Bud, I immediately thought of you and this thread post when I saw this recent survey, done by a maintenance consulting/outsourcing firm. It's saying we're on the verge of a serious shortage in skilled labor and trained technicians, such as in fluid power.

The survey, conducted by Advanced Technology Services Inc. (ATS), Peoria, Ill. and Nielsen Research shows the baby boomer retirement coupled with a lost generation of factory workers have combined to create a perfect storm, aggravating a costly skilled labor shortage for manufacturers in the U.S.

The need to replace these lost skilled workers has grown from a concern to a wholesale crisis in just three short years, according to the 100 senior manufacturing executives surveyed. They say the shortfall will cost their companies an average $52 million each, and even more, $100 million, for the nation's largest companies who report more than $1 billion in annual revenue.

The survey polled 100 senior manufacturing executives representing companies with revenue between $10 million and $1 billion, asking this question: Forecasts indicate that during the next five years, approximately 40% of your skilled labor force will retire. What do you anticipate the retirement of 40% of your skilled labor force will cost your company in these five years?

Eighty-one percent of respondents said they would be affected by the shortage, vs. 68% three years ago, demonstrating this issue has become of even broader concern to manufacturing executives. Further, they calculate the lack of an adequate replacement pool will cost them an average $52.2 million each, compared with an average $50 million when asked in 2005. And the cost is worse for companies with more than $1 billion in annual revenue, where 44% say the shortage will cost them more than $100 million over five years.

As most posters to this thread have been saying, educating our future engineers is critical to the industry and to this country. Let's hope that the continuing partnerships developing with the CCEFP, universities, and non-profit organizations will increase the quantity and quality of engineers designing and using fluid power systems in the future.

The ATS white paper, Workforce Trends: Tools for taking control of today's skilled labor shortage provides guidance on what companies can do to stem the tide. Workforce Trends illustrates the benefits – immediate and long-term – to be found in taking proactive steps to recruit, train, and promote a multi-skilled labor force. It enumerates the steps ATS takes to satisfy two significant needs facing U.S. industry: providing the hard-to-come-by talent to work in factories; and making factories more productive in-house, so that manufacturers won't look elsewhere for less expensive production alternatives. Visit ATS to obtain a copy.

Fluid Power education seems to be another Hot Ticket item.

2,588 Lookers and only 15 Post"s.

Seems so out of Kilter????

I agree with this topic, i myself realy want to have a proper training.

Mechanical Engineers should have this kind of course training not just plain theory but how system works in industry.

Right now i just depend on reading books and search on the internet, cause am handling some of my projects regarding hydraulics.

I have 2 pending projects the automatic parking and the bender machine. I already have my own circuit design and still want to consult from everyone who are most knowledgeable from it.

btw here in our country also offers regarding fluid power training.

http://www.bulsu.edu.ph/training/training.htm

Mary;

Your post on the CRISIS IN EDUCATION and the survey resulte: "we're on the verge of a serious shortage in skilled labor and trained technicians" Sounnds a lot like our present CRISIS in anything that has to do with PETROLEUM!!!

It seems we often, usually, practically everytime have to reach CRISIS STATUS before getting off our duffs and realistically doing something worthwhile.

I always say, "Nothings Changed" and even with all the past examples we still want to wait for Someone Else to Fix the Problem or pray for that Magic Solution that never comes.

As the Old Wise Man said, Too soon OLD and Too Late SMART."

I have wondered for a time how the amount books available for training in the Electrical field differed from the amount of books available for training in the Fluid Power field.

Below is a link to one companies list of material for training in the Electrical filed where there are Trained/Dedicated persons designing circuts and maintaining them. Wow, what a difference in the list for training Fluid Power pesons.

http://www.electricalstoreonline.com/electrical_books_c...aining_materials.php

To a list of Fuid Power Training Books.

http://www.hydraulicspneumatics.com/Bookstore/

Plus the three I have proffered for whatever that is worth.

My advise to those who like to learn hydraulics without going into any training, is to buy hydraulic trainer books, get some catalogues (for component performance reference/features) and gain more experience by applying what you read. By dismatling component parts and analyzing how it works (where flow goes/pressure being applied) helps a lot.

