Old ladies work

[Tomme boy]

Old lady came home from work tonite 2.5hrs late. I ask her if she was having a bad day.

I ducked my head waiting to get something thrown at me. But she didn't. She is a supervisor for a printing dept in the factory she works at. And the last place I worked at 10 years ago. I was a mechanic. She tells me that the silk screen is down and the maintenance guys and supervisor can't figure out why they can't get it to stay running past the initial loading of the machine. So the maintenance supervisercame up with a "workaround ". A piece of tape over the start button to force it to run.

I started to ask ?'s about what it was actually doing. There are 3 proxy sensors that tell the machine if the piece of paper has been taken and for the feeder to proceed to advance the next piece. If it thinks that the first piece is still there it shuts down the cycle. If you didn't know where these proxy's were they are almost impossible to see. I tell her to call the second shift mechanic to reach under the grippers and to clean them.

Guess what? The machine was down for 6.5hrs because they are not mechanics they are set up people.

But wait! We are at the factory right now because of one of the other machines went down. Angie sent out the 2nd shift maintenance supervisor to talk to me about both machines. We have been having a nice talk for the last hour. I was filling him in on what to look for and other little things that that machine does and how to fix it. The second machine that is down I have not worked on. That was brought in after I left. But it sounds like a bearing is bad from what the supervisor was saying on the gripper bar that grabs the sheets. When that happens on the other single color silk screen it messes with the timing. If you ignore it, it gets very bad and $$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Anyway, Angie is going to tell the plant manager I said your welcome

 

[Tomme boy]

And I am still sitting here waiting in the car at 2:30 am while she is doing paperwork.

 

[Bret4207]

Sounds to me like someone could make a few $$$ as an "on call consultant"!

 

[Jeff H]

@Tomme boy , you do your generation proud.

Throughout my career in engineering and manufacturing (one incident involving a silk screen printer - prox's - that painted the faded bad along the circumference of windshields) I watched the same thing over and over and no one learned. It just kept getting worse and worse as "leadership" skimped on money for equipment and the people who take care of it.

Now, I teach people to go out and be good tradesmen (and happily, a fair number of trades WOMEN) and get constantly pelted with queries from industry "leadership" for "my best and brightest." My first question is "how much are you paying?" That almost always ends the conversation. They complain about "young people" (and yes, it's different), and bemoan the fact that the "old guys" are retiring or about to. I get a lot of promising people in my labs/classrooms, who when lucky enough to be paired with a seasoned journeyman (the gals I've talked to are OK with being called "journeyMEN"), do wonders and make us all proud.

I just hope that one day, before we move ALL skilled positions overseas, "leadership" sees the light and understands that you HAVE to take care of your stuff and your people. Make them WANT to work for you and they WILL. Punish people for being responsible, taking initiative, solving problems by not recognizing and appreciating the skill, experience and will, and you will get what you pay for - down-time and lost revenue.

Sorry to "preach," but I though that when I left industry to teach that I'd be getting away from this. NOW, instead of just stumping for me and my guys, I'm stumping for a hundred of my students on any given day. There is little appreciation for what it takes to actually DO things among those who's only contribution is their IDEAS, which they assume are wonderful, and worse - ORIGINAL, because the world lived in darkness before the world was blessed with their arrival.

Again - sorry.

@Tomme boy , YOU (all of you guys, really) are what I drive my students to aspire to be. I'm doing well at that in the classroom, but the "real world" - in industry, remains an unconquered. I'm hopeful that the ones I send out there can start to turn that around. Often, my students come back and tell me stories like you just shared and it's reassuring that at least SOME on "our side" still get it and can still DO stuff and not just have "ideas."

 

[Ian]

Tradesmen. Mankind. Journeyman. Manhole.
ALL gender-neutral words. Anyone who takes offense or thinks otherwise is just an idiot with no grip of language history who's likely been brainwashed by sexist movements with chips on each shoulder and an ax to grind.

 

[smokeywolf]

Tomme, sounds to me like they owe you about $1,000. That's likely what they would have paid an outside consultant to come in and diagnose the problem.

