A collaborative training effort supplemented by the Eastern Kentucky Concentrated Employment Program, Inc. (EKCEP) is helping a Jackson County manufacturing plant jumpstart its operations by building a culture of economy and versatility among its employees.

Officials with Precision Solutions—located in the Jackson County Industrial Park in Annville—say that training will allow the plant to be competitive in the constantly evolving global marketplace by helping it remain adaptable to customers’ varying needs.

The plant, which manufactures “Reveal” airport screening devices and electronic circuit boards and components for appliances, has enrolled all 41 of its employees in a “lean manufacturing” training program. The program reduces costs and boosts productivity by reducing waste in materials, inventory, and job processes. The training will help the plant focus on being efficient in manufacturing smaller amounts of products for a greater number of clients who may need frequent changes in those items, according to Bob Cornelius, technical services manager with Precision Solutions.

“We’re just getting started, so this training is very important,” Cornelius said. “Part of the training is helping us become flexible enough to be adaptable and make changes so that we can be what the customer needs today, but maybe change a little bit for tomorrow and run a different product.”

The costs of bringing the extensive training program to Precision Solutions were covered in full by a collaboration between EKCEP—a federally funded non-profit agency that administers government employment and training programs—and the Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS).

“The system responded quickly,” Cornelius said. “This partnership was the key factor in our being able to do this training at a time when it was critical for us to have it.”

Precision Solutions employees began the training in March. The multi-faceted program includes an overview on how the company can meet internationally accepted standards for quality management and continuous business improvement. Selected employees also took part in additional training in technical writing, blueprint reading, and basic electronics.

Cornelius said it was important that all employees took part in aspects of the lean management program, which involved classroom work, strategy sessions, on-the-floor simulations, and problem-solving exercises on the plant’s actual equipment.

“In one of the simulations, the gentleman who helps us do the janitorial work was the president of the company and got to see things from that perspective,” he said. “You build on everybody’s knowledge, because everyone who is here and working every day has an idea, and you build on that with the group.”

Crawford Blakeman, EKCEP Business Solutions manager, said EKCEP helped Precision Solutions’ in its training efforts by contributing some of its funds designated for training incumbent workers. The funds were combined with a grant from the Kentucky Workforce Investment Network System (WINS), a training incentive program administered by KCTCS. The combined funding covered the cost of bringing the training program to Precision Solutions. The plant’s only cost is the salaries of trainees during the training period.

Additional work to establish the partnership was done by Lee Jones, manager of the Clay County JobSight workforce center operated by the Daniel Boone Community Action Agency in Manchester. Through its JobSight network of workforce centers in 23 eastern Kentucky counties, EKCEP provides job seekers and employers access to a dozen government workforce programs a single location. JobSight links employers with the right employees through EKCEP’s Business Solutions services and activities.

“Precision Solutions contacted us because they had a need, and we brokered contact with KCTCS to facilitate this training to meet that need,” Blakeman said. “Industry clearly defined its need, and we responded.

“We want to see Precision Solutions succeed and be productive in the global marketplace so they can bring quality jobs to Jackson County and eastern Kentucky,” Blakeman added.

Cornelius said that although the plant is still in the early stages of operation, he believes the training will give employees the tools to help the plant meet the demands of a diverse customer base as it grows.

“Instead of being a high-volume, low-mix line with 70 people on it, we’re a low-volume, high mix line with five people on it,” he said. “But those five people are able to do what they do better, more ergonomically, in less space, with less waste.

“We will put these concepts to use and build on them, and they will be the tools that will give us the ability to go where we want to go,” he added.

Blakeman said the collaboration at Precision Solutions exemplifies the cooperative inter-agency partnerships that power EKCEP’s JobSight network, and shows how industry and government can work together to serve both sides of the workforce equation simultaneously.

“It’s great to see the system work as designed; helping both employers and employees,” Blakeman said.