The Pressroom Environment – The Human Element

We’re nearing the end of our discussion regarding the pressroom environment. It’s time to turn our attention to one final factor that greatly impacts the success of any 3D laminated component manufacturer: the operators.

At the end of the day, it’s people who are called on to make sure the ambient and material temperatures are acceptable, the pressroom is as debris-free as necessary, the air flow is regulated properly, and that all best-practice procedures are consistently followed. We go to great lengths and expense to make sure our machines are running and maintained properly. However, far too often minimal effort is made to make sure our people are in good working order and properly prepared to oversee the incredibly important tasks at hand.

Know Your To’s

Tools and systems are great, but do your operators understood all of the To’s? Every job will be more successfully and consistently completed when operators understand the When-To, the How-To and……don’t underestimate the importance of this one……the Why-To. Operators will often skip tasks that they perceive to be unnecessary and a waste of time. Make sure operators fully understand all three To’s and how they relate to the success of the business and to their own futures.

Performing a Skill and Teaching a Skill Are Two Different Skills

Oh, the disasters I have seen over the years because employers have left operators in charge of their own retraining as well as the training of new employees. However, the ability to teach and coach are not skills that good operators automatically possess. Some of the most intelligent people in the world are the most awful teachers. Make sure someone who can teach is regularly training and retraining your employees, and someone who can coach is keeping them motivated to follow through for the good of the entire company.

The moral of the story? Value your employees more than you value your technology. If you don’t, your systems will soon fail you and your machinery alone won’t be able to help you.