Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1534385
APRIL 2025 I PCB007 MAGAZINE 91 and digitizing information from the shop floor to provide this KPI-based view of what is actually causing downtime. It is an aggregate impact of many different things. In a factory, many things are constantly changing. For example, you might say that your top- level KPI is downtime, and the main causes are 30% material-related and 50% due to your pick-and-place machine. Knowing that, you select a specific training program to address those downtimes, and you hope that aer training you'll see a corresponding 50% reduc- tion in downtime. So, you have already done your root cause analysis? Burke: Yes, the idea is that in a factory, you have these systems that gather the data you need to run the factory, such as your MES, which knows all the products moving through- out the factory shop floor. Other systems may have a dedicated system that tracks downtime. But while you were collecting all this data, you likely weren't tying it to training. But with the right views, you see the root causes and com- monalities. For example, you might tie the downtime directly to a line, a machine, or a shi. So, if you train that shi, you should see a downtime reduction that you wouldn't see in your other shi. When you put it all together—the product being built, the process or operation being performed, who was working, what shi the downtime happens on more frequently—and you measure a process deviation in your digital systems, you can quantify the business impact. Imagine you do the training and your issue goes away entirely. Imagine how big the return would be if, for example, you recouped five hours of downtime. What is that worth to you? Many businesses collect data and don't know what to do with it, so this is exciting and speaks to a real need in our industry. How have you modified your program specifically for workforce ROI data measurement? Burke: We hadn't explored it before we talked to Carlos, but it's a use case you could do with the existing system. We do not specifically have a workforce module, but depending on the training program, like the itemized root cause of downtime, we are prioritizing it. e information is there; it just needs to be pulled together in the right way. Plaza: You probably don't need to measure everything. Approach evaluating the ROI of training from an 80/20 perspective, the way that you should approach everything else in business. What's the 20% that will give me 80% of the benefit? If I have a skill gap problem that can be fixed with training, then I will bother going through the steps of evaluating, measuring, and maybe