I started with Vickers Industrial Hydraulic Manual and some Parker, but I got more understanding when I bought Rexroth books. They have more detailed/colored drawings. If you can buy "Using Industrial Hydraulics" by T.C Frankenfield, for me it is the best by far. Rexroth has Volume 1 to 6 books (all hardbound). They have Basic, Proportional/servo valves, Pumps/motors, Logic valves, Designing hydraulic systems, and The Control of the Secondary Units (most applications on precision variable hydraulic motor movements). You dont need to be an engineer to understand most except on designing where-in you need to calculate using mathematical and physics formula.

I also remember, there was this Spanish version of Vickers book with a very nice colored illustration of how valves work.

But I hope that when you learn more about hydraulics, think more on how to run your system without so much power being wasted. Unless necessary avoid using throtlling valves like flow controls(proportional/conventional), proportional directional controls and servo. Pressure drops create power losses in hydraulic system and they are caused by those throttling valves. If money is not a problem buy variable pumps

I teach fluid power in a pre-employment Heavy Equipment Technician program at a community college in Canada. I can't stress enough how dangerous it would be to learn about fluid power from a book and then beginning to work on it. I can't even fathom it... seems it would be almost suicidal to me. The books are excellent, and videos and animations are also very useful, but only to support hands on training. The theory by itself is just theory. Actually adjusting or disassembling and assembling components is needed to fully comprehend the theory.

I think everyone here would be very impressed with the curriculum we use at the school. The students take 160 hours of hydraulics training (two 80 hour programs) with an internship in between and much homework and assignments along the way. They are also concurently learning diesel engines, electrical systems, powertrains etc.

By the end of the second hydraulics course, every student has performed an isolated flow test on an excavator pump with their hands on the load valve of the flow meter understanding the risk and limited protection the meter's burst disc offers (they plot their results in a P-Q curve and pass or fail the pump and suggest adjustments to the HP control), tested cross port reliefs on a closed loop hydrostatic drive system, calibrated inputs and outputs of an electronically controlled hydrostatic drive dozer with the computer(Cat D5G), configured an excavator attachment system to run an attachment on-spec., and they have adjusted a pressure limiter and margin setting on a L/S pump regulator. They have created ISO schematics of a LS system with a Pressure limiting compensator and a flow compensating control. They also complete a closed loop hydrostatic schematic and colour 4 copies to show me Forward, Reverse, Neutral and Forward Stall.
In the first half of the program they are exposed to fixed and variable displacement pumps and motors, they disassemble and assemble hydraulic actuators, remove and install major components and do some dues paying like fitting I.D. ( I make them able to identify ORFS, NPTF, JIC flare and other common types of connections and ultimately the test is to mock order a fitting over the phone without any visual aids, only a Parker ID. kit).
At the end of the first semester, the students can identify and describe the function of a load check valve, main relief, port relief and anti-cavitation valve. We have a complete set of 3 spool "modified series" flow DCV's that we use for this.
All of the theory is supported with disassembly and assembly of modern componentry. We have an excellent relationship with industry and the contents of dealer's warranty bins are routinely offered to us before scrapping components. We have lots of cutaways we have made or had donated. Cutaway iron is still one of the most effective teaching aids. We have a fleet of modern equipment (mobile- wheel loaders, graders, dozers, skid steer loaders etc) where the students are able to perform main and port relief tests and adjustments and various other tests such as case drain flow test on a hydraulic motor.
We use the Eaton (Vickers) mobile fluid power textbook. We used to use Deere F.O.S. books, but they are out of date now. Having the images from the text in a digital format is necessary for lectures and Eaton provided that for us, Deere could not.
Some of the available animations and active schematics are just incredible. I wish all of this stuff was around when I was learning hydraulics.

oh yeah, and we also make sure all the students understand how utterly COOL fluid power is.
For a demonstration of Pascal's Law, we go on a tour of the Peterborough Lift Lock. Nothing like standing under a 3.2 million pound load while a 7.5 foot diameter ram lowers it down on top of us.
Here we are on the tour:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AqAuwYQ2pLM

This message has been edited. Last edited by: whywhyzed,

Wow thats wonderful, with cut-away models, even though your concentration was on the mobile side with so much emphasis on closed loop systems aside from the various linear actuators a mobile equipment has.

