The rate at which people and organisations learn and apply new technologies usually lies far behind the actual pace of development.  Many companies in our industry use toolholders, milling cutters, drills, insert grades, geometries, and machining techniques that have been superseded. 

The result - an increase in the so called "technology gap" which has a detrimental effect on a company's ability to complete, with productivity often falling well behind that which is possible.

The Seco Technical Education Programme (STEP) is a well developed and practical programme designed to familiarise users with the latest tooling systems and metal cutting techniques. STEP enables companies to combat the "technology gap" and achieve maximum machining productivity.

STEP is designed to keep our customers in touch with a rapidly changing industry.  Without an in-depth understanding of the new technologies in the market, many customers find the decision making process more and more difficult as the range of tooling systems expands.

Who should participate in the STEP programme?
Courses can be designed to cover customer specific requirements, so that machine operators, manufacturing engineers, programmers, and company owners can begin to understand the simplest way to choose the correct tooling and machining strategy.

What information does STEP contain?
STEPinto:
This is intended as an introduction to metal cutting and can be appreciated by participants from other disciplines. It lifts the curtain on our industry, and illustrates the crucial importance that it has to the world of mechanical engineering. STEPinto can be considered as an overview and of benefit to stakeholders not necessarily engaged directly in metal cutting processes.

QuickSTEP:
QuickSTEP as the name implies is a fast track through the basics of metal cutting processes. It deals in particular with the language, terminology and concepts that underpin the process of creating machined components.

QuickSTEP is an ideal educational package for engineers who want to equip themselves with the knowledge to delve deeper into machining processes.

STEP core curriculum:
Almost twenty five years in the making, the core curriculum covers every important aspect of cutting tool design, selection and application. It is the essential knowledge that is necessary to fully appreciate milling, turning, holemaking, threading and tool holding systems. An essential part of the early training of Secos own experts, completing the core curriculum demands time, energy and a good basic understanding of metal machining.

STEP industrial segments:
Intended for customers who are, on a daily basis, engaged in component manufacturing in specific engineering segments. Before participating in these combined information, education and training courses it is expected that participants are equipped not just to follow detailed presentations but to also engage in technical discussions to fully explore what is on offer. These courses will eventually cover amongst others automotive, power generation, medical, aerospace, oil and gas and wind power industries. Please enquire for further details

Locations:
Please contact your local Seco office for more information about the next STEP training sessions.