Operation Smartforce: an approach to training the workforce of tomorrow

This paper describes a joint industry, academy, and government effort to harness technology to maintain a competent national maintenance workforce in the face of accelerating technological change. The study was motivated by a growing awareness that the incidence of first-time successful equipment repairs is generally decreasing, that the incidence of unnecessary parts replacement is increasing, and that there is a declining correlation between training and performance of technicians in some industries. After diagnosing the cause of the problem, the solution that is offered consists of a technology that will shift the training paradigm from relying on memory to relying on just-in-time, responsive, and valid information access, information processing, and decision making. The enabling technology to support this consists of miniaturized, wearable, multimedia processors connected to networks. This approach to training has broad applicability across multiple industries and promises to provide access to previously excluded segments of the workforce