Page 23 - CMA PROfiles Fall 2017

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ONE EXPERT + A BACK-UP SCENARIO

There are obvious advantages if you can get up and running with
more than one person.
It’s important to look at the second person as a fully capable
replacement when your tech champion is absent. This means
the initial training must include both employees; the start-up
and production configuration must include input from both; and
the two must work together to create process and workflow
procedures. And both need to understand the software and
hardware, of course.
Ideally, the secondary person will stay up-to-date on the
programming and machine operation, while supporting other
areas of the shop. How you achieve the optimum balance
depends on the size of your operation. If you can pull off this
scenario in your shop, chances are your operation will be able to
run without interruption.
1 What can go wrong? The most common mistake companies
SOLO SCENARIO
make with this second scenario is deciding to train the champion
and then expecting him or her to train the backup. This dilutes
With a small shop, there may be no other choice. The business the training and cuts your production while the champion is
owner bought the machine and will program and run it. There’s training the back-up person.
no better way to develop a holistic view of the manufacturing
process than to have one person bear the entire responsibility. It also tends to establish a hierarchy that may not be beneficial
to the organization; because your second team member wasn’t
It’s important to optimize programs, minimize off-fall and included in the training and initial launch, he/she may not be
maximize the life of the tools. You need to ensure that the as invested.
“ownership mentality” is ever-present so there’s a clear path to
optimal performance for your new investment. If you choose this scenario, pay attention to the dynamics of the
two-person team. If a subordinate team member has no voice,
On the other hand, the reality is that production drops (or stops) communication becomes one-way – and eventually non-existent.
when this person is not present; if the machine is not running, it’s Before long, the shop is essentially operating under scenario one.
not making money. If one person is writing programs, running the
machine and attempting other tasks, it can be difficult to keep
the machine performing at optimal yield all day, every day. 3
TWO EXPERTS SCENARIO
Another potential drawback to a one-person show is that
techniques and procedures are being developed with only one
person in mind, and it’s very likely that other people will get For a thriving shop with an established roster, this is the best
involved down the road. It’s important to think ahead and set choice by far.
things up so that your processes still work well when other Designate one person as the programmer and another as the
people are involved. operator, send the programmer off-site for training before

There are file-naming conventions, tool libraries and best the machine arrives, and then have the operator train on the
practices that will eventually need to be accessible and machine after the install is complete.
understandable for other employees as the business grows, so Two experts, each with a defined post, can both contribute to the
plan accordingly. “best practices” and process decisions within the shop. Need-

CABINET MAKERS ASSOCIATION 21