Know Your Responsibility Before You Cross-Train

A little knowledge is a dangerous thing! I regularly heard this complaint/warning from people who criticized me for providing cross-training to non-electrical people. When I started cross-training in 1981, it was in a particular industry where everyone on the crew was already trying to fix electrical problems themselves; I figured, if they’re going to do it anyway, they might as well learn how to do it safely and correctly.

That said, electrical work is a dangerous, complex discipline requiring constant attention, education and experience to perform safely, and the decision to cross-train should not be made lightly.

When copper conductors vapourize during an electrical explosion, for example, the material expands about 67,000 times—similar to the rate of expansion of dynamite. This means that every electrical worker is actually a member of the bomb squad!

Putting a maintenance worker at that level of risk should be a carefully considered decision. As instructional designers, we know that competence is the combination of knowledge, skills and experience. Given proper structure and time, a training program can deliver the required knowledge and skills, but experience can only be gained through months and years of doing the work. A Canadian electrical apprenticeship is four years in length—with yearly dedicated training—yet certified and experienced electrical workers are still being electrocuted or delivered to the burn ward regularly.

If workers of this caliber can trigger accidents, then what can be expected of poorly cross-trained workers? In short, they’re accidents waiting to happen.

Senior managers supporting ‘cross-functionality’ need to compare their executive ranks with their enlisted ranks. Any engineer aspiring to be a CEO is well served by understanding finance and corporate law, but would never imagine appearing in court and pinch hitting for an ill corporate lawyer before popping over to Accounting to direct the tax audit in lieu of their chartered accountant.

Cross-training a millwright or packaging mechanic so they understand electrical operations is a great investment; it is proved to reduce downtime by helping the operation avoid blind alleys. Millions of dollars-worth of downtime has occurred from non-electrical workers erroneously handing a troubleshooting ticket over to the E&I department only to have it returned for correct diagnosis.

Expecting that same person to troubleshoot and repair the electrical system is a considerably different strategy, full of significant risks and, quite simply, illegal in many jurisdictions.

The electrical complexity of our plants and factories is best served by highly trained experts rather than a maintenance team of generalists possessing skill sets a mile wide but only an inch deep. When the economics of your industry dictate the use of cross-functioning technicians, then you need to realize that your in-house electrical training program needs to be measured in months and years, not days and weeks. And it can only be done with considerable investment.

The expression “Jack of all trades, master of none” is, and always has been, an insult.

Until next time, be ready, be careful and be safe.