by Bob Williamson, CMRP, CPMM, MIAM, Editor | Feb 24, 2020 | Newsletter Column, Plant Operations, Workforce Issues
The spreading coronavirus epidemic in China and elsewhere will most likely show us how a global supply chain can be interrupted by an unanticipated human cause. A localized human health emergency rarely affects global businesses. But, when the virus in a global supply...
by Heinz Bloch, P.E., Editor | Feb 21, 2020 | RAM Tools & Methods, The Bloch Files, Workforce Issues
You may recall hearing about (or could have possibly experienced) this type of situation in your workplace: There are times when we attend presentations by competent technical people, including colleagues, whose relevant requests are eventually ignored by their...
by Heinz Bloch, P.E., Editor | Feb 17, 2020 | Newsletter Column, The Bloch Files, Workforce Issues
Those who no longer stand up for what is right have plenty of company. Like dead fish, they swim downstream, in accordance with the tide. Their sense of self-preservation takes over, and their consciences become dulled. I’ve seen this in the reliability field,...
by Heinz Bloch, P.E., Editor | Feb 7, 2020 | The Bloch Files, Workforce Issues
There is an obvious truism about making progress: “The first step toward getting somewhere is not to stay where you are right now.” For reliability professionals, this means that retaining and defending the existing state of affairs at a plant or corporation...
by Bob Williamson, CMRP, CPMM, MIAM, Editor | Feb 2, 2020 | Training & Qualification, Workforce Issues
The U.S. manufacturing sector continues to grow, even as a skills shortage persists. With the intelligent use of technologies and automation, we will continue to need many more skilled people in the manufacturing labor force. The U.S. military veterans my just be that...
by Bob Williamson, CMRP, CPMM, MIAM, Editor | Jan 24, 2020 | Plant Operations, Workforce Issues
We are well into an economic boom and a talent bust. The economy is stronger than it has been for decades. But the skilled talent needed to continue fueling that type of booming economy is in extremely short supply—shorter than it has ever been since World War II....
by Heinz Bloch, P.E., Editor | Jan 24, 2020 | Learning from Mistakes, The Bloch Files, Workforce Issues
A few years ago. I was asked to summarize the root causes of massive bearing failures on a pump and its steam turbine driver. The resulting fire was quickly extinguished and could be called a “near miss.” The most likely cause had been confusion, or lack of...
by Heinz Bloch, P.E., Editor | Jan 20, 2020 | Newsletter Column, The Bloch Files, Workforce Issues
Mark Twain has been credited with a quote to the effect that the owner of a book who won’t read it has no advantage over a person who cannot read. We would call such a person an “analphabet,” and he or she surely would not feel flattered by the moniker. Today’s...
by Heinz Bloch, P.E., Editor | Jan 12, 2020 | The Bloch Files, Training & Qualification, Workforce Issues
Experienced manufacturers can be effective tutors: Consider selecting the best qualified from among them and make them your technology providers. Involve those technology providers in presenting well-structured half-day (or longer) seminars at your facility, and find...
by Heinz Bloch, P.E., Editor | Jan 6, 2020 | Newsletter Column, The Bloch Files, Workforce Issues
Are you at a point in your work life where you are mentoring others? Whether you answer yes or no, you’ve probably had one or more mentors who have helped you along your own professional-development journey. I had some excellent mentors when I entered the work...
