Wisconsin Teacher Awarded for Innovative Apprenticeship Program

For many years, students at Kaukauna High School (KHS) have gotten real-world job experience through its well-respected Youth Apprenticeship and Co-op jobs programs led by Nels Lawrence. Now, they also receive additional training utilizing ToolingU-SME’s online learning curriculum to enhance their classroom experience.

Expanding Partnerships to Overcome Skill Shortage

Expanding partnerships within the manufacturing industry is just one crucial element to overcome the skill deficit according to an article in Manufacturing Business Technology. The article highlights Tooling U as a company that partners with job shops, corporations, academia and government via its industry-driven coursework offering more than 400 online classes to train technicians such as machinist, welders, assemblers, inspectors and more.

Even with the manufacturing industry on the upswing, "manufacturers are leaving jobs open because they can't find the people with the right talent. According to a recent Deloitte report, as many as 600,000 jobs remain unfilled because of a skills gap," the article states.

Organizations and academia turn to Tooling U because, in addition to its ease of use, and reporting tools – the content maps to technician certification programs which show learners competence and knowledge.

Other areas listed as crucial elements to overcome skill deficit were: Reintroducing corporate in-house training programs and getting young people interested in manufacturing.

Tooling U has trained more than 100,000 individuals via its robust Learning Management System (LMS) with multimedia, reporting tools to track progress, and the ability to custom-tailor the content. Tooling U is the manufacturing learning source.

Learn more about how Tooling U can partner with your organization to train your workforce. www.toolingu.com

Charter for Revitalizing American Manufacturing

While the U.S. maps its strategy for placing manufacturing at the forefront of job creation and development, companies like Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME) and Tooling U are working with business, labor, academia, think tanks and other non-profits to create proposals to move manufacturing forward according to an article in MANUFACTURING AND TECHNOLOGY NEWS.

SME and seventeen other organizations including AFL-CIO Industrial Union Council, and Economic Strategy Institute are working to create a core set of values that promote the importance of manufacturing; encourage balanced trade; support the few government programs aimed at improving the health of small- and medium-sized manufacturers; adopt a corporate tax policy with incentives for investment in productive capacity and innovation; promote workforce training; and create guidelines for public procurement of American-made goods.

The 18-body member signed a charter called “Charter for Revitalizing American Manufacturing” and will address why the United Sates has lost more manufacturing capacity over the past decade than any other country. According to economists from the Chicago Federal Reserve Bank, the loss of manufacturing jobs in the U.S. has been as high as 32-percent.

Mark Tomlinson, CEO of the Society of Mfg. Engineers and Tooling U will work with the governing body with the intention to create areas of agreement to make progress and provide solutions for the workforce pain that is occurring in manufacturing organizations in the United States.

Tooling U can partner with your organization and offer solutions for your manufacturing workforce concerns.  We have serviced a number of industries including automotive, aerospace, defense, energy, and medical device manufacturers.  

Have questions? Please contact us: info@toolingu.com


 

Community Colleges Play a Vital Role Filling the Pipeline

President Obama announced in June of 2011 the goal to credential 500,000 community college students with skills certifications.  The Manufacturing Institute’s NAM-Endorsed Manufacturing Skills Certification System was cited as a way to reach the needs of manufacturers and their hiring needs nationwide.

The NAM-Endorsed Manufacturing Skills Certification System is a series of stackable credentials for advanced manufacturing.  These nationally portable, industry-recognized credentials not only validate an individual’s knowledge, but also the relevant skills needed to be productive and successful in entry-level positions in manufacturing.

Community Colleges play a vital role in this training to help fill the pipeline with ready, qualified workers.

With curriculum to prepare students for NIMS, MSSC, AWS and SME certification, SME/ToolingU.com is a valuable partner to align our programs to the NAM certification system.

For any test, preparation is key.  ToolingU.com classes partner with Community Colleges to deliver a blended learning solution to help increase a students’ knowledge and can help prepare them for certification.   While classes cannot guarantee success, the ToolingU.com focused content and online tools can get students’ get started in the right direction.  ToolingU.com has mapped its online training classes to the following nationally recognized training certifications: 

1)    National Institute for Metalworking Skills (NIMS) Standards. These standards provide individuals in the machining and metal-forming industries with a way to validate their knowledge and skills in the trade. To become certified in a specific NIMS standard, individuals must meet performance requirements and pass a series of multiple-choice tests.

2)     Manufacturing Skill Standards Council (MSSC) standards. These standards stem from an industry-led certification program designed to prepare people with the core knowledge needed for entry-level production employment.

