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April 2017
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Volume 48: Number 04
April 2017
ISSN 02636050
THIS MONTH’S COVER
CONTENTS03 Comment
05 News
13 Keynote: Crafting CompetencyJohn Kline and Charles Kline, Kline Consulting, USA, highlight the need to create and maintain a competent workforce.
88 Regional Report Infographic
REGIONAL REPORT: SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA
18 Invigorating Africa’s Industrialisation?Hardie de Beer, PPC, South Africa.
WASTE HEAT RECOVERY
22 Taking The HeatSabrina Santarossa, Turboden, Italy.
SOFTWARE and DIGITALISATION
27 Keeping Up With The LawBernd Rastatter and Andre Günther, Rösberg Engineering GmbH, Germany.
31 Driving Change In IndustryBrian Foster, Siemens Financial Services, UK.
34 Cement Goes DigitalLorenzo Ambrosini, BASF Construction Chemicals, Switzerland.
ADDITIVES
40 Success In AfricaKeith Marsay, Mike Sumner, and Riccardo Stoppa, GCP Applied Technologies, USA.
45 Particle Size SelectionJohn Guynn, Roman Cement LLC, USA.
BAGGING and PACKING
51 Out With The OldGraham Rawlings, Concetti, Italy.
LOGISTICS andSUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT
53 By Road And RailClive Roberts, Hope Cement, Breedon Group, UK.
57 Truck Flow ManagementEva Prunés, Vidmar Group, Spain.
61 Supply Chain ManagementRegina Schnathmann, BEUMER Group, Germany.
65 Narrowing Down The NumbersThomas Bergmans and Dirk Schlemper, Inform GmbH, Germany.
LIME PLANT TECHNOLOGY
71 Developing A Modular Lime PlantLuca Sarandrea and Gianpaolo Gotti, Cimprogetti, Italy.
FANS
76 All About FansJonathan Rowland, Editor, discusses a number of recent fan upgrade projects in the USA and Europe.
GLOBAL GYPSUM MARKET
80 Demand And SupplyRamachandran, Zawawi Gypsum LLC, Oman.
GENERAL INTEREST
83 Discuss, Mediate, SolveRainer Nobis, World Cement Association, UK.
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JONATHAN ROWLAND, EDITOR
COMMENT
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Last month, the Nigerian government confi rmed that the country had reached self-suffi ciency in cement production – a remarkable feat, given that it was not long ago that Nigeria was one of the world’s largest importers of cement. In 2011, for example, the country bought 5.1 million t of the building material.
The change in circumstances is largely down to one company: Dangote Cement. Indeed, not only has Dangote succeeded in ending Nigeria’s dependence on cement imports, according to its latest fi nancial results, it actually exported cement from its Nigerian
plants – some 0.4 million t, mainly via road to Ghana. That was enough to turn the country into a net exporter of cement, said Onne Van der Weijde, Group Managing Director of Dangote Cement.
Dangote’s rapid expansion of its capacity – not just in Nigeria but also around Africa – has changed the face of the African cement market. The company boasted cement capacity of 45.8 million tpy in 10 countries in 2016; in 2011, it had only around 19.25 million tpy of capacity.
Despite generating many of the headlines, Dangote is not the only African cement producer to be building out its capacity. South Africa’s PPC has also undertaken a number of expansion projects recently, as the company’s Hardie de Beer writes in this month’s regional report (pp. 18 – 21). PPC also made its own splash recently, entering into merger talks with rival South African cement producer, AfriSam.
“We think that consolidation in the industry will start to happen and we’ve got to make a choice as to whether we want to be the architects and lead that, [or] let it happen around us and not be sure of the outcome,” PPC’s CEO Darryl Castle told Reuters, following the news.
PPC’s expansion projects include a new 1 million tpy plant in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a new mill in Msasa Zimbabwe (recently opened by President Robert Mugabe), a new 1.4 million tpy plant in Habesha, Ethiopia, and a new 1 million tpy kiln line at its Slurry plant in South Africa.
Africa used to be something of a cash cow for cement makers, where producers enjoyed fat margins and limited competition. In the past fi ve years, this has changed: unprecedented capacity growth has disrupted the supply side, just as a period of economic uncertainty (on the back of the commodity market crash) weakened cement demand growth. As a result, cement prices are now comparable to the rest of the world, according to IA Cement’s latest cement market report, with producer margins dropping sharply.