 

[Jeff H]

Tradesmen. Mankind. Journeyman. Manhole.
ALL gender-neutral words. Anyone who takes offense or thinks otherwise is just an idiot with no grip of language history who's likely been brainwashed by sexist movements with chips on each shoulder and an ax to grind.

Ian, with genuine respect, I personally can't/won't touch that one, but since you're here.....

I always poll each new group to come into my program for mechanics.

Mechanics, even if I only get one per class, are like the prize in a cereal box for me. Their perspective is always different - pragmatic, physics-based and logical. They help me reinforce the point that there are real-life, physics-based consequences to the misguided notion that automation am control is somehow magic, and immune to the mechanical laws of nature.

An "imaginary" coil or set of contacts in a PLC can cause a REAL MACHINE to KILL you!

I love my mechanics! They're always grumpy, are always pragmatic, they always b,... complain, always provide a perspective others are unable to even imagine and always rise to the top tiers of the class. And still b,.... complain. I wonder when the world will wake up and understand that the "dumb kids" who are pigeon-holed as mechanics (tradesmen, in general) had been doing physics labs with Craftsman, half-inch drive breaker bars since they were seven! I see what @Tomme boy is sharing frequently and it comes down to a dismissal of the value in knowledge, skill, experience and education by "leaders" who possess "D, none of the above."

 

[Ian]

I was also educated as a mechanical engineer. Not my thing after a brief try in the aerospace manufacturing world. Went back for my AAS in Automotive. 22 years now in daily search-and-destroy missions with my bread depending on speed and efficiency might make me a little....curt? Good mechanics are my favorite kind of people; they are 100% straight up no-bullshit types with minds like an argon laser, have a well-developed confidence in their abilitiy to assess reality, and they are never afraid to tell you exactly how they see things.

 

[Rockydoc]

I was also educated as a mechanical engineer. Not my thing after a brief try in the aerospace manufacturing world. Went back for my AAS in Automotive. 22 years now in daily search-and-destroy missions with my bread depending on speed and efficiency might make me a little....curt? Good mechanics are my favorite kind of people; they are 100% straight up no-bullshit types with minds like an argon laser, have a well-developed confidence in their abilitiy to assess reality, and they are never afraid to tell you exactly how they see things.

And sometimes known to "blow their own horn"

 

[RicinYakima]

and they are never afraid to tell you exactly how they see things.

I think that is what he just said.

 

[Cherokee]

Good comments; unfortunately many that need the words aren't listening.

 

[Jeff H]

Well, @Tomme boy , if the plant manager doesn't appreciate it, at least all of us do!

Probably won't be getting any monetary gratification out of us either though.

 

[Jeff H]

Good comments; unfortunately many that need the words aren't listening.

Yes, sir, we are preaching to the choir.

But, if I didn't hear this from others once in a while - felt I was alone in this - I'd throw up my hands and walk away.

@Tomme boy , if you don't mind, I'd like to share your story in class Tuesday (paraphrased) to help the younger ones understand what kind of shoes we are trying to fill in our "academic endeavors."

@Ian , that AAS is GOLD! MY AAS is what made me my living. Trying to get high school guidance counselors to recognize that it is NOT an inferior degree is like

A year ago, I had a full-blown, four-year EE (Electrical Engineer), freshly minted, come from two states away to get into my program before hitting the job market. Smart man, as he understood that he DIDN'T understand. He knew all the math, but flat out admitted, he had no idea what any of it really meant. He was an amazing student, had a ton of fun and just a wonderful person. Grew up in a place where finding food on a regular basis was a full-time job and had a pretty realistic perspective of things. He was an amazing influence on the other students as well.

 

[462]

Probably won't be getting any monetary gratification out of us either though.

I'm in for $5.

 

[358156 hp]

Ability is not something you've done once or twice, it's what you can perform upon demand.

 

[Tomme boy]

Man I had a huge list of my work history typed out. But it reviled way too much. So I will break it down a little. Mechanic in a factory that you also did electrical work. Went back to school got an associate degree in electronics. Hired in as apprentice for electrician. Hired as a mechanic at the above factory that the mechanics were set up people not mechanics. Trained other set up people that wanted to learn how to troubleshoot. Boss that hired out all electrical work to have me do most of it. Taught other guys that wanted to learn to change and wire motors relays switches lights ballasts SSR's and all kinds of other electrical stuff. And what not to do and other stuff so they don't kill themselves or others. And one of the best piece of advice I was given. When you are not afraid of electricity then you need to stop and think about what you are doing.

