Apprentices sometimes left floundering in unfamiliar roles are now being turned into world-class performers.
And they have INEOS to thank for that.
INEOS Nitriles discovered the haphazard approach to training when they acquired the Seal Sands site on Teeside in the UK in 2008.
They found that the training of new starters and apprentices was ad-hoc and disjointed and that limited refresher training was available for existing production technicians. All the training was also carried out by members of staff in addition to their main jobs.
INEOS knew that to get the best out of the site, it first needed to get the best out of the staff and that meant creating a dedicated team of trainers whose sole job would be to improve the skills of its chemical workforce.
The company brought together four experienced process co-ordinators with in depth knowledge of their individual plant areas.
Initially they focused on assessing, retraining and re-certifying all the existing production technicians to ensure everyone had a basic understanding and ability.
It was time-consuming but it provided the four trainers with a clear idea of future training needs.
From the HR database, they also discovered that 70% of the existing production technicians were due to reach state retirement age within the next 10 years.
Since that initial assessment they have introduced a new refresher programme – which is delivered on and off shift – to maintain skill levels, transfer INEOS knowledge from other INEOS Nitriles’ sites and integrate any changes to the plant or processes.
They have also developed 32 basic initial training sessions which all new starters attend before they move on to their specific plant training. To ensure that the training is up-to date and relevant, a quality control system has been set up with the support of site specialists.
INEOS was so proud of the group’s achievement – and plans – that the Middlesbrough site commissioned The National Skills Academy Process Industries to audit its training process.
The result? INEOS Nitriles’ training programme at the site has now been awarded the Cogent Gold Standard, which sets the skills benchmark for world class performance.
“We are obviously delighted that our commitment and hard work has been recognised,” said Dave Hart, training and development manager at Seal Sands.
“The fact that we can now use the Gold Standard logo on our correspondence and the INEOS logo is on the Cogent/ NSAPI Roll of Honour is a reflection of the great commitment to on-site training which INEOS have shown since taking over the Seal Sands site.”
But the hard work doesn’t end here.
Dave said they were now keen to move on to the next stage.
“We plan to have our internal site training verified as a recognised qualification by an external awarding body,” he said.