Metal pressing manufacturer Precision Press has established its own training academy to teach high school graduates the skills they require to work in a manu- facturing environment.
Twenty candidates have been enrolled in the Precision Press Learner Readiness Programme. They will complete the course, comprising eight core modules, designed to instil organisational and cultural norms, such as team building and communication, as well as business principles, including continual self-improvement.
The engineering skills module includes setter training and development; tool, jig and dye model making; specialised tooling training; and the use of hand tools, measuring equipment and engineering drawings.
The principles of world-class manufacturing and the 5S programme – a method to create a safer, cleaner and better-organised workplace – are also covered by Precision Press learning and development manager Raynier Deysel and his team.
The company says the manufacturing sector is evolving into a more technical field, as machinery designs are complex and the equipment and processes required to manufacture and manage are more sophisticated than they have been before.
Precision Press MD Simon Ledgerwood says that the company operates in a competitive automotive component sector worldwide and competes with top companies on price, quality and delivery time; there- fore, skilled personnel are necessary to remain competitive.
“School leavers are unprepared for the demands of the workplace. The candidate selection process was lengthy because many Grade 12 maths graduates were unable to complete basic calculations in the entrance test,” he says.
The 20 candidates, comprising two groups, will complete their training programme in May, of which ten will be employed by Precision Press. Ledgerwood is confident that the other ten candidates will easily find employment in the manufacturing operations sector.
“We believe that we’re providing a valuable service for the manufacturing sector in the greater Cape Town area and in the automotive sector. Much of the material we present is generic to manufacturing and, if the group warrants it, we can customise and incorporate specialised industry-specific modules,” he explains.