For all of this shorter-term pain, however, there remains vast potential in Africa. Urbanisation in particular “represents an immense opportunity,” the African Development Bank said in its African Economic Outlook 2016, adding that “two-thirds of the investments in urban infrastructure until 2050 have yet to be made.”
It’s a point made by PPC’s de Beer: “With Africa’s cities having a combined population of 200 million people, a US$1 trillion GDP, half a trillion US dollars’ consumer spend, 17 million middle income households and 80% of the continent’s high income households, it is not diffi cult to see why PPC still considers it a place of vast opportunity.”
With this long-term perspective in mind, the capacity expansions seen in the African cement sector in the past couple of years make a lot of sense. And while Dangote appears to have slightly slowed its expansion plans for the moment, it would be no surprise to see new plants cropping up from that company, and others, in the not too distant future.
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April 2017 / 5World Cement
WORLD NEWSNigeria Dangote Cement leads the drive to self suffi ciency
The Nigerian Government has offi cially confi rmed that Nigeria is now self suffi cient in the production of cement, and has become an exporter of the commodity. It ascribed the feat to Dangote Cement, which has spear-headed the backward integration policy that was introduced by the government.
The Minister for Solid Minerals Development, Dr Kayode Fayemi, visited the Dangote cement plant in Ibese, and emphasised his enthusiasm for the leadership role played by the company.
A few years ago, Nigeria imported 60% of its cement, but is now able to meet local demands and still export to other nations.
“As you all know, as the federal government moves to diversify the economy away from oil, two areas the government is focusing on are agriculture and solid minerals. This is why we are embarking on [a] tour of mining operations across the country to know the challenges they face and what could be done to tackle those challenges,” Dr Fayemi said.
“What Dangote is doing is marvellous. We need to commend them [for] the way they led the backward integration policy to turn around our fortunes in the cement industry,” added Dr Fayemi. “I am delighted to see the development here [is] bigger that what I saw the last time. And we are looking at how we can replicate the successes [of] the cement industry in other non-oil sectors of our economy.”
“We exported nearly 0.4 million t into neighbouring countries and, in doing so, we achieved a great milestone by transforming Nigeria into a net exporter of cement,” said the Group Managing Director of Dangote Cement, Onne Van der Weijde. “This is a remarkable achievement, given that only fi ve years ago, in 2011, Nigeria was one of the world’s largest importers, buying 5.1 million t of foreign cement at huge expense to our balance of payments. We will increase our exports substantially in 2017.”
The government is also looking into how to make the big cement plants in the company more environmentally friendly, following the example set by Dangote Cement.
“We need to collaborate and partner in these areas at this time that government is trying to reduce the dependence on oil. We need to turn around our mineral resources, just as was obtained in cement sector,” said Dr Fayami. “When you look at the our solid mineral industry, there is a wide gap between what we can produce and what is consumed; importation in these sector is huge.”
Dangote Cement is Africa's leading cement producer with 45.8 million tpy of capacity across Africa and production capacity of 29.25 million tpy in Nigeria.
Algeria Loesche supplies fi ve vertical roller mills
Loesche has sold fi ve large vertical roller mills to the emerging cement market in Algeria.
The local building sector in Algeria is one of the drivers of increasing cement demand, which currently stands at 24.5 million tpy, and is not being met by production in the country. As such, several large-scale cement projects have recently been started in the country.
Loesche is providing two mills for cement raw meal and three mills for cement clinker to one of these: SARL Biskria Ciment’s plant in Biskra, 300 km southeast of the country’s capital, Algiers. The mills will enable cement raw meal to be ground to a fi neness of 12% sieving residue with 90 µm, at a processing capacity of 500 tph. Cement clinker will be ground to a fi neness of 3400 Blaine.
The three new cement clinker mills have already been delivered, and commissioning is planned for autumn 2017. CMBI Construction Co will act as contractor.
For SARL Biskria Ciment, Algeria is not only a strategically important market in the Mediterranean region. By expanding its production capacity, the company aims to acquire national and international competitive advantages and seeks to reinforce socioeconomic development in Algeria by better serving the market with local products, thereby ensuring a stable supply.
