Governor Ernie Fletcher got a firsthand look at the future of coal miner training in eastern Kentucky on Thursday when he climbed aboard the "Success Xpress," the Eastern Kentucky Concentrated Employment Program's (EKCEP) new custom-built, state-of-the-art mobile training unit.

Fletcher was in Hazard to present $400,000 in statewide reserve funds to EKCEP to underwrite continued employer-specific workforce training in eastern Kentucky. After the check presentation, Fletcher and Kentucky Education Secretary Laura E. Owens toured the Success Xpress, which can provide high-quality training in advanced coal mining skills at any location.

Fletcher and Owens watched a live demonstration of the Success Xpress' three-dimensional computerized simulator of a 5DT Continuous Miner machine. Dennis Mayo, interim director of the Coal Careers Program at Big Sandy Community and Technical College, used a virtual reality headset and hand-held control panel to demonstrate how the simulator can train miners to use a continuous mining machine to cut coal from the walls of an underground mine.

Fletcher and Owens also viewed the electrical training panels in the Success Xpress' hands-on lab area. Paul Pratt, dean of Southeast Kentucky Community and Technical College's Office of Community Workforce and Economic Development, explained how the Joy, Inc. circuits and other equipment on the Success Xpress are exactly like those mine electricians work on at actual mines.

The Success Xpress can be driven to remote coal mines sites so that experienced, working miners can train to earn certifications in essential high-skill positions (mine electricians, METs, equipment operators, foremen, etc.) where they work, reducing the impact of training on their companies' productivity.

Mining courses can also be taught by specially qualified instructors at remote locations and transmitted to the Success Xpress. Remote-controlled cameras in the mobile unit allow the class to interact with the remote instructor in real time.

Sessions taught by instructors-whether on board the Success Xpress or from a remote location-can be digitally recorded, saved, and replayed on demand. Additionally, should the need arise, the Success Xpress is equipped to function as a mobile command center in the case of a coal mine accident or emergency.

The Success Xpress classroom also includes wireless connectivity that provides internet access at eight computer workstations.

Crawford Blakeman, EKCEP Business Solutions manager, said the Success Xpress will provide working miners access to the best possible mine training and instruction at any location in the EKCEP service area.

"Wherever there's a need at a coal mine for more skilled and better trained miners, Success Xpress will be ready to literally drive that training to their front door," Blakeman said. "Being able to present this training in such a mobile way allows workers to train for advancement more efficiently with much less impact on company productivity."

Success Xpress is owned and operated by EKCEP, a non-profit workforce agency based in Hazard, Ky. EKCEP administers government employment and training programs and employer services in 23 rural mountain counties, including the entire eastern Kentucky coalfields area. EKCEP also operates the JobSight network of workforce centers, which provide access to a dozen government workforce programs that serve job seekers and employers-all at one location.

Success Xpress fills a major role in EKCEP's ongoing efforts to help the state's largest industry replenish its dwindling and aging workforce and capitalize on the rapid increase in the demand for coal in recent years, according to EKCEP Executive Director Mable Duke.

"The coal industry has indicated time and again that it needs more trained, skilled miners to handle today's increased production demands," Duke said. "Success Xpress allows EKCEP to help address that need, and its mobility will allow us to bring specialized training to the region's miners in a way that has never been seen before."

Duke added that the expedited training offered aboard Success Xpress will also increase the number of high-paying jobs available to the region's workforce, allowing both the coal industry and its workers to take advantage of the opportunities provided by the high demand for coal.

"Success Xpress will always be on tour, on time, and on target with needed training for eastern Kentucky's coal industry," Duke said. "Thanks to this innovative new tool, we're going to be training coal miners today for Kentucky's future."

The Success Xpress was created with a portion of EKCEP's share of a $3.1 million federal grant from the U.S. Department of Labor. The grant-entitled "Kentucky's Demand-Driven Response to the Coal Industry Workforce Crisis"-was awarded to EKCEP and the West Kentucky Workforce Investment Board (WKWIB) in December 2005 to provide training for new miners and skills-upgrade training for experienced miners in the state's eastern and western coalfields. The grant was awarded under the President's High Growth Job Training Initiative, as implemented by the Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration.

In pursuing the grant funds, EKCEP and WKWIB leveraged approximately $7.1 million in other workforce and training funds from a variety of sources, including: EKCEP Workforce Investment Act (WIA) formula funds, WKWIB WIA formula funds, the Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS), and coal operators, including Alliance Coal, Charlais Coal, Peabody Coal, and James River Coal. Among these leveraged funds was a $250,000 allocation from Governor Fletcher's Reserve Fund of the federal WIA, presented to EKCEP by Fletcher in March 2005.

The Center for Rural Development is also a participating partner, designing and coordinating the Success Xpress' distance-learning technology.

For additional information on the Success Xpress, contact Crawford Blakeman at 606-436-5751.