The Machinist's Learning Curve
Last month
in Shop Talk we talked about testing potential employees with a Core
Competency test. Now that you’ve hired a new employee, what can
you expect as this new employee learns your business?
Your company is unique, so no matter how
bright and experienced this new hire, there will be a period of time
where the new hire learns the job. Your new machinist’s level of
knowledge can be plotted in a graph against time. This graph is
called the learning curve.
A typical learning curve is shown here.
Notice there are no values shown for time or knowledge. Each person
is different, so there is no set time period at which everyone will
acquire a knowledge or skill set.
The day your new machinist starts is at the
left corner. Each day the machinist gains more experience and
knowledge (moving up the curve). This increase in knowledge is often
quite “visible” as the machinist is given more responsibilities.
There will come a day when the new guy is
feeling pretty good about the job. Maybe the new machinist has been
learning a CNC machine and now feels pretty good about life. This
machinist may say to himself, “It’s been tough, but I’ve
learned a lot and now I’ve got this new job and machine figured
out.”
That will be the day
the job and machine tool make him suffer. I’ve often said that CNC
machine tools seem to be able to read your mind. They lull you into
a sense of security. Just when you think you know the machine and
can handle any situation, BAM, you pay for your overconfidence. |
This day is shown on the curve where the steady increase of the
curve changes to a downturn. The machinist now must go through a
period of relearning.
During this period of relearning the machinist gains experience that
will help overcome repetitive problems.
As time goes by, the machinist regains some
of the confidence lost at the downturn. A smart machinist realizes
that the job could make him suffer at any time and does not get
overconfident. Once again the machinist is climbing the learning
curve.
As the curve shows there are more low
points over time. What is the difference between the first high
point and the second high point?
A fully experienced person knows that they
can make mistakes at any time. That person adjusts their work habit
to accommodate the reality.
Eventually, the learning curve reaches a
plateau and then seems to end on a small dip. The plateau used to be
a productive period where the machinist performed efficiently on the
job for the next 30 years.
The reality of today’s world is that this
plateau is a much shorter period of time and you must continually
watch for the dip. Complacency and boredom can set in quickly, so
you must be ready for the next learning curve to start.
If you do not keep learning and improving
you might just be so complacent that you are “elected” to a new
job, whether you like it or not.
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