The commissioning of the new cement production line should see production volumes in the Algerian market rise considerably over the course of 2017, and contribute to a reduction in cement imports.
IN BRIEFEVENTS
April 20176 \ World Cement
WORLD NEWSColombia LafargeHolcim awards order to Gebr. Pfeiffer
LafargeHolcim Colombia has awarded an order for a modular ready2grind cement grinding system to Gebr. Pfeiffer Inc.
The system includes the latest MVR technology for vertical roller mills, and offers faster and less-expensive transportation and plant construction.
The new cement grinding plant will comprise the clinker feed modular hopper system, Gebr. Pfeiffer ready2grind milling circuit, and product storage system, as well as a packing plant by Claudius Peters.
In addition to the Gebr. Pfeiffer MVR 2500 C-4, a feed system, filter, fan, auxiliary equipment, and the complete electrical/control system will be installed.
Alongside transportation and plant construction savings, the ready2grind system also offers the latest MVR technology, with over 30% energy savings in comparison to a ball mill solution. The plant comes with the option of moving it to another location and is designed for optimum site erection and safety.
This project represents the fourth installation of such systems worldwide.
UK Hope Cement continues to upgrade plant
Hope Cement completed a number of major projects in 2016, according to the annual results of parent company, Breedon Group, as well as securing a signifi cant supply of pulverised fl yash (PFA) and continuing to increase the use of waste-derived alternative fuels (AF).
In 2H16, the plant undertook two projects to increase the effi ciency and productivity of its pyroprocessing line.
New burners were installed on both kilns, increasing the throughput of fuel to boost the effi ciency of the manufacturing process. The plant also installed new cyclones to speed up the rate at which raw material is fed through the preheater and into the kilns. The uprated kiln feed system was supplied and installed by Claudius Peters.
The kiln upgrade also helped the company to continue its drive to increase the use of AF as substitutes for traditional fossil fuels. According to a company spokesperson, AF usage increased by 20% through the main burner, following the upgrade to that system. Currently, the plant uses scrap tyre chips, refuse-derived material, and meat and bone meal as AF.
In addition to the kiln upgrade, the plant also secured a “signifi cant contract” with major utility for the supply of PFA, a waste product of the coal-fi red power industry. The use of PFA will help to reduce the plant’s SO2 emissions, as well as allowing Hope to lower its use of shale, thus extending the life of its shale quarry.
The plant began preparations to received increased volumes of PFA in 2H16.
Breedon Group reported revenues of £454.7 million in 2016, a 43% increase on that of 2015. Pre-tax profi ts increased from £31.3 million in 2015 to £46.8 million in 2016.
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WORLD NEWSEgypt FLSmidth to expand Ain Soukhna
South Africa Adverse weather hits sales
Adverse weather has hit demand for cement and concrete in South Africa in January and February, according to a company update from PPC. Southern Africa’s largest cement maker said that more than 200 mm of rainfall had been experienced in many parts of the country during the fi rst two months of the year.
The company also noted a fall in retail selling prices of cement in key geographies, most notably in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Cement prices in the DRC have fallen about 28% on the back of an infl ux of imports and the entry of a new producer into the market.
More generally, increased cement production capacity in Africa, combined by lower economic growth, has resulted in a fall in retail prices.
“The lower realisable retail selling prices of cement imply lower factory gate prices, which will put pressure on margins in these territories,” the company warned – although the outlook in the DRC may be more positive, the company added. “Pricing in the DRC is expected to normalise once government’s cement import ban in reinstated.”
USA Cemex will not supply border wall
Mexico-based cement giant, Cemex, has opted not to bid to supply building materials for the proposed southern border wall between the US and Mexico. According to media reports, the company is not listed on the US General Services Administration’s Federal Opportunities website of potential suppliers to the planned wall.
A spokesperson for the company also confi rmed that the company did not participate in the process.
Cemex had come under pressure from within Mexico, with one Mexican senator saying it would be “dishonourable for Mexican companies to participate” in the project. US President Donald Trump, who promised to construct a wall as part of his election campaign, has repeatedly said that Mexico would pay for its construction.