It can be still expanded to industrial applications where in power saving is very important (open loop applications). When you have that chance, you can give more emphasis on the use of speed control devices such a flow control, proportional DCV, and servo valves; valves that create so much power losses due to pressure drops. How I wish that component designers (esp variable pumps) can come up with a very good design (faster response) too.

Yeah pascal principle is nice, but in the world of moving masses try more on the combined Bernoulli/newton principles.

Marine hydraulics have plenty of interesting applications too. With those modern hagglunds motors on cranes, to servo applications on closed loop power steering systems, mooring/anchor winches, cargo/ballast and so much more!!! Ahh I cant remember much now. One fun interesting to learn too are those higher displacement vane motors that operate on very low pressure( IHI, Brattvagh?)

Well hydraulics has so much applications... so much that learning has to be continous... and the more you experience it the more interesting it becomes.

whywhyzed wrote:

quote:

I think everyone here would be very impressed with the curriculum we use at the school. The students take 160 hours of hydraulics training (two 80 hour programs) with an internship in between and much homework and assignments along the way. They are also concurently learning diesel engines, electrical systems, powertrains etc.

That is impressive, time wise and content wise. The Homework assignments that are possible in a normal classroom setting is very important and is only possible in a structured setting like you have.

Assignments and homework is one of the things I dislike with classes that are held 9-5/5 days in a row. A lot of information is passed on but none or very little reenforcement of that information is possible. Even with the typical Hydraulic Trainers the time allowed and the minimal amount of flow most use plus the valves available give little real world results.

The other fortunate thing about the students in your classes is they will probably get to apply their training on a regular basis so they don't lose the information. A lot of the Mechanics I teach leave the classroom and seldom get to work on anything remotely resembling a Fluid Power circuit since the industrial machines they work on may have little hydraulics that seldom fails and allows them to practice what they learned. "Use It or Lose It" works for any discipline.

Also, you are on target wtth the Energy Wasting circuits that are so prevalent in Hydraulic systems. I always stress components that will produce Heat when mis-applied. I also show ways to eliminate mis-application problems. It's like Over Heating is something Magic and always happens when using hydraulics so just use a bigger HEAT Exchanger to keep it cool. Had one customer that ran a circuit for two years without havng water lines hooked to the machine Heat Exchanger. However, on night the circuit started Over Heating and maintenance ran water tho the Heat Exchanger to cool the circuit. Fortunatel the Engineer for that area was knowledgeable and started trouble shooting with a heat reading device and determined a Relief valve was set lower than the compensator on the Pressure Compensated pump. A simple adjustment and they turned the water off and disconnected it.

Do you teach Trouble Shooting Techniques? Contrary to some thinking a Trouble Shooter must know how to diagnose a Circut Schematic or they wind up being a Parts Changer. Unfortnately that can work and some get very good at it if they stay around the same machines very long. However, knowing what each component is supposed to do and understanding their failure modes can reduce machine downtime drastically.

quote:

Originally posted by Bud T:

The Homework assignments that are possible in a normal classroom setting is very important and is only possible in a structured setting like you have.

Assignments and homework is one of the things I dislike with classes that are held 9-5/5 days in a row.

That's awesome, Bud...

There's a push from the college to move towards "block teaching" and I'm standing firm for the exact reasons you give.


As far as troubleshooting, we don't really get there in the time we have. I do have some failed iron that I use to show them some failure analysis. (e.g. 1 gear pump that was run without oil and another where only 1 of the 4 bearings failed- no evidence of lack of lube) I use that lesson to teach them how to defend themselves and understand that failure analysis needs to be done... Our hope is that by making them comfortable with the schematics and manuals they will be ready for step 1: "know the system"

There is a module the students actually do self paced about t/s - it teaches a 7 step process that is very good. We refer to it a fair bit.