How a Creative Solution Actually Helped Overcome a Key Issue

Our employees at PALFINGER take the initiative! A prime example of this is addressing the issue of finding skilled workers for our Mechanical and Electrical Assembly. Oklahoma City took the initiative and thought outside of the box and partnered with a local vocational-technical (Vo-Tech) school, Francis Tuttle Technology Center, to develop a training program to educate new employees on the specifics of their new PALFINGER roles.

Oklahoma City Quality Manager, Andy Kapraun, worked hand-in-hand with the educators to develop a specific curriculum to set up the new employees for success in their new roles. They determined that training would be completed over three weeks during this development phase.

All of the employees hired were mechanically inclined and had similar experience levels, but they did not have the specific expertise for what PALFINGER does for Mechanical and Electrical Assembly. The first round of employees to complete the inaugural training started on March 28, 2022, and have all graduated on April 15, 2022.

To celebrate their successful completion Garth Wright, Plant Manager; Matt Giordano, Safety Manager; and Whytne Yates, Senior Human Resource Business Partner, treated the graduates with lunch from Chick-Fil-A and a small office celebration. We are thrilled that the training was successful and look forward to upcoming classes as we now have the first round of new employees ready to tackle their new roles!

The goal of the training is to help them be successful and comfortable in their roles, and with each class, the facility will sit down and get feedback from the new employees to further develop the training for upcoming classes. It is inspiring that all new employees who have graduated are now prepared and will succeed in their new roles as they physically started working at the facility on Monday, April 18, 2022.

The Students Had This To Say on the 3-Week Training They Completed

“I would like to say that I appreciate our company and the instructors who have been great teachers and showed me how to properly use tools and teach me many things about hydraulics, wiring, electrical etc. As well as being forklift certified, I really appreciate the opportunity and am very grateful for this program, I’d say there is nothing I would change about how it went but only that it was more hands-on work, aside from that every instructor was clear, patient and most of all genuine group of people. Thanks for your time and allowing me to be a part of this program!”

—Julio Ivan Martinez

“This class is very beneficial for people who have little to no experience as well as those who have years of experience. From teaching the basic fundamentals to offering the more advanced techniques and skills. All while being smart and safe!”

—Jonathan Jimenez