Personnel Assessment and Training

Intervale Consulting Group, Inc. has a proprietary process to accomplish the following:

1. Identification of the knowledge and skill sets required of operations, maintenance and engineering personnel in a chemical or polymers facility
2. Assessment of the knowledge and skill sets possessed by individuals in operations, maintenance and engineering
3. Identification of the gaps in the knowledge and skill sets
4. Development of intervention programs designed to achieve knowledge and skill set gap closure

Intervale developed this specialized personnel assessment, training and development program in 2005 and has successfully applied it at three different facilities. Intervale principals and associates know well all critical aspects of operations and maintenance in a chemical or polymer plant. Having designed plants utilizing a variety of technologies we also know how to effectively engineer these plants. Intervale can provide to the client a detailed inventory of the key operating, maintenance and engineering know-how required. Using this know-how inventory, the operating, maintenance and engineering staff at the facility is assessed for their level of technical know-how. Gaps are identified and gap closure training programs are built and applied. The facility staff is reassessed following training to assure gap closure has been achieved.

This proprietary process is accomplished in phases as follows:

Phase 1 – Our specialists review the performance of the plant from the following perspectives:

• Applied technology
• Standard operating procedures/practices
• Operating parameters including temperatures, pressures
• Plant and section throughput
• Section and overall plant stream factor
• Scheduled and unscheduled shutdowns
• Mechanical failures and causes
• Raw material, intermediate product and final product composition

Phase 2 – Our specialists interview selected members of the plant staff from operations, maintenance and engineering to assess technical know-how, and know-how gaps.

Phase 3 – We estimate costs of developing and executing gap closure programs, quantifies benefits to be expected from gap closure and calculates return-on-investment (ROI) of proposed gap closure programs.

Phase 4 – We design training programs to achieve know-how gap closure

Phase 5 – We conduct training for key members of the operations, maintenance and engineering staff to achieve gap closure and “train-the-trainers”.

Phase 6 – We audit to confirm gap closure and capture of proposed benefits.

The duration of the combined Phases 1 and 2 is a function of the size and complexity of the subject facility, but typically is on the order of 3-6 weeks. Phase 3 normally has a duration of 4 weeks. The duration of Phases 4 and 5 is dependent upon the extent of the gaps identified but can be on the order of several months. The duration of audit following the execution of training is once again dependent upon the size and complexity of the facility and the number and magnitude of the know-how gaps identified but is typically on the order of 2-3 weeks. Total time for all phases can be 1-2 years.

In 2003, Intervale supported the creation of a personnel assessment and development program for a diversified chemical producer in Asia. Intervale participated in the execution of the program over a period of seven years, after which the producer assumed full responsibility for the program.