Tooling University

Tooling University 

Arguably the most serious problem facing our industry is the lack of qualified machining professionals.

Well sir, there is a new, Web-based system that not only looks to improve things in this regard but also to turn online training on its ear.

We're talking here about Tooling University (www.toolingu.com), and whether you're the lead in an eight-person shop or a plant of 800, you're going to want to keep your eye on this.

“Tooling U” currently offers (or will soon offer) courses in workholding; metal cutting; CNC; materials and material handling; and metal forming. Each course is chaired by at least one instructor who establishes the content of the lessons that make up his or her course.

But here's where the Web-part kicks in.

Course “credits” may be purchased by individuals or by corporations for their employees. Once these credits are acquired, an owner or manager can administrate all matters related to students' progress and assignments. Tools are available to streamline administration and collaboration between the student(s), the administrator and the curriculum.

Best of all, training can be engaged at the convenience of the student and the corporation. Travel and other related expenses are no longer issues. And loss of the shop's production time due to off-site training is minimized or eliminated. Privacy issues have been considered and well-represented at Tooling U. The individual student enjoys status protections, and managers control access to courses and results.

This site is new and requires a period of maturation. But you'll be hard-pressed to find a more thorough and focused site dedicated to machining professionals anywhere on the Web.

Job Shop Site Of The Month

Schmiede Corporation is a nearly 40-year-old high-precision contract machine shop located in Tullahoma, Tennessee. Its Web site (www.schmiedecorp.com) offers a fine lesson in online presentation of a shop's qualifications. From precision CNC machining, grinding and EDM, to specialty services such as way grinding and custom fixturing, all service areas of this site are simply presented and easy to navigate.

To have your site considered for Job Shop Site Of The Month, send your URL to otw@mmsonline.com.

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