Fletcher Aluminium

The client

Fletcher Aluminium designs, develops and manufactures aluminium extrusions for an extensive range of industries. These premium products are sold throughout New Zealand and internationally.

The challenge

Fletcher Aluminium has a workforce of more than 200, and around 85% are Pasifika and other ethnicities, who speak English as a second language. Limited English language skills prevented some employees from fully understanding quality standards and procedures, including health and safety. Employees were reluctant to ask for information, or participate in team meetings. When the company wanted to introduce productivity initiatives which depended on employees being self managing, low literacy and communication skills prevented these initiatives being successful.

Practical, sustainable solutions

Workbase developed a training programme that assisted employees to:

• Understand instructions and ask questions
• Offer feedback and participate in meetings
• Understand weights and measures and the company's performance data
• Problem solve and be able to anticipate problems and identify solutions
• Take the initiative and be accountable for meeting targets
• Understand safe job practices and take responsibility for working safely.

Great results

The company has successfully implemented a range of initiatives to improve performance and productivity across the business. They acknowledge this success would not have been possible without literacy training. Since the training programme began:

• Production wastage has reduced by nearly 40%.
• On time delivery of the right product has improved by 8% to national customers and 11% for export deliveries.
• The dynamics of self-managing teams have improved - the number of initiatives suggested by employees is up by almost 80%.
• Lost time due to injuries has reduced to zero.

 

Watch Fletcher Aluminium's 'Building training around business needs' Video

Watch Fletcher Aluminium's 'How Literacy Training helps staff understand health and safety' Video