Efficient Plant January 2020 - 10

feature | workforce strategies

Today's training and certification programs
provide workers the blended mix of IT and OT
skills they need to deploy, oversee, and sustain
connected systems.

also positions such as control engineers, safety
specialists, and machine designers.
These workers hardly have "stagnant" jobs.
Today, our ability to use digital technologies
to transform manufacturing is only limited by
our imagination. We need creative thinkers
and problem solvers more than ever.
Finally, young people should know that
companies are paying more for skilled workers and offering incentives such as tuition
reimbursements. In fact, the next time you
host a student tour, meet them in the parking
lot. Let them see the luxury vehicles that your
colleagues take to work everyday thanks to
their manufacturing jobs.

USE A TRAINING MIXTURE
Training can help you close skills gaps in several ways. For example, it can help you retain
the skills and "tribal knowledge" of retiring
workers. There are tools available that you
can use to assess worker skill and knowledge
levels. This allows you to identify gaps in your
workforce, which you can then address with a
tailored training program.

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Training can also help your workers
make the most of smarter and more-connected operations. For example, training
and certification programs are available
that provide workers the blended mix
of IT and operations technology (OT)
skills they need to deploy, oversee,
and sustain connected systems. This
blended training extends to the modes
you can use to train. Blending instructor-led training with self-paced e-learning
can provide maximum impact for your
employees.
When you make training convenient for
workers, you make it easier for them to grow
and evolve with your business. Multi-day
training sessions that require travel aren't
practical for today's workers, their families, or
your business. That's why you should consider
taking advantage of e-learning programs.
They offer workers more flexibility with "anytime, anywhere" training, so they can develop
knowledge and skills on a schedule that works
best for them (and you).
Finally, training can help you attract new
employees and fill critical roles in new and
creative ways. It can be helpful to investigate
training programs in your area and include
them in your recruiting activities.
For example, we developed the Academy
of Advanced Manufacturing (AAM) program
with Manpower Group, Milwaukee (manpowergroup.com). It's an intensive, 12-week
program that certifies highly skilled U.S. military veterans for in-demand manufacturing
jobs. The veterans receive a combination of
classroom learning and hands-on laboratory
experience. AAM also matches graduates with
participating companies that have positions
to fill. To date, some graduates have doubled
their previous salaries.

CLOSE GAPS WITH PARTNERS
If a lack of skills is already threatening uptime
or productivity in your operations, help is
available. Industry partners can provide sup-

port services and skilled workers to augment
your staff on a short-term or as-needed basis.
Remote monitoring and support services
can continuously watch over your machines
around the clock. Remote engineers quickly
detect technical issues and work with your
on-site staff to help resolve them. This can be
especially valuable for helping protect your
critical processes, continuous operations, and
production facilities in remote locations.
Similarly, remote monitoring of your
network can help improve uptime of your
connected operations, particularly if you don't
have IT staff on-site at production facilities.
Factory-trained engineers can also be
embedded to help keep operations on schedule when you can't find local qualified talent.
This on-site support is ideal for assisting with
projects such as facility start-ups, maintenance, and upgrades.

A TRANSFORMED WORKFORCE
Companies today are already feeling the
pains of the manufacturing skills gap. Doing
nothing is not an option. You need a strategy
to retain the critical skills of retiring workers
and to provide the new skills needed for more
connected operations.
Remember: This isn't only about filling
skills gaps and avoiding disaster. A skilled
workforce is essential to a competitive
business. It can help your company perform
better and avoid unplanned downtime, reduce
safety and security risks, and promote better
use of new technologies to gain an edge in a
changing industry. For more information on
e-learning, go to: https://www.rockwellautomation.com/global/products/training/overview.page? EP
Brian Fortney is Global Product Manager,
Training Services, Rockwell Automation,
Milwaukee. Mary Burgoon is the Business
Development Manager, Academy of Advanced
Manufacturing at Rockwell Automation
(rockwellautomation.com).

JANUARY 2020

http://www.manpowergroup.com https://www.rockwellautomation.com/en_NA/products/training/overview.page https://www.rockwellautomation.com/en_NA/products/training/overview.page http://www.rockwellautomation.com http://www.EFFICIENTPLANTMAG.COM

Efficient Plant January 2020

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