To become an MSSC certified production technician, individuals must successfully pass four tests focused on Safety, Quality Practices and Measurement, Manufacturing Processes and Production, and Maintenance Awareness. 

3)     American Welding Society (AWS) SENSE Level 1 standard. This standard is designed to prepare people with the core knowledge and skills required for an entry-level position they can use to start a career in welding.

The core of the AWS SENSE Level 1 standard is the ability to create actual weld samples that pass inspection. However, online training is also an ideal supplement for the knowledge-based component of the certification.

4)    SME Manufacturing Technologist (CMfg T) This certification primarily benefits new manufacturing engineers and experienced manufacturers without other credentials. Pursuing a CMfgT certification requires a minimum of 4 years combined manufacturing-related education and/or work experience.

U.S. Manufacturing Labor Shortage: Workforce 2021 Readiness Assessment

The future of American manufacturing looks good. On March 5, 2012, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projected output growth for manufacturing for the decade 2010–2020 to be $1.36 trillion. U.S. manufacturers will need more and more skilled, specialized workers to fulfill this promise.

On March 9, the BLS reported that manufacturing employment rose by 31,000 in February 2012. The American manufacturing sector is being held back only by the critical shortage of skilled labor:

In an October 2011 survey of American manufacturers conducted by Deloitte Consulting LLP, respondents reported that 5% of their jobs remained unfilled simply because they could not find workers with the right skills.

That 5% vacancy rate meant that an astounding 600,000 jobs were left unfilled during a period when national unemployment was above 9%.

—Thomas A. Hemphill and Mark J. Perry, "U.S. Manufacturing and the Skills Crisis", The Wall Street Journal, 2/27/2012

Today's skilled labor shortage is driving manufacturers to partner with educational institutions, industry organizations, and government agencies to train tomorrow's workforce.

Mark Tomlinson, executive director and general manager of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers, sees the skilled worker shortage as an iceberg looming on an uneasy sea. "We're just approaching it; we haven't hit it yet but we know it's there," he says. "People are starting to see it."

—Michele Nash-Hoff, "What's Being Done to Address the Lack of Skilled Workers?", The Huffington Post, 10/11/2011

A critical shortage of skilled workers threatens the future of U.S. manufacturing. If we do not address this crisis now, it will accelerate.

Tooling U addresses this issue by offering the Workforce 2021 Readiness Assessment program to help manufacturers evaluate their capabilities. This program includes a series of questions regarding knowledge retention, future skill requirements, and employee development programs. The readiness assessment profile addresses key areas that organizations should develop to promote an empowered and efficient organization over the next decade.

Jeannine Kunz, Director of Professional Development for the Society of Manufacturing Engineers, unveiled the Workforce 2021 Readiness Assessment at the Interactive Manufacturing Experience (imX) event in September 2011:

Tooling U offers more than 400 classes for industries such as aerospace, automotive and transportation, heavy equipment and machinery, machining and tooling, and medical parts manufacturing, as well as oil, gas and energy. Our training packages provide essential knowledge for the machining, assembly, forming/fabricating, welding, and maintenance trades.

To take the Workforce 2021 Readiness Assessment: http://www.toolingu.com/shortage

To take a tour of Tooling U’s products and services: http://www.toolingu.com/tours

U.S. Department of Education visits Carroll County Career and Technology Center

Dr. Dann-Messier talks with students
while they complete online learning modules
from ToolingU.com.

During a series of visits to schools throughout the country, a team from the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Vocational and Adult Education (OVAE) visited the Carroll County Career and Technology Center (CCCTC) in Westminster, Maryland on February 9.

Dr. Brenda Dann-Messier, Assistant Secretary for the OVAE, and her team went to see the Manufacturing & Machine Technology (MMT) program, run by Tim Blizzard (Instructor, CCCTC).

The site visit included a panel discussion with industry leaders and educators, a tour of the machine shop, and a luncheon with a panel of students and parents. The visit’s objective was to determine how the CCCTC program was affecting the area’s industries by providing students who were well prepared for the workforce, and how the program was impacting students. In the last year, the CCCTC program received accreditation from the National Institute for Metalworking Skills (NIMS).

The industry panel and representatives for
local and national departments of education
received a tour of the MMT shop conducted
by several students.

The overall response from the industry panel was that Bill Eckles (Principal, CCCTC), Marjorie Lohnes (Supervisor of Career & Technology Education, CCCTC), and Mr. Blizzard understood the demands of industry in their area and invested a great deal to update the machine shop and ensure the program was attractive to both students and parents.