Despite not participating in the building of the wall, Cemex would be well placed to benefi t from any tightening of the cement market around the US border, owning plants on both the US and Mexican sides.
In a recent presentation, Cemex said it expected its US sales of cement, ready-mixed concrete, and aggregates to grow by 1% – 3% each in 2017.
FLSmidth has been awarded an order for the engineering, procurement, and supply of equipment for the expansion of El Sewedy Cement’s cement production line in Ain Soukhna.
The order is for a complete range of equipment, including planetary gear units from FLSmidth MAAG Gear, ESPs and fabric fi lters from FLSmidth Airtech, a control system and plant automation from FLSmidth Automation, and weighing and metering systems from FLSmidth Pfi ster. The OK mill for raw grinding and the ROTAX-2 rotary kiln, will be the fi rst of their kinds to be installed in Egypt.
“This order refl ects the strong relations we have had with one of the biggest industry groups in Egypt for almost a decade,” said Group Executive Vice President, Cement Division, Per Mejnert Kristensen. “Working closely with El Sewedy Cement, we assist them in improving productivity and operational excellence. Our contribution underlines FLSmidth’s strength as the leading supplier of the most productive and energy-effi cient equipment and technology available in the market today,” .
Bolivia New plant to be built in Potosí
A consortium led by Sacyr Industrial has been awarded the EPC contract for a new cement plant in Potosí, Bolivia, for ECEBBOL, Bolivia’s state-owned cement producer.
The contract is worth US$241 million and is the second of its kind in Bolivia, following the award of the Oruro cement plant in 2015. A similar contract was also awarded last year for the construction of the Riobamba line in Ecuador. It includes the greenfi eld design, construction, assembly, and commissioning of a new clinker line with a capacity of 3000 tpd, along with the cement line with production capacity of 1.3 million tpy.
The EPC consortium includes Sacyr Industrial, thyssenkrupp Industrial Solutions, and Imasa Ingeniería y Proyectos.
The plant will use a dry process with the following equipment units: primary crushing, a pre-homogenisation yard, a vertical raw mill, a raw meal silo, a fi ve-stage preheater tower, a rotary kiln, a grate cooler, a clinker silo, a cement mill and cement silo, and a packaging and palletising line.
VRMI-A10010-00-7600 Anz_CEMAT.indd 1 06.03.17 14:25
April 201710 \ World Cement
IN BRIEFIN BRIEF
WORLD NEWSPakistani cement maker, Lucky Cement, has inaugurated a new waste heat recovery (WHR) plant in Pezu in Khyber-Pakhunkhwa province. According to local media reports, the plant is the company’s third WHR plant in Pezu and fi fth overall. The new WHR plant has an installed capacity of 10 MW.
The plant has been set up to utilise the waste heat from two cement production lines with a daily output of 2400 t. The project was set up in collaboration with Chinese engineering company, Sinoma Energy Conservation Ltd.
According to Lucky Cement CEO, Muhammad Ali Tabba, the company’s WHR plant “has not only signifi cantly reduced costs by co-generating electricity, it has also helped lower dust emissions and environmental effl uents.”
Listed on both the Pakistan and London Stock Exchanges, Lucky Cement is one of the largest producers of cement in Pakistan, with production capacity of 7.75 million tpy. The company reported a 14.2% increase in pre-tax profi ts in the last six months of 2016 to PKR9.91 billion on sales of 3.73 million t.
Demand for cement in Pakistan is growing rapidly, rising 8.7% to 19.81 million t in 2H16. Local sales climbed 11.1% to 16.90 million, while exports were 2.91 million t.
Pakistan Lucky Cement inaugurates fi fth WHR plant
Denmark A TEC upgrades calciners at Aalborg plant
Danish cement producer, Aalborg Portland, part of Cementir Group, has appointed A TEC to upgrade a cement kiln at the Aalborg cement plant – one of the largest in Europe with a capacity of around 3 million tpy of both grey and white cement.
According to A TEC, the company will supply two new calciners for cement kiln 87 – one of seven kilns at the Aalborg plant. Kiln 87 is a 4500 tpd semi-dry kiln that was commissioned in 1988. The new calciners were due for installation during the annual kiln shutdown in February/March.
