Slabe Machine recognizes that machining today is not the machining of yesterday, and that maintaining a highly educated and motivated team is the ticket to tomorrow's success. Today's multi-axis machines are capable of so much more than the machines our grandfathers set-up and operated, and as such much higher skill level is needed in order for people to efficiently operate these high-end pieces of equipment and function in a lean and constantly improving and evolving facility. In the days of simpler machines and processes, we relied on the local tech schools as well as the "tribal knowledge" of a large available pool of experienced machinists who often times could be universally trained in various schools; however today, we recognize that the machines, processes and systems are so more complex and faster - and accordingly the people who we rely on to set-up, maintain and operate these machines and systems must also be that much more advanced as well - and so we founded Slabe Machine University to help train and develop and better educate our workforce of tomorrow.
Slabe Machine University is a classroom setting in which all of our team members can obtain higher education and instruction in various aspects of both our specific procedures and core competencies as well as in the intricacies and general processes associated with all types of machining and inspection. Courses can be structured, or simply an open discussion of ideas and sharing of 'best practices'. We offer a full curriculum of classes taught by educators, outside personal from other companies, as well as by our own team members who have achieved a certain level of skill in a specific aspect of machining, inspection or processing. Individuals are able to attend classes, obtain credits and further their education in many classes such as basic blueprint reading, geometric dimensioning and tolerancing, statistical processing and control, certification review, basic and complex CNC programming, CAD/CAM, Swiss machining vs. ‘basic’ machining, CNC offsets and workshifts, Workholding variables, Cutting fluids, Cutting tool geometry and coatings, Calibration Fundamentals, Holemaking basics, Cutting Variables, Carbide grade selection, Speed and Feed Selection, Optimization of insert life, etc. - which in turn allows Slabe Machine to enjoy the benefit of having a much more educated, intelligent and engaged workforce, and one that allows us to further position ourselves for success.