Toni Neary, Educational Specialist with Tooling U’s Government & Education Group, was invited to attend the meeting and said, "It is always great to get out in the field and meet the students using our program. We heard stories of how Career & Technical Education (CTE) programs and instructors have truly changed the lives of students, building confidence and imparting lifelong skills. To know we are a piece of that puzzle is really powerful."

Mr. Blizzard at CCCTC has been using Tooling U as part of a blended learning delivery for 4 years and has trained more than 60 students in that time.

Tooling U Announces 12 Award-Winning Programs in Education

Tooling U partners with schools across the country to impact training for the next generation of skilled manufacturers. Tooling U’s Platinum Education Centers (TUPECs) are programs that exemplify dedication and resources to training in the manufacturing community. The programs were selected based on: adoption of Tooling U’s online training program, strong utilization rates of online training in a blended-learning format, and ongoing successful referrals in the education community.

The 12 programs that are now recognized as TUPECs are:

Bates Technical College (WA)

Ben Franklin Career Center (WV)

Diamond Oaks Career Center (OH)

Foothill-De Anza Community College District (CA)

Indiana County Technology Center (PA)

Lake Washington Institute of Technology (WA)

Muskegon Community College (MI)

Tennessee Technology Center at Newbern (TN)

Tennessee Technology Center at Covington (TN) (two programs)

Toledo Technology Academy (OH)

Ogden-Weber Applied Technology College (UT)

Tooling U created TUPEC status to recognize the strong partnerships established with its educational customers. According to Tooling U’s Toni Neary, Business Development-Education Specialist, “[Our education customers] definitely are true partners. We are very fortunate to work with these programs because they are producing the next generation of skilled manufacturers.”

The partnerships between Tooling U and its customers depend on a blended-learning solution, which combines online training with hands-on instruction and lab work. Adds Neary, “Ultimately, technical training needs the combination of knowledge and skills. Partnered with our TUPECs, Tooling U delivers a portion of the knowledge online while the state-of-the-art labs and classrooms deliver the needed skills through hands-on learning.”

Tooling U anticipates that the 12 winners of the TUPEC award will be followed by additions each quarter, depending on how many new schools meet the criteria.

What's Being Done to Address the Lack of Skilled Workers?

Tooling U featured in Huffingtonpost!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michele-nashhoff/whats-being-done-to-addre_b_1005375.html

What's Being Done to Address the Lack of Skilled Workers?

Tooling U featured in Huffingtonpost!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michele-nashhoff/whats-being-done-to-addre_b_1005375.html

Mission Critical : WORKFORCE 2021

Mission Critical Timeline

We are SME

Industry Week's Best Plants 2011 - Tooling U Interview with Hamid Farzad

Congratulations to our IMTS Challenge Winners!

• Tomasz G.
  Prince Industries Inc. – Carol Stream, IL


• Sam F.
  HTR Machine – St. Louis, MO


• Marvin E.
  Decimal Engineering - Pompano Beach, FL


• Brad P.
  BorgWarner - Auburn Hills, MI


• Mike B.
  Northcentral Technical College - Wausau, WI


• Marty H.
  Kirby Risk Precision Machining- Lafayette, IN

SME to Acquire Tooling U to Address Skilled Labor Shortage

Measuring Organizational Effects of Training

Organizations do not implement training initiatives without expectations. However, these expectations differ from one organization to the next. For each company, there is a key question: “Why did the company consider the training program?” There are many answers to this question and each answer can validate the training investment:

• Training is needed to satisfy ISO audits.
• Training is needed to get new jobs completed.
• Training is expected by employees.

None of these answers are incorrect, but ultimately training needs to have a positive effect on the organization as a whole. These organizational effects produced by training ultimately determine if the training is worth the effort.

The Training Effect

When a training program is initiated at a company, a great deal of effort must be exerted to make everything run smoothly. There are many areas that must be addressed before the training begins, such as marketing the training internally, making employees aware of training benefits and constructing a training launch plan. Once all these activities are completed, the training can be launched successfully. A training program that is properly launched and that is adopted by the company will cause many changes within the organization. The changes happen at all points during the training program’s cycle. But a question remains – when should these organizational effects caused by training be measured and reported?

The question of when to measure and report is extremely important for organizations who initiate training programs. Most companies assume that the ideal moment to capture results occurs at the completion of the training program. This would be a mistake! In any company, many elements contribute to overall success. Such obvious items are marketing of products, pricing discounts and focused resources on a certain aspect of business. These all have an effect on the potential success of an organization, and leaders of marketing and sales will certainly and rightfully take credit for these positive effects, even if it is not due to them. This taking credit for contributions to success is where some people who lead training programs in organizations fail. Does training have an effect on employees and company success? Absolutely!! But often the effect that training has is captured and reported too late.

