TMCC system tests mechanical aptitude

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Employers can get a better sense of the mechanical aptitude of potential employers after Truckee Meadows Community College invested more than $10,000 in a new, hands-on testing system.

The equipment known as a Standard Timing Model was developed by Scientific Management Techniques Inc. or Merrimack, N.H., to test troubleshooting abilities and reasoning as well as hand-eye coordination and spatial perception.

Jim New, dean of applied industrial technology at TMCC, said the school decided to invest in the system after it heard from industrial employers that they were unable to find mechanical skills assessment services in the region.

“We saw an opportunity to provide this service,” he said. TMCC staff members have spent the last few weeks to learn the system’s operation.

While some skills-assessment services provide Web-based simulation, the Standard Timing Model is hands-on.

New noted that its settings allow for different degrees of difficulty as employers are testing potential workers. A test for a maintenance mechanic position, for instance, will include some built-in flaws that the applicant will be required to troubleshoot. The testing protocol for a machine operator position is less challenging.

Employers who want to make arrangements for use of the system should contact Deb O’Gorman, TMCC’s director of customized training, at 775-824-3811 or dogorman@tmcc.edu.