Online training for Goss press operators has become a popular option in the USA, the company says.
Now the offering is being expaned with courses providing flexible and economical alternative to on-site programmes.
In Nashville, press operators and maintenance personnel at 'The Tennessean' have taklen advanrtage of the opportunity to overcome the expenses, travel and disruptions to production often associated with onsite training.
The Nashville paper is among the first to utilize new on-line training courses provided by Goss International.
"The quality of the training has been excellent, and our participants have really enjoyed the format," according to operations manager Duke Friedel. "Online courses are definitely allowing us to train more efficiently and economically."
Goss now offers online training courses for several of its press and folder models. Additional courses are being added based on the success of the format and on requests from publishers and printers, according to Rick Aubin, who oversees Goss training programmes in the United States.
"With advanced technology and current competitive pressures, training is more critical than ever, but it is something many printers and publishers are being forced to cut back on," says Aubin (pictured). "The online option is a good alternative for accessing training programs that provide long-term benefits."
Crews at 'The Tennessea'n will complete an electrical troubleshooting course for their Colorliner press this month. Goss trainers are conducting this particular course in three-hour blocks over seven weeks. The flexibility of the online format has allowed crews from two different shifts at the paper to participate without interrupting production.
"Because our trainers and the participants are connecting over the internet, we are finding that this format allows us to really cut costs and adapt the schedule to fit the needs of each individual customer," says Aubin. "Face-to-face interaction may be the ideal format for training in some cases, but modern Internet tools can really get us very close to that experience."
For more details, see the training section at www.gossinternational.com.
