Saturday 4th September 2010 2.00pm
people
Prof Cliff Hardcastle
Deputy Vice Chancellor (Research & Development)
events
| M | T | W | T | F | S | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | ||
| 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 |
| 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
| 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | |||
Post your Events Training provides competitive edge
A massive investment in its regional workforce has allowed North Tyneside packaging specialists Chesapeake to turn around its business fortunes.
Over the past three years, the company’s site has been tested by tough market conditions and the need to introduce new competitive working practices or face the possibility of closure.
Indeed, in 2007, due to ongoing profitability problems, a notice of closure was served on the plant. Following lengthy discussions an agreement was reached with the employees, which saved the plant and delivered significant working practice changes. However, the situation left staff morale at an all time low.
In order to improve staff confidence and strengthen lines of communication across the site, Chesapeake embarked upon a massive change programme supported by North East Productivity Alliance (NEPA) and Gateshead College.
A key programme strand was to train all employees in team work and modern manufacturing techniques. Teaming up with Gateshead College, they committed to ensuring that all employees achieve NVQ Level 2 in Business Improvement Techniques (BIT).
John Short, managing director at Chesapeake Newcastle, said: “After working with employees to find a solution to save the plant, it was vital that we found a way to lift morale and confidence in the business.
“Supported by NEPA and Gateshead College, we developed a plan which would bring about a positive change.
“Providing training to improve team working and give everyone an understanding of how a successful business operates was something extremely important to us.
“Not only would this have the result of raising everyone’s personal contribution, but it would ultimately give our site a competitive edge as we would have a committed, engaged workforce.”
Gateshead College was chosen to provide the training for this nationally recognised industry standard, and has many years experience in delivering training to a number of high profile businesses including Corus and Nissan.
The NVQ course consists of a six day programme of education, spread across a two to four month period. It encourages employees to focus on a specific area of their workplace that requires improvement and determine how this improvement can best be carried out.
So far, the programme has been rolled out to 223 employees, including the entire management team, with 169 students now successfully completing the programme.
Gateshead College lecturer Ian Betsho commented: “I think it’s wonderful that the Chesapeake team has made the decision to re-train its staff. The decision to up-skill their entire workforce is a big commitment and is something more employers should consider”.
“The changes across the site are highly evident. There is a much more collaborative approach to work and traditional barriers have been broken down. The investment in people will give the business a solid foundation for the future”.
“I am really looking forward to delivering the course to the rest of the staff at Chesapeake”.
John Short added: “The results we’ve already achieved are very encouraging. Our workplace is more organised, we’ve seen improvements in quality, and delivery of the product”.
“Additionally, we’ve been re-accredited to the Investors In People (IIP) standard, which we see as a good indicator of progress on the site”.
“Our site is now being used as the benchmark standard for our sister sites across the UK. This has given our customers renewed and strengthened confidence, providing our site with a competitive edge in these trying economic conditions.”
Gateshead College is one of the leading providers of the Government-backed Train to Gain initiative, which aims to raise skill levels and the quality of training in businesses across England. The initiative helps businesses in a number of different ways, identifying the skills businesses need to develop, providing a tailored training package, assisting with funding and ultimately reviewing the progress businesses make on the course.
View Archived News
