FTA reports operator certification program success

Launched three years ago, the North American Flexographic Technical Association’s (FTA) First operator certification program now boasts a roster of more than 300 individuals who have attained the First operator certifications.

Broken down, they represent:

• 193 certified press operators
• 100 certified implementation specialists
• 10 certified pre-press operators
• 30 companies displaying First certification plaques in their offices
• One First company certification
• Three companies currently working on their First company certifications
• 400+ active virtual campus users working to attain certification

‘We are extremely pleased with the program’s success, and our users are pleased with the results they are seeing. We know the training is effective when we hear our members comment how their employees are more technically sound, how they understand the need to follow the processes, and how their businesses have seen marked improvement in consistency and repeatability,’ said Joe Tuccitto, FTA education director.

‘We’ve seen great success, but the key is to always stay ahead of the curve. Our staff remains laser-focused and dedicated to making sure the content is always relevant, and the e-learning technology is intuitive and robust.’

The program, operating under the umbrella of FTA’s Technical Education Services Team (Test) business unit, is administered online via the Test Virtual Campus and offers three tracks for individuals: press operator, pre-press operator and implementation specialist.

Professionals who undergo the training must successfully pass the examination given at the end of each level in order to move forward to the next. The ‘students’ receive their official First operator certification once they have passed the Level III examination. A fourth track, the First company certification, was added last year to recognize the companies that are applying First methodology and have attained compliance with the specifications and tolerances related to communication and implementation, design, pre-press and press as detailed in the most current Flexographic Image Reproduction Specifications & Tolerances (First) document.

Tuccitto concluded: ‘Your customers must have faith in the process. Internal, on-the-job-training is important, but a proven success strategy is to grow past your own self-education, and take ownership of the process. That’s where the First operator certification program shines and that’s when you start seeing real results.’

Click here to view a complete list of First certifications.

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