When it comes to videos and online training, the baking industry has an opportunity to expand the library of educational tools that teach maintenance crews about the latest advances in technology.

“There has been so much talk across the OEMs about turbocharging their training from the delivery to the materials and more,” noted Jeff Dearduff, president, JED Manufacturing Services. “Some have done it to a level, but the industry is still starved for information that today’s younger ones can embrace and the older ones can still understand.”

The videos don’t necessarily need to be Oscar award-winning quality. Sometimes an “uncut” version will do.

That’s what Rowdy Brixey, president of Brixey Engineering, learned after a bakery had a little difficulty cleaning and maintaining a new divider in a timely fashion.

“The plant struggled a little bit with how many people and how long it took to tear it down and put it back together,” he recalled.

Brixey asked the OEM to record one of their technicians disassembling, cleaning and reassembling the divider using all proper lockout/tagout and other best practices. He wanted the video uncut with a clock in the corner to establish a baseline or gold standard for maintenance.

“It took 23 minutes for one person following every step to tear it down and put it back together,” Brixey said. “One guy following every step. The plant had two people taking an hour.”

With the video, Brixey said, the goal is to use this training tool to eventually reach that gold standard over time. 

“Every time we buy a piece of equipment, we should have video that provides a baseline spec on how to maintain it and then use it to train people as a part of a continuous improvement process,” he said. “All too often when you buy equipment, you never get any other chance — other than that first introduction to the machine — to set that baseline expectation.”.

This article is an excerpt from the November 2023 issue of Baking & Snack. To read the entire feature on Maintenance, click here.