“The project aims to increase the production of grey clinker,” the Austrian engineering company said in a press release. “A TEC is going to adapt the fl ow pattern of the calciner system in a way to improve the operation behaviour of the system signifi cantly.”
The design will be confi gured to use 100% solid alternative fuels for the lowest possible emissions. The new calciners will also be equipped with the A TEC Post Combustion Chamber, which optimises the mixture of fuels and combustions air at the end of the calciner. The PCC was developed to achieve complete combustion of alternative fuels at high substitution rates.
The upgrade will also reduce the number of kiln stoppages due to fall-through cyclone blockages. A TEC will carry out the basic and detailed engineering work, as well as equipment supply, erection and documentation.
Redecam Group and Isgec Heavy Engineering Ltd have announced the establishment of their joint venture in the fi eld of air pollution control. The new company, named ISGEC REDECAM ENVIRO SOLUTIONS PVT LTD., is headquartered in Noida, Delhi, India, and enables both partners to be a complete provider for fl ue gas treatment systems for the cement, power and metals industry.
The Indian government has confi rmed that it is planning to sell off non-operational units of Cement Corporation of India (CCI). In a written reply to a question from the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Indian Parliament, the Minister of State for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, Babul Supriyo, said that divestment of the non-operating units would form the fi rst part of the strategic divestment of CCI. The minister added that fi ve units had been identifi ed for divestment: Mandhar, Kurkunta, Bhatinda, Nayagaon, Charkhi, and Dadri.
Emami Cement, part of the diversifi ed Emami Group, has commissioned a cement grinding unit in district of Burdwan in West Bengal, a state in the east of India, local media has reported. The 2 million tpy grinding plant cost INR5 billion and commissioned in 13 months, the company said. The plant forms part of a project by Emami to expand its cement operations, including a 5.5 million tpy integrated cement plant in Chhattisgarh and another 1.8 million tpy grinding unit in Odisha.
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THE NEED TO CREATE AND MAINTAIN
A COMPETENT
WORKFORCE.
IntroductionStudies have shown that cement plants with competent workforces have better results, in all areas, than their competitors. This stands to reason, as competent workforces will know what needs to be done to properly operate and maintain a cement plant. Many companies that are new to the business struggle with developing and maintaining a competent workforce. Workforce competency, however, is a problem for new and old cement producers in both developed and developing countries. Specifi c issues can be focused by country or region. However, almost all cement producers are facing some type of challenge these days.
In developing countries, the fundamental skill sets may not exist in the local population. This can be especially true when a new cement plant is located in a remote area. Competition for skilled personnel may exist in countries where there is a robust cement industry with many players. In developed countries, personnel trained in the traditional skill sets, such as mechanics or electricians, can be attracted by other industries. For example, it may be seen as more glamorous, and possibly more fi nancially rewarding, to build airplanes than to make cement.
Creating and maintaining a competent workforce is an almost universal challenge – a challenge that is
critical to the competitiveness of cement producers. Failing to maintain a competent workforce is failing to maintain a competitive advantage in the market place.
The skills gap challengeDeloitte, in conjunction with the Manufacturing Institute, developed a report entitled ‘The Skills Gap in US Manufacturing 2015 and Beyond’.1 The report documents that there is a growing need for competent and skilled workers in the US manufacturing sector. The report states that “executives see developing their workforces as the most effective way to remedy the problem, with 94% agreeing internal employee training and development programmes are among the most effective skilled production workforce development strategies, and 72% agreeing involvement with local schools and community colleges is effective.”
The report goes on to state that “more than three-fourths of manufacturing executives believe the greatest impact of the skills shortage will be in maintaining or increasing production levels.” Although this report focuses on the US, the lack of skilled labour is seen to exist in many other countries as well. At the same time, the technical skills required to operate and maintain cement plants are increasing in complexity. Computer skills are now required in almost all skilled
CRAFTINGK E Y N O T E
/ 13
April 201714 \ World Cement
positions within a cement plant. Advanced skills, such as vibration monitoring, precision alignment, and hydraulic system maintenance, are becoming necessary as the equipment becomes more complex.
Training and development is a continuous processMost large companies understand that training and development is a continuous processm, as they are onboarding people all of the time. A number of factors impact the amount of training and development necessary in a company.
