Planerman job now recognized as certified trade, new training course to begin soon in Cranbrook One of the efforts that the Joint In- dustrial Adjustment Planning Commit- tee is most proud of is the new and upcoming training course for planer- mill maintenance. In March of 1991 the B.C. Apprenticeship Board recog- nized the position of planerman as a certifiable trade. Now, under the IFLRA/AWA agreement, a certified plan- erman gets paid the same as a certi- fied millwright. That’s all happened because the IWA and the industry ap- proached the Provincial Apprentice- ship Board (PAB) on the grounds that the position should be considered a certifiable trade and a new program must be put in place. For decades the positions of planer- men have been unrecognized in the forest industry. For a position that is so important, the position has been underpaid. In most cases there has been little formal training as workers have had to learn the hard way. What the union, the industry, and the PAB have agreed upon is long overdue. Now that planermen are an officially recognized trade they need an officially recognized course to teach and upgrade them. If everything goes as planned, the full-fledged planermill maintenance course offered through the facilities and curriculum of The East Kootenay Community College’s campus in Cran- brook will be the first of its kind in Canada. There has not been enough formal train- ing for planermen who work adding great value to lumber The course, which is called Planer- mill Techician One and Two, is fully ‘structured and offers full instruction and upgrading of established planer- men who can challenge the appren- tice course by writing a Trade Qualification (TQ) exam. So far three TQ ling courses have been held, each lasting for two weeks. If they are successful in passing the TQ test, then the experienced workers will become recognized as certified rmen and be eligible for the rate of pay. If they fail the test will not lose their positions. they will remain at a slightly job rate and get another shot at TQ test in the future. In either case will be no threat to seniority for need en if they do no in challenging the TQ. _ men who have, along with oth- heavily involved in putting Y together are Norm a#l peereuien St i Okanagan Falls division an ch foreman at er Product's sawmill in Both men have worked hard IWA-CANADA Local 1-423, told the Lumberworker that traditionally plan- erman training has been off the cuff with no formal structure. Some of the manufacturers have put on programs here and there. The rest you learn the hard way. “If they (the planermen) haven’t been properly trained they will contin- ue to use bad habits,” added Mr. Hatch. The IWA-Industry committee has gotten things going and given some di- rection to the provincial government. In Cranbrook the planermens’ course is set up in its own building in the Cranbrook Industrial Park. A full-time coordinator has been hired and is working on the program. In the development of the course's written material, two IWA experts, two staff members from IFLRA compa- nies, and five industry experts spent over a month with cirriculum writers from the provincial government. The course will be open to students from all over the province and west- ern Canada as well. Tom Kirk, Director of Employee Re- lations at Crestbook Forest Products in Cranbrook, is also the chairman of steering committee for the planer- mens’ maintenance program. He says that the college will give the course a high profile in the community whose economy in based on forestry. “Our goal is to have a first class pro- gram with the cooperation of the provincial government, the industry and the IWA,” said Mr. Kirk. “The plan- erman course is not only a trade relat- ed to maintenance, it will have some skills related to the future of the in- dustry.” There are two levels of courses be- ing offered. They are the Planermill I apprentice and Planermill I which is addition theory and practice. Planermill II is a 2 year program that includes 6 weeks of theory and practical training per year while Plan- ermill I is an additional year along with six weeks of theory and practical training as well. Topics covered in the two appren- ticeship courses include the follow- ing: — the forest industry — safe work practices — shop and measuring tools — technical information processing — the planer and set up of the plan er — installation and alignment of the planer and planermill equipment — removal and installation of knives and cutter heads — grinding and jointing of: knives and cutter heads — fasteners and fittings — pneumatic systems and service — hydraulic systems and service — lubrication systems and service — weld, braze and solder metals — bearings and seals — maintenance and repair of plan ermill equipment — maintenance and overhaul of planer IWA-CANADA member Don Hipkiss, head planerman at Weyerhauser’s Lumby operation says all green guys will have to go through an apprentice- ship program in the future. He also says that workers are ger- erally optimistic about the program. “We see an advantage that we will be able to bring up people within the ranks of the workforce, rather than iring them from outside,” he says. “It’s important for the workers to realize that they've go nothing to lose by writing a TQ provincial test,” added Norm Toszak. “If someone fails the test they are not going to lose their °Ken Hatch, planer foreman at Riverside Forest Products in Kelowna, and IWA Local 1-423 member Norm Tosak (right), have both helped put the new program together. job. They can always write the test again.” “I'd like to see a lot of #1 and #2 planer men challenge the TQ test. All they have to do is get a hold of the provincial apprenticeship board to do it, said Tosak. Workers will need a letter from their current or past employers stat- ing the number of hours and experi- ence they have had in the planer. The content for the the TQ upgrade include the following: — forestry overview — WCB - WHMIS theory — safety instruction — planer set-up and line-up — lubrication, grinding, jointing — couplings, hydraulics, bearings — seals and packing, clutches — welding, gears, material handling — belts, lumber’sizes and grades Over the years the general priciples of planing have remained more or less the same. Today there are more varia- tions of planed products coming out of mills and more value-added wood than in previous years. Many mills still only produce 1” or 2” boards while others manufacture more specialized widths for the cus- tom cut market and markets where pattern stock is required. In any case today’s planermen should be prepared for any situation. Now that the IWA and industry com- mittee have gotten things going, pro- viding the direction to government, planermen from all over Canada will be able to pick up and refine their skills at the new college course. The college is setting up a Stetson-Ross planer on the training site in Cranbrook. A Newman planer has also been donate and will be set up as well. “The same theories basically apply to the new machines as the old ma- chines,” said Mr. Hatch. He also said that today the toler- ance on planers is more crucial than it used to be. You can’t be an 1/8th of an inch out on your alingment. If so you can ruin and mismanufacure lumber easily. To press date about $100,000 worth of equipment and funding for the equipment has been recieved from the forest industry in order to operate the school. This was in fulfillment as part of the industry's commitment to the B.C. government to establish the pro- gram. We will be able to bring people up within the workforce, rather than hiring them from outside — Don Hipkiss Planerman, Local 1-423 During the planermill maintenance course there will be s special empha- sis on safety. “There’s not as many accidents as ther used to be but you still are using dangerous, high speed equipment,” commented Brother Tosak. “People tend to get overconfident and can lose fear of what the planerhead can do to them.” Lock-out procedures will be stressed right from the start. LUMBERWORKER/APRIL, 1994/17