The Beginning or the End?

A properly targeted and launched training program has profound, positive effects on a company. These positive effects occur throughout the program, not just at the program’s end. The ideal training plan includes reporting on the training impact on the business. This reporting is best scheduled throughout the training process, and the impact of training should be communicated to all levels of the business.

Since communicating the effects of training on the business requires talking to different levels, the message must be tailored to each level. Even though terms like “enrollments” and “completions” are important to the HR and Training divisions, they are not necessarily important to C-Level executives who are controlling the budget, or to business-line executives who care more about what their employees thought about the training. To have these conversations, you need to know your audience. For business-line executives, you should address consumption, attendance and satisfaction. For the C-Level executive, you need to trace everything back to the “big three”: profitability, productivity and revenue growth.

When you start a training program, in order for it to be successful, there are many areas that need to be considered. There are obvious areas such as who will be trained and what topics will be covered and also not so obvious such as how to communicate the impact that training is having on the organization. Although this step is difficult to deliver upon, it is crucial to the success of not only the current training effort but any future training endeavors.

Jim Kasperik

Director of Services

Certificates of Completion Upgrade

The Certificates of Completion students earn for completing ToolingU classes or competency programs for their organizations have been upgraded.

Functionality

The certificate system has been upgraded to create PDF files. The use of PDF files eliminates several issues regarding the different browser standards and the printing of background images. However, using PDF files does require the use of Adobe PDF Reader.

Design

Administrators are able to select any of the certificate designs to issue a Certificates of Completion to their students.

Students are able to select any of the certificate designs to use for their Certificates of Completion. Students who are a part of a corporate or educational program will be able to print certificates based on their organization’s setup, following these criteria:

1. If an organization uses a custom certificate, a student will only be allowed to print certificates using that custom design.

2. If an organization has opted to display their logo on the certificate, a student will only be able to select one of the four certificate designs created specifically to show an additional logo.

3. In all other situations a student will be allowed to select their preference (provided their administrator has granted them permission to print certificates of completion).

Tom Torres
Web Developer

Robotics and Rigging Training

This month, TOOLINGU.COM is releasing two new departments to enhance our already robust catalog of manufacturing classes. Our company has created the robotics and rigging departments to offer you even more manufacturing-specific training opportunities.

The new Robotics department offers a comprehensive overview of modern industrial robotics, including installation, maintenance, the basics of programming, and more. The various components of robots are explored in-depth, including end effectors, drives, and vision systems. These classes add to the large curriculum for maintenance professionals already available on our site.

Our Rigging department is focused on some more "back-to-basics" classes that can be used with new employees at any company that does heavy lifting. This new department focuses on the proper attachment and use of cable, chains, slings, and hoists, as well as other essential topics such as proper load calculations and rigging safety.

Robotics:
Intro to Robotics 110
Robot Safety 115
Robot Components 120
End Effectors 125
Applications for Robots 130
Robot Axes 140
Robot Sensors 150
Robot Troubleshooting 160
Robot Maintenance 170
Concepts of Robot Programming 210
Robotic Drives, Hardware, and Components 220
Robot Installations 230
Robotic Control Systems 240
Vision Systems 250

Rigging and Installation:
Intro to Machine Rigging 110
Rigging Equipment 120
Lifting and Moving Equipment 130
Rigging Inspection and Safety 210
Rigging Mechanics 220

Greg Herlevi
Director of Content

What do Training Regulations Mean for Your Business?

Productivity mandates, reductions in workforces and cross-training initiatives often create unintended consequences. Recently, a plant manager told me he couldn’t afford to lose production time for training and could not afford to pay overtime. Another told me that paying his people to train when others at the plant were getting laid off would send the wrong message. In both cases, I recommended they offer a voluntary training program “off the clock” – taken on the employees’ own time.

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) has been striking fear in the hearts of managers for 71 years, thanks to some hefty fines and legal judgments levied upon corporate wrongdoers. It has also spawned a number of state laws, union work rules and, unfortunately, several common misconceptions. Here’s the good news:

Attendance at training or educational programs normally is not considered working time and therefore does not have to be compensated if:

• Training is outside the employee’s regular work hours


• Participation is voluntary


• The employee does no productive work while training, and


• The program is not directly related to the employee’s job. If an employee on his own initiative attends an educational program, the time is not considered hours worked even if the program is related to the job.

