Meet the Recruits, page 2

Footnotes is published by the Workforce & Economic Development Division of Gateway Technical College in partnership with www.gtc.edu/cncbootcamp

Boot Camp 13 Completion Ceremony Friday, April 13, 2012 at 1 pm

Racine Campus Conference Center

1001 South Main Street, Racine

Yellow Belt certification is becoming increasingly prevalent within organizations that

implement Lean Six Sigma as a business improvement initiative. Businesses

throughout the Gateway Technical College District have been using Lean tools for

their Continuous Improvement initiatives, and the CNC Boot Camp has newly inte-

grated Lean/Six Sigma training into the program through a 48-hour Yellow Belt

course. Boot Camp participants learn the Lean Six Sigma philosophy and how to

apply it daily in their workplace to improve processes by identifying and eliminating

unnecessary steps without negatively impacting product or service quality. Lean in

its simplest terms is the identification and elimination of waste. Six Sigma is compa-

rable in its efforts to identify and eliminate variation.

Boot Camp program completers have the basics for Lean and Six Sigma. A new

CNC employee has much to learn when getting started on new equipment; but the

Lean Six Sigma tools are universal, making it easier for the new hire to assimilate

into their new improvement teams. With Yellow Belt certification, new CNC employ-

ees become more than just an operator, as they realize their knowledge with the

Lean Six Sigma tools will help add value to their new companies‟ processes and

products.

Lean Six Sigma instructor Rick Lofy said, “I am always asked „Why do we have to

learn this? I just want to run a machine,‟ but as we go through the Lean Six Sigma

training and then tour different manufacturers in the area, the students grasp the

importance of Continuous Improvement and everyone‟s effort to make it happen! I

really get excited when they „get it‟ and tell me „because we always did it that way

doesn‟t mean it‟s the best way.‟ Teamwork makes it happen!”

Lean Six Sigma Gets Results:

The value of this training is measureable. The average savings of a Lean Six Sigma

Green Belt project is about $15,000. The Boot Camp incorporates the Yellow Belt

because program participants aren‟t yet working for companies and therefore, don‟t

have the workplace project opportunities as required for attaining a Green Belt. Of

the current group, sixteen participants have attained Yellow Belt certification.

Note to Employers:

Employers are encouraged to get involved with the Boot Camp. Contact Debbie Davidson at davidsond@gtc.edu for more information.

Boot Camp 13

Field Report

Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt Training Integrated Into Boot Camp

Equal Opportunity/Access Educator/Employer

Shanta Harris Shelly Erickson Attaining the Dream Building a Better Future

Shanta Harris, Racine, calls the CNC Boot Camp a life-changing experience, providing him with the opportunities to gain skills and leadership in a new and growing career field and the ability to forge his own future. “I have something now I know I will have the rest of my life – I have the skills for a new career,” says Shanta. “I‟m about to be married, go to church, provide for my kids. I’m about to live the American dream.” Shanta says he was seeking to upgrade his pay and career possibil-ities from his former factory job when he spoke to some of his friends about the CNC Boot Camp program. “They all told me it changed their life for the better,” he says. “I wanted to be a part of that. And it has been that for me – this program has been a positive influence on my life.” Shanta says he worked in machining and knew it was something he would like to return to. He says the program provided him with the skills and certifications to successfully enter the CNC career field. “I feel like I can now reach for the stars because of the skills I have,” he says. “I can offer that to employers. I have those skills – and I have the willingness to learn even more.” Shanta says highlights of the Boot Camp were the instructors, who pushed him to excel, and forging a close bond with three fellow Boot-Campers Joseph Blue, Dan Siltala and Curt Smith. “I‟ve seen so many negative people – this opened my eyes to the positive people out there,” he said. “As a team, we felt we could accomplish any-thing.” In the end, though, the most positive part of the program were the skills learned and education gained, which Shanta plans to build upon by enrolling in Gateway‟s CNC technical diploma program in the future. “The best part is to walk away knowing that I have a trade,” says Shanta. “You can‟t take that away from me. The skills I gained I now own. I never had a job I really liked. This is something I can love.”

For several years Shelly Erickson, Kenosha, remained steadfast in her goal of going to Gateway‟s CNC Boot Camp program be-cause of the stability and career possibilities it would provide her and her family. The opportunity presented itself again and she suc-cessfully enrolled in CNC Boot Camp 13 – and says the skills and self-confidence she gained through the intense program will pro-vide her with the means to a stable career that will help her support her family.

CNC Boot Camp 14 Starts May 21, 2012

For more information: lofyr@gtc.edu

“This will provide a future for my kids and me,” Shelly says. “It will allow me to remain an independent, single mom. This is a grow-ing, in-demand career field, and there’s job security in it. It‟s a career I can see myself doing for many years.” Shelly was working in the fast food industry when she came to the conclusion she needed skills in a career that would help provide for her and her family. “I‟ve always had, in the back of my mind, that I wanted to enroll in the CNC Boot Camp,” she says. “This time I was able to do so.” Shelly says she had worked in other production-type positions in the past, mostly in plastics – but wanted to ex-pand that into working with metal. Her greatest challenge initially was to translate what she learned in the classroom into working with machines. “I stayed focused, though, and eventually I was able to blend what I learned in the books to what I learned hands-on in the shop,” she says. Shelly says the best part of the experience was the amount of learning she accomplished and the many skills she gained in a relatively short time. “To come from point A, to be at point B, and know that I can continue to build on that for my future is very re-warding,” she says. She says the program‟s strength lays in the time and direction giv-en to students by instructors. Shelly particularly said voluntary study time on weekends provided by instructor Craig Maeschen helped her tremendously. From here, Shelly will seek a CNC job, but plans to continue her education at Gateway in the future, with a goal of completing her CNC technical diploma.