TPM Implementation: Technical Skills Development in Operators

por José Luis Pulido | Dec 26, 2021 11:25:58 PM

TPM training in casa Sauza

The training pillar in the TPM methodology says: "By contributing to the professional development of our employees, helping them to develop their abilities, skills, knowledge, and behavior in an autonomous way, they will be able to use all the tools available to perform improving projects and support through their talent, all the organization's pillars".

Our situation, in terms of the agricultural area in Casa Sauza before the implementation of the TPM methodology, had different issues like:

  • Low efficiency
  • High ignored equipment wear
  • High-level human mistakes in the equipment
  • Operators without technical training and without a sense of responsibility in the equipment maintenance

What have been the benefits of the TPM Training Pillar in Casa Sauza?

Since the year 2014, the training pillar, with the support of the other ones, has managed training that has had an impact, providing skills and technical abilities to the personnel who operate the tractors. It is important to mention that the tractors are really important because, with them, the 80% of the agave agricultural activities are performed. Generally, the tractor operators possess a low educational level, some of them just finished primary school. With these training, we are giving them the chance of increasing their knowledge and skills about preventive maintenance.

While we are still moving forward in the methodology, little by little we have been able to experience some changes in the culture and in each operator. They are starting to have a sense of commitment to their equipment's maintenance. As well, the "ignored wear/damage" has decreased, because the operators are now more aware of the equipment conditions and have stopped ignoring this faults. Somo of the skills that the tractor operators have developed are:

  • Tool Handling
  • Greasing
  • Lower tractor service
  • Higher tractor service
  • Clouth Replacements.
  • Tractor's Mechanic
  • Tractor's Neumatic
  • Tractor's Hydraulic
  • Tractor's Electricity

All this knowledge and skills are monitored through a skill record and the goal is to move forward each operator to the expected level according to the next cycle:

  1. Learning
  2. Practicing
  3. Performing improvement
  4. Teaching

What are the results obtained with the Training Pillar?

With these skills, we have achieved a reduction in the maintenance costs. For example, now each operator is able to perform low and high tractor services, the intervention of an external mechanic is no longer needed. The equipment damage detection has also improved, being more exact, so this way the diagnosis costs have been reduced because they are detected by the same operators.

Our goal is to keep increasing the skills level of our operators until they can achieve a level 4 (teaching), so they can share with others what they know and become internal instructors. By the moment, we have one internal instructor in "Operation and maintenance of an agricultural tractor", another in "Tools Management", another in "Cutting and Folding" and one more in "Fixation elements". The challenge continues and we will keep supporting the technical learning in our operators.

If you want to learn more about the TPM Metholody and our Continuous Improvement Program, read the next articles where everything is explained in more detail.

Continuous Improvement at Casa Sauza

Improving our Processes with the TPM Value

TPM in Casa Sauza

Download our free Ebook  TPM at Sauza

 

 

 

 

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