If you would like to read the exact wording in the Dept. of Labor documents without wading through the whole book, see below. Remember that only a small portion of the FLSA, which established a minimum wage and regulated important issues such as child labor and unpaid overtime, deals with training issues.

You may, however, live in a state with stricter regulations. To the best of my knowledge, all states allow training as long as it is voluntary and does not constitute productive work. But I’m no lawyer and you’ll sleep better if you ask one to verify the standards in your location.

If you would like to become more versed in the intricacies of the FLSA as it relates to training, I recommend an online class offered by a distance-learning colleague: The Human Equation.

What about the union?
ToolingU was recently written into a collective bargaining agreement with an automotive manufacturer where union leaders embraced the voluntary initiative to learn new skills on their own time. Management responded by providing a wage incentive plan tied to the successful completion of Toolingu.com classes and arranged into three levels of accomplishment.

Another Toolingu.com customer has a strict policy of paying employees for training time. However, the company negotiated a union concession to have training hours paid in “straight time” rather than “time-and-a-half,” even though the training time is performed in addition to the work week’s 40 hours.

There’s a growing recognition on the part of both labor and management that some of the decades-old work rules do not necessarily apply to the modern manufacturing environment. Communications and openness to new ideas are benefitting all concerned to make these companies more competitive.

Len Scaffidi

Senior Client Executive

____________________________________________________

CHAPTER V—WAGE AND HOUR DIVISION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
PART 785--HOURS WORKED


§ 785.29 Training directly related to employee’s job

…Where a training course is instituted for the bona fide purpose of preparing for advancement through upgrading the employee to a higher skill, and is not intended to make the employee more efficient in his present job, the training is not considered directly related to the employee’s job even though the course incidentally improves his skill in doing his regular work..”

§ 785.30 Independent training.

Of course, if an employee on his own initiative attends an independent school, college or independent trade school after hours, the time is not hours worked for his employer even if the courses are related to his job.

§ 785.31 Special situations.

There are some special situations where the time spent in attending lectures, training sessions and courses of instruction is not regarded as hours worked. For example, an employer may establish for the benefit of his employees a program of instruction which corresponds to courses offered by independent bona fide institutions of learning. Voluntary attendance by an employee at such courses outside of working hours would not be hours worked even if they are directly related to his job, or paid for by the employer.

§ 785.32 Apprenticeship training.

As an enforcement policy, time spent in an organized program of related, supplemental instruction by employees working under bona fide apprenticeship programs may be excluded from working time if the following criteria are met:
(a) The apprentice is employed under a written apprenticeship agreement or program which substantially meets the fundamental standards of the Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training of the U.S. Department of Labor; and
(b) Such time does not involve productive work or performance of the apprentice’s regular duties. If the above criteria are met the time spent in such related supplemental training shall not be counted as hours worked unless the written agreement specifically provides that it is hours worked. The mere payment or agreement to pay for time spent in related instruction does not constitute an agreement that such time is hours worked.

The Other SME

Many of you are familiar with SME, the Society of Manufacturing Engineers. I’d like to talk about the other SME, the Subject Matter Expert. As a member of the content team at ToolingU, I have met many Subject Matter Experts. An SME is a vital component of our training development process. Largely behind-the-scenes, SMEs validate the content of our products by testing its accuracy and relevance. From my experience, all the great SMEs possess four essential qualities: Knowledge, Experience, Accessibility, and Enthusiasm.

As the name implies, an SME is an expert in a subject. SMEs know the "theory" (from the Greek theoria, which means to view something as a witness) of our topics, and ensure our research is accurate and reflects the most up-to-date advances in a particular field.

An SME is an experienced practitioner of knowledge, putting knowledge to work in a practical manner. SMEs "practice" (from the Greek praxis, which means to enact theory) what they know, and have the ability to make our material relevant to our students. Theory and practice, or knowledge and experience, are inextricably linked.

Knowledge and experience are nothing without accessibility. An SME is accessible, which in today's world is achieved in many ways: via phone, conference call, email, and on-site visits. Being able to readily tap into an SME's knowledge and experience is invaluable.

Lastly, and incidentally my favorite part of SME interaction, SMEs enjoy sharing their knowledge and experience in order to help others and to improve the workforce of tomorrow. Enthusiasm is infectious. Every SME I know loves sharing their knowledge and experience, and is committed to the advancement and long-term success of manufacturing.

The SME contribution to our training materials is passed to our students, and that contribution is likely to stay with the student long after they log off their accounts, into the future of success in the field.

Ben Johnson

Senior Content Developer