Page 42 - MetalForming September 2011

Tooling Technology
as competency-based programs. Federal rules require that all appren- tices participate in related instruction. The rules suggest that apprentices take at least 144 hr. of related instruction/yr., which many apprenticeship programs choose to require. The rule does not specify who may provide related instruction or that the instruction be
provided by an accredited body. Typically and traditionally, related instruction has been classroom train- ing. Community colleges often play a large role in providing related classroom training for apprenticeship programs. These courses typically are offered through a college’s continuing educa- tion department, and may be taken as credit courses in an individual’s pursuit of an associate’s degree. The new feder- al rules also support the use of technol- ogy-based and distance learning for the
related instruction.
The apprenticeship must address
core competencies as determined by an expert panel from the industry, while allowing individual companies to add
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Fig. 1
additional competency requirements to reflect their own business require- ments. Workers completing these apprenticeships and who demonstrate proficiency against a set of core com- petencies receive nationally recognized certification.
The “Press Setup Operator—Stamp- ing” apprenticeship program joins five other machining and machine-building apprenticeships recently approved by the DoL (Fig. 1).
Die-Setting Standards—Why?
Most companies use engineering, industrial engineering or pressroom foremen to establish setup standards and time allocations. Yet, some com- panies lack such setup standards; they misguidedly believe that setup stan- dards have no bearing on wages or
MetalformingFacts.com
Press Setup Operator CNC Operator Mold Maker
Tool & Die Maker CNC Machinist Machinist
bonuses, so why bother?
Influencing wages is not the only
reason for establishing good die-setting standards and practices. Such stan- dards and practices allow stampers to measure die-setter performance and die-setting efficiency. And with the advent of computer-aided press con- trols, documentation of all setup parameters has become a necessity.
Reducing or eliminating die setup has become a priority for many major OEMs. Some OEMs, in fact, no longer allow their suppliers to charge for die setups. Their rationale: setup costs will never be reduced or eliminated if sup- pliers are reimbursed for them. In other words, when a supplier cannot charge for its die-setup time, they become highly motivated to reduce setup times down to a matter of minutes.
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