Ensure Proficiency Across Shifts
One key task, according to Phillips: Train the trainers.
“Trainers on third shift might not be as proficient as first-shift trainers because they don’t have that level of support,” he says. “When PMA conducts skills training in-person or via PMA’s METALFORM EDU online training platform, we try to level-set trainers and students on every shift so that they are all on the same page as far as understanding. Otherwise, because the less-experienced third shift does not have ready access to machine manufacturers or experienced in-plant personnel—those people tend to work first shift—the entire third shift tends to lag in skill sets. In training for automation, we need to start with a commonality in skill sets across all shifts.”
Learn the Whys
Reliable, productive and cost-effective automation demands a
skilled workforce assigned to plan, set up, run and troubleshoot such
technology.
“Metal formers may want to speed automation, perhaps try to quicken part transfer within a press line,” offers Phillips as one example. “In doing so, a part may not sit properly in a die prior to or after transfer, which causes stoppages or damage. Understanding the entire process helps in troubleshooting such a situation or preventing it in the first place. For reasons such as this, automation requires a high skill set among operators and setup personnel.”
Without automation, parts often are hand-transferred, pushed against stops or pinned to locations—reliable yes, but productivity-limiting and potentially unsafe processes.
This manual work can provide an advantage, however, as “personnel involved with this work understand the holistic approach—why they are doing it because they can see and feel it,” says Phillips. “With automation, we just assume that a part will travel to the correct location in the correct orientation. That’s not always true.
“Personnel involved with automation must be trained to a higher degree,” Phillips says. “During some recent training conducted for PMA, we often heard that employees needed to understand why they’re setting die protection at a certain angle, because even with die protection they were still crashing tools. Before, they had no die protection, so such education wasn’t required.
“Now, personnel must understand the basics of why automation must perform in a certain way,” he adds, “in order to get the most out of it and justify the investment.”
Training enables the needed proficiency and informs the whys
behind automation action.
“Whether running a press brake or a robotic-welding cell, there’s much to understand,” Phillips says. “Personnel can’t just place a piece and say, ‘go bend this,’ or ‘go weld this.’ They need to know the material characteristics and how fast a process can run, or how fast to feed the welding wire. A proper bend or weld depends on knowing the basics, automation or not. Without knowing the whys, associates fail to achieve top automation performance.”
PMA Training Fills the Skills Gaps
Okay, we’ve established that automation functions best when surrounded by properly skilled personnel. How do personnel get there? Training the trainers, as mentioned earlier, is one aspect. PMA has answers to this task and more with online, in-plant and video training, all with customized options.
METALFORM EDU, which enables on-demand remote training 24/7, provides a big assist in leveling skill sets across shifts. The platform offers industry-onboarding skills training as well as skills training across a gamut of metal forming and fabricating processes. Also offered: human-resources, computer and leadership courses. Augmenting METALFORM EDU offerings, PMA’s video-based training is set to roll out in 2026, consisting of short 2-3-min. videos customized to a metal former’s shop-floor or administrative processes.
“These proprietary videos belong to the metal forming company,” says Connie King, PMA workforce development director. “We come in, shoot and edit video, then give it to our customer. We’ve piloted these videos with a few metal formers and the videos are a big hit. They fit a sweet spot between on-demand generic training and full-blown multi-day in-plant training.”
And, technical training, at PMA or in-plant, can be customized for a metal former’s specific processes and equipment.
“We suggest a blended approach to optimize time and costs—online courses through METALFORM EDU to level-set employees followed by customized training that moves beyond basic skills,” Phiilips explains. “This allows for a greater level of knowledge gained within a shorter time window.”
Another powerful PMA offering to augment the above: its
roster of technical seminars, covering die protection, deep drawing, estimating
dies and parts, and much more. New on the PMA knowledge-transfer menu is
virtual in-plant training that provides customized instruction without
travel-related expenses.
Taking advantage of such training opportunities positions the metal forming community well to thrive in automated operations. MF
See also: Precision Metalforming Association
Technologies: Management, Pressroom Automation, Training
“The biggest shift in manufacturing employment: We are losing our skill set from 10-20 yr. ago—many skilled people are retiring, with new people entering with a lower skill level.”
