine how a student is progressing in any of the
class goals that have been set.
Group reports allow an administrator
to track the progress of all
of the students based on a range
of criteria. Reports are available as
excel documents, graphs and Web
pages. Administrators can generate
student reports based on time
spent in class, completed classes,
login history, test scores, cut scores,
class goals and progress of schedules.
Comprehensive reports are
also available, showing all students,
schedules, time in class and both
pretest and fi nal exam scores.
On Course
Tooling U classes have targeted learning objectives
and include detailed illustrations and photos, fullmotion
video and an optional audio presentation of
the lesson text. Defi nitions of key terms pop up when
a user hovers the cursor over the word. Students have
access to other learning tools as well, including an article
archive, chat room sessions with industry experts
and industrial resources such as charts, formulas,
conversion factors, online calculators and an industrial
dictionary.
When a student logs in, he or she is immediately
presented the schedule of classes that the administrator
has selected. The student can select the appropriate
course from the list and begin. Each class is introduced
with the learning objectives and course outline to familiarize
the student with the material that will be covered.
Then as many as 20 lessons are presented sequentially
to progressively bring the student up to speed. Because
the courses follow a common presentation style, they
allow quicker understanding by the student and better
retention of the subject matter.
If a student has a question about anything in the
class, he or she can click on the Professor icon at the top
of each page of the lesson. The student can then post a
question to other students in a forum.
Upon completion of the class, the student takes the
fi nal exam to validate how well he or she has mastered
the material. After the exam, the student can review the
questions and his or her answers, with correct answers
provided where the incorrect answer was selected.
Explanations of each question are provided along with
links back to the relevant lessons. Students can also
return to the class at any point in the future to review
the material covered.
My Personal Experience
When I began writing for PRODUCTION
MACHINING, I wanted to
be sure I had a solid refresher. I
began reading. I read a lot, from
back issues of our magazine to
text books. One of the best tools
I found, though, was Tooling
U. Through our company account, I logged on and
began taking courses. I worked through beginner-level
courses and on up through the series.
Some training exercises seem to work better than
others. Tooling U, because of its systematic presentation
methods and comprehensive subject matter, can bring
students to the level of knowledge expected by supervisors.
Organizations can feel good about the program as
well because managers can help employees set goals
and observe their progress every step of the way. |