The company annual turnover in employment. Progression in the current positions. Promotions within the department or location. Promotions outside the department or to another
location. The evolving needs of the plant, such as new
equipment or processes. he learning required to maintain competency.
Some special cases include start-up situations, which usually experience a higher level of turnover than normal operations, and retirement bubbles in western countries as the post-WWII baby boomers face retirement. Understanding the company turnover and the root causes for a high turnover are the fi rst steps to controlling it.
Controlling turnoverCompanies should monitor their turnover ratios in order to understand what is driving them. High turnover
should be corrected through identifying and remediating the root causes. The higher the level of turnover, the more time and money that needs to be invested in hiring, training, and development.
Turnover can usually be classifi ed in three main areas.
Force outs: people that are asked to leave or are fired.
Retirements: people who will permanently leave the workforce.
Voluntary departures: employees leaving the company for their own reasons.
Each of these categories is interesting to monitor and track. If there are a high number of force outs, then the screening and hiring practices need to be improved. A high level of retirements should be known and monitored, with replacements brought onboard in a timely manner to ensure continuity of business.
Voluntary departures are perhaps the most important to track. In general, it is the more talented people that are more mobile and more likely to leave. Exit interviews should establish the basic reasons for departure. These often include, among others:
A higher paying position elsewhere. Promotion to a more desirable position. Problems or issues within the work place. A family situation, such as spousal job change.
If a high number of people are leaving for better paying positions, especially at the same type of work, then the pay structure should be reviewed. If a large number of people are leaving for more desirable positions, then the internal development and promotion system should be reviewed. Career management programmes can help resolve promotional issues.
Needless to say, if work issues are driving people away, then they need to be resolved. Studies indicate that most people leave their company due to workplace issues. Often these issues are masked in exit interviews and care needs to be taken to discover the root causes of departures. Workplace issues are often interpersonal and can often be resolved through soft skills training, primarily focused at the supervisory level.
Family situations are diffi cult to foresee and manage. These issues should only be investigated further if there is a large number of these departures. These situations can be signifi cant when family housing is part of the employment package.
The hiring and onboarding of new employees can be a time consuming and expensive process. It is much more effective to retain existing employees. Therefore, the number of new hires should be kept to a bare minimum. This is best completed by understanding and controlling the current turnover rate. World-class companies should have a turnover below 2%, when excluding force-outs and retirees.
Figure 1. Typical turnover analysis, expressed as % of total workforce.
Figure 2. Potential remedies for common turnover issues.
April 201716 \ World Cement
Focusing on the needsAs seen above, workforce training and development is a necessary and continuous activity. It can also be an expensive activity, and one that is easy to cut from the budget or postpone. It is therefore important to focus the scarce training and development budget on the areas that will bring the greatest return on investment for the organisation.
In some organisations, training is selected more by what is available, than by what is required. Although this type of training may improve the competency of the workforce, a more focused approach may provide a better return on investment. The training should be focused on the areas that will provide the best fi nancial return. This requires a complete assessment of the business needs for the organisation. For example, maintenance training may be benefi cial to a plant with quality issues, but focusing training on quality assurance and control would probably provide a higher return on the company’s training investment.
In this way, the selection of the training topics should be closely aligned with business needs and objectives. It is recommended to perform a midyear business review that encompasses the previous 12 month period. This review should look at both the results from the previous full year, as well as progress to date in the current year. A short list of areas where business performance can be improved by training and development can be established by a gap analysis. The gap analysis compares the actual business results to the planned or budgeted results. For example, production may be below budget due to refractory problems.
The gaps usually indicate lost business opportunities. The training and development plan should then focus on activities that will improve performance in these areas. Linking the training and development to business opportunities can indicate a potential payback. Training and development activities are more likely to be approved when they can be linked to improved business performance. For example, improving refractory performance could lead to a 5% production increase. Performing this analysis at midyear allows for the training and development costs to be identifi ed in time to be included in the budget cycle.
The 70/20/10 ruleTraining is often thought of as a classroom event. However, it has been shown that the majority of learning comes from actually doing the task or work. Research at the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL) states that 70% of learning comes from experience, 20% from social interaction, such as mentoring and coaching, and only 10% from coursework and training events.2 Therefore, the emphasis on workforce development should not be on fi nding relevant courses to attend, but on fi nding experiences that will allow personnel to develop in the desired competencies.
