POSTED ON 9/11/2020 – A well-trained team is crucial for manufacturing success. That’s why Mazak has long offered a Progressive Learning program with hands-on training for all of our equipment at Technology and Technical Centers across North America. However, as with most aspects of life in 2020, COVID-19 has changed the way we approach training at Mazak – and with the help of advanced technology, we’ve made it more accessible than ever, with remote learning opportunities that have been so popular that they’ll remain a staple of our educational programs going forward.
Mazak has long offered online, on-demand training through Tooling U-SME, with 60 days of free access to the full course catalog and more than 20 custom Mazak-focused modules with every machine purchase. For more in-depth lessons, however, instructor-led courses have always been preferred – it’s much easier to learn how to program at the control or maintain a machine when you can ask questions and interact with the technology directly. This became a challenge as manufacturers increasingly cancelled travel plans in response to the pandemic, so Mazak quickly reacted, gearing up to allow its instructors to teach courses online.
Today, all of our Progressive Learning classes are offered online, and many shops have discovered that this has numerous unexpected advantages. Classes rarely last all day, for example, so rather than losing a valuable member of the team for a few days of off-site training, operators can log off and head right back into the shop. And while Mazak offers two years of free training with every machine, manufacturers generally cover travel expenses, which are obviously not a factor when the classroom is accessible from anywhere with an internet connection.