 

[Tomme boy]

Tomme, sounds to me like they owe you about $1,000. That's likely what they would have paid an outside consultant to come in and diagnose the problem.

Try the nearest person to work on this is in Germany. And I also just found out they still have not had the prints translated from German to English. I was told back then by my supervisor they were working on it.

If it wasn't for my old lady working there I don't know if I would help without money up front. If I can help her out with something then I do. And they wondered how she was able to go from a press operator to the dept supervisor in a little over a year. Plus she had 19 years at a union printing factory as the head lead operator until it closed its doors. With all of it crazy things at this place it is a very good place to work if you are a woman and have kids. They pay for all kinds of daycare and kids programs free for the employees and family.

And they just gave everyone a $5/he raise early this year. The owner handed the place over to his son. And they base all of their wages off of New York where the headquarters are at. So he made the wages the same at both factory' s. And it didn't hurt as the Iowa plant was open and running 24/7 last year when the new York plant was made to shut down.

What's funny is New York had about 25% of the people refused to come back to work. They were scared of the bat bug. $700 or more in food stamps every month, the $900 in federal unemployment on top of whatever the state payed every month. It's no wonder no one will work.

Anyway thanks guys

 

[Bret4207]

If the nearest guy is in Germany, then you might consider offering your services for what you think it's worth. You can buy a lot of toys!

 

[Jeff H]

Try the nearest person to work on this is in Germany. And I also just found out they still have not had the prints translated from German to English. I was told back then by my supervisor they were working on it.................

This is not new and it ain't the Germans' fault. Odds are that it was an option offered, but at a cost, which is only reasonable. I can't count the times I've commissioned a job and asked the equipment-builder "why the hell didn't you...?" The answer was always the same; "we suggested it to your people, but they didn't want to spend the "extra money."

Someone failed miserably on this end by not having it in the bid specification that EVERYTHING be translated into English. This is a sales/applications failure - a big and obvious one.

Any machine builder from any other country (and even China has gotten into that game in a big way will do it. I did it. I just ran across a set of prints yesterday for a job I sent to Mexico twenty years ago and EVERYTHING was translated into Spanish, to include the push-button tags.

Thing is, IT COSTS MORE, and when someone is sniffing around for a purchase order (PO), many, many details are ignored for the sake of getting the order whether anyone knows what was sold or not - it's cash flow, which satisfies the bottom line for an ephemeral blip in the month - "short-term gains," which do nothing more than "look good" for ONE DAY during a reporting period and then someone else pays for it for years dealing with sub-standard machines, systems and processes - that's operators, maintenance and internal engineering, not sales and the executive arm, who get the bonus for the appearance of "success."

@Tomme boy , I was sort of hating my job this week, but you made me feel a lot better about insulating myself from a large part of that crap, so thank you!

 

[RBHarter]

A life friends Dad worked in Radar . The Navy did a big upgrade in about 1978 . Part of that update was IBM hardware then the very cutting edge of solid state equipment the rest of it had to continue to communicate with the tube boards that drove all of the CRT 1957's best .

He poured over the books , studied the diagrams , wore out a slide rule and in about 3 weeks had paralleled all of the hookups so that the systems would talk . His final change over took about 4 hr and 2 more weeks to swat all the bugs .
He had a book and logs for all of the 1943-1957 and service , repair , etc logs to 1978 , the installation manuals for the existing base to the new equipment and all of the tech manuals for the new gear .

With the new and old gear up and running at 97% 8 weeks after the last bugs were worked out they sent him to "the school" to learn how to do the install .....

The only instructors weren't real pleased when he told them the system didn't run with board 278 mk 2 mod 23 unless cable 22 and 31 were attached to terminals 23 and 29 with a bonding jumper added between the new hardware cases and base . (Description only not the actual conversation) I guess they had to rewrite the installation manual with all of the field revisions he had made because the tech manual didn't have the correct information for the 72-74' Mk & Mod changes .