The most effective way to enhance skills and knowledge is to have the employee actually perform the required tasks. This can often be accomplished through on-the-job training (OJT), by pairing a new employee with a more seasoned one. In this situation, it is important that the new employee executes the tasks at hand under the supervision of the seasoned employee, and not the other way around.
New skills and knowledge should be put into practice as soon as possible, if they are obtained through classroom or off-site training. This should be planned in advance of the training and in conjunction with the trainee’s supervisor. Training contracts can encompass the basic requirements, defi ning what the trainee is to learn during the training event, and defi ning how that training is to be put to use in the work environment. Training contracts often include a specifi c work assignment that ensures the specifi c training is put to good use. Another way to think of this is that training that is not quickly put to use will most likely be forgotten.
Feedback is an essential part of the development process. Employees that are undertaking new tasks and assignments need to know if they are performing well or not. More frequent feedback allows for a better relationship and faster development path. As a general rule, positive feedback can be more impactful than negative feedback. Pointing out the things that employees are doing properly and when a job is done well can be more rewarding to the trainee than just hearing about what went wrong. Feedback, however, should always be genuine.
Figure 3. Linking training and development to business performance through a gap analysis.
Figure 4. Putting the 70/20/10 rule to work.
Ensuring successOnce training and development has been undertaken, then the results need to be monitored to ensure that the proposed return on investment is captured. Monitoring of training and development activities occurs at several levels. Kirkpatrick establishes four basic levels for training evaluation.3
1. Did the trainee appreciate the training?2. Did the trainee learn what they should have?3. Did the trainee put the new knowledge or skill to
use?4. Did the use of the knowledge or skill have a positive
impact on company results?
These may sound like simple measures, but practitioners have often found them diffi cult to determine. Most companies will only evaluate the fi rst or second level. The fi rst level deals with the trainee’s reaction to the training, focusing on the training event. This level of evaluation is often managed through exit surveys and focuses on the training delivery. Trainees are often asked if they learned anything in these exit surveys, thus covering the second level of evaluation. These evaluations are important for improving the training event, but do not link to business success.
The second and third level of evaluation should however, be completed by the trainee’s supervisor after the training event. Unfortunately, this adds a level of complexity to the training evaluation process and therefore is often skipped. As stated above, new skills and knowledge that are not put into use are often forgotten a short time after the training event.
Companies that do not design their training activities on business results really struggle with the fourth level of evaluation. It can be extremely diffi cult to show a return on investment for training and development when the training design does not originate from the business needs.
ConclusionMaintaining a competent workforce equates to maintaining a competitive advantage in the market place. Almost all cement producers face this challenge, although the drivers vary in different countries. Training and development are continuous activities, mostly due to the constant turnover of personnel. Excessive turnover should be studied and underlying issues resolved.
Training and development activities should be focused on business needs. This can be accomplished by performing a business review and gap analysis. Training and development activities can then be designed to address specifi c business challenges. This method can provide a framework to both justify and evaluate the return on investment for the training and development activities. Performing this analysis at
midyear allows for the training budget to be developed along with the operating budget.
Knowledge and skills are best learned by being put to use. Training contracts involving the trainee’s supervisor are a good method of ensuring that the skills are put to use soon after the training or development events. New knowledge and skills that are not put to use can be quickly forgotten.
Training evaluation is important to ensure the maximum return on investment. This is best accomplished when the training and development is focused on defi ned business needs. It also involves the supervisor’s evaluation of how well the skills and knowledge were learned and whether or not they were put to use. Demonstrating a return on training investment is the best way to protect and grow the training and development budget.
References1. GIFF, C. et. al., ‘The Skills Gap in U.S. Manufacturing 2015
and Beyond’ (Deloitte & Manufacturing Institute; 2015).
2. RABIN, R., ‘Blended Learning for Leadership: The CCL Approach’ (Center for Creative Leadership; 2014).
3. ‘Kirkpatrick’s Four-Level Training Evaluation Model: Analyzing Training Effectiveness’, MindTools. Available at: https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/kirkpatrick.htm
4. KLINE, J. & KLINE, C., ‘Beyond Training’, World Cement, (February 2016).
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