National Park College (NPC) Community and Corporate Training partnered with Radius
Aerospace to develop a three-week, 120-hour training program to help prepare new employees
to install precision fasteners. Radius was awarded a Workforce Training Grant from
the Office of Skills Development (OSD), which covered 75 percent of the total training
costs for the project.
NPC instructor Joe Johnson visited the facility to review processes, consulted with
managers at Radius, and created a curriculum outline that met their needs. The updated
curriculum provides an advanced perspective to the aircraft manufacturing process,
replicating a realistic manufacturing environment. The new method enables trainees
to practice drilling at various angles, master advanced countersinking techniques,
and simulates working with rolled parts, which mimic winged leading edges for a large
corporate jet.
“We have already seen an immediate positive impact to our quality, schedule, cost
and very importantly, the morale due to an increased confidence the employees gain
after the revised training,” said Senior Program Engineer David Hernandez. “A reduction
in scrap has been a key performance metric we have been monitoring and we are happy
to report our new hires have scrapped zero since they completed NPC training.”
Radius employee and class participant Jeremiah Myers said, “This [class] is fantastic.
It is definitely worth it. For the company, it just makes better employees all the
way around. We know what we are doing. On a personal level, I am very grateful for
it because it helps us develop as aircraft sheet metal mechanics.”
“NPC serves a critical need to our local manufacturers by leveraging our highly specialized
workforce training instructors that have the ability to visit the facilities, meet
with leadership, identify the skills gap, and then assist in developing training,”
said NPC Vice President for Workforce and Strategic Initiatives Kelli Embry. “The
result provides the employers with a highly skilled workforce that is more productive
and creates greater efficiency which reduces waste and increases profits.”
Approximately 60 new employees are scheduled to be trained by the end of the year.
Pictured is Radius employee and class participant Jeremiah Myers as he practices drilling.
