For many manufacturers, shop floor training feels like a necessary evil, costly downtime with questionable benefits. But it doesn't have to be that way. Training on the shop floor is critical but often overlooked or underprioritized. Poorly executed sessions can lead to production delays, frustrated employees, and wasted resources. But with the right approach, shop floor training can build a more capable team and improve operational performance.
A few years back, I sat in a training session for a new computer program. It was held in the library of a local school. I sat beside a poster of a cat falling off a tree with the words, “Hang in there! ” written on the bottom. The keyboard was chained to the computer and there was old gum underneath.
“Now, I know you all are wondering if this training will work,” the moderator asked.
Very much so, I thought to myself. It didn't feel relevant, helpful or like anything I'd encounter in my work environment. Truth is, all too often training is thrown together at the last minute and no one is excited to be there. It’s doomed to fail from the beginning. With a little thought and planning you can deliver shop floor and manufacturing training that delivers measurable benefits to the shop floor, here’s six tips to get you started:
Context matters. If you're training your team in a space that doesn't reflect the realities of the shop floor (or worse, using scenarios that don't connect to their day-to-day) you're already losing engagement.
Tip: Whenever possible, conduct training on the shop floor. And provide access to on-demand training materials your team can use when it makes the most sense, during actual production tasks, not just scheduled classroom sessions next to kitten posters.
If you're using a Manufacturing Execution System (MES), you can embed training directly into the digital work instructions. This allows operators to learn in real time, while actively completing tasks.
This approach, called Anchored Instruction, ties learning to real-world challenges. or placing instruction in a meaningful, problem solving context. Studies show it improves knowledge retention, speeds up skill development, and leads to better long-term performance.
Tip: Link step-by-step training content to the relevant operation. Let the system deliver training at the point of need automatically.
Some of your best insights live inside your employee's heads. Unfortunately, that tribal knowledge is often lost when workers retire, switch roles, or more on. A central library of best practices ensures that valuable experience becomes part of your organization's training strategy.
Tip: Capture real-life tips, shortcuts, and lessons learned (just like these). Store them in your MES or shop floor system and make them accessible by role, process, or product line.
Many training programs fall short because they're based on hypothetical examples or sample cases. Even worse, the system users are being trained on doesn’t or can’t incorporate existing work processes. This is especially true for template-based MES systems. But your team doesn't operate in a vacuum, they follow very specific processes, often tailored to your shop.
Tip: Whenever possible, use your actual operations and work plans in training. If your MES can't support that level of customization, it might be time to reassess the system you're using.
We've seen it before: multiple versions of the same work operation circulating across divisions. Not long ago, I came across a shop floor using 4 different versions of a single work operation. The operation was in 4 different plans, used by two different divisions, but it did the EXACT same work. It's a recipe for inconsistent training and production errors. Everyone lost valuable time and confidence in the system.
Tip: This happens more than you might think. Make sure your training is relevant by ensuring everyone is working from the same plans. Your MES should enforce revision control so every operator is working from the latest, approved instructions. If you want to drive consistency and best practices on the shop floor, you need consistency in your work plans.
One screenshot can eliminate hours of frustration. At my training, I was given “supplementary materials” that would “enhance my work training.” The supplementary material was simply a stapled packet of 8 pages going over the lessons. There were no screenshots or pictures, just endless text. When work instructions are overly technical, text heavy, or hard to follow, operators spend more time trying to understand the process than completing it.
Tip: Include images, diagrams, and visual cues in your digital work instructions. A simple part photo or highlighted area can significantly reduce training time and mistakes. Read more about what visual information can do for your shop floor.
In that 8-hour school library training, I spent five more hours at my desk trying to remember how to complete a 10-minute task. Thirteen hours of training and I never used the content again. That's not just a bad use of time. It's a missed opportunity.
Training is critical for any organization, for onboarding, scaling, and process improvement. But without the right structure or delivery, it's just busywork. You need to onboard new employees, you need to build and develop critical skills and incorporate changes to processes and SOP (Standard Operating Procedures). Rather than accept training as a necessary (and likely useless) task, turn it into an advantage for your shop floor.
Start embedding training into the systems and workflows your team already uses. With the right tools (like a modern MES) you can deliver training that's continuous, contextual, and valuable.
How do you currently handle shop floor training? We'd love to hear your approach. Share your challenges and wins – we're always here to help manufacturers build better processes that work in the real world.
And if you don't have a system that can handle your team's training, let us show you how visual training tools